Anti-Israel? Anti-Palestinian? How Can the Same Radio Play Be Both?

Anti-Israel? Anti-Palestinian? How Can the Same Radio Play Be Both?

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- It's not a Churchill communique from the Battle of Britain or an FDR fireside chat, but "It's Up To Us Alone" hopes to channel a bit of that radio magic to address the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. "It's Up To Us Alone" is a two-act radio drama set in the echoes of recent Palestinian rocket attacks and Israeli military incursions, which will have its worldwide broadcast debut this Friday, Oct. 16 at 5PM on KPFK 90.7 FM in Los Angeles.

Advocates of both sides of the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians are already accusing the play of being too sympathetic to the other side, or too critical of their own. Says Pen, writer and director of the play, "Even as we were starting to circulate the script, we heard from people condemning it, evidently because we did not favor one side 100% over the other. Of course, the play doesn't explicitly name either of the sides. It could be set anywhere that the army of one people is occupying the land of another."

Starring Ed Asner (fresh off his voice work success in Pixar's Up) as Ari Shalom, the radio play features a full cast of actors taking on a script that looks at both the broader, international implications of war as well as the personal costs of conflict.

"In our opinion, Asner's work is one of the greatest dramatic acting performances we've heard anywhere," Pen says. "Someone had to tell us that Mr. Asner was himself brought up in an orthodox Jewish family. We had no idea, and cast him solely on the basis of his acting genius."

"We're hoping to stimulate discussion on the Middle East," he continues. "The idea of the play was to roll the movie ahead ... to say to people, this is the track we're on, folks, do you like the end of this movie? And if not, then what are we going to do about it? And by the end of the play, we make a very strong statement, basically that war doesn't serve the interests of either side of a conflict. The people on BOTH sides lose."

To stimulate that discussion and to involve listeners with the broadcast, the entire first act of the play can be heard online now at http://usalone.com/. Pen says, "Anyone who goes to the site can get a copy of the audio CD of the full play, with no donation required, by just submitting the form there."

Besides KPFK, which packs 115,000 watts in Southern California, other prominent outlets like 100,000-watt KKFI in Kansas City have confirmed participation in the broadcast debut event. "We are even hearing from stations as far away as London," says Pen, "so people can check with their local stations to see if they are onboard, and for local broadcast times, or anyone can listen in to the KPFK broadcast on the Internet at http://www.kpfk.org/."

This release was issued through eReleases(TM). For more information, visit http://www.ereleases.com/.

Source: usalone.com

CONTACT: The Pen, usalone.com, +1-310-494-0114

Web Site: http://usalone.com/

-------
Profile: intent