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Israel continues a military build-up, sending two more warships to its southern border with Egypt in the Red Sea. As many as 1500 Egyptian troops have been deployed to the Sinai Peninsula along the boarder between Southern Israel and Gaza, a move coordinated and approved by the Israeli government. Stationing troops in the Sinai region violates the Camp David accords, however Israel is warning of an attack on its southern region, launched from inside Israel by militant Palestinians. On August 18th, 7 Israelis were killed on a desert road in the South when gunmen identified as Palestinian opened fire on military and civilian vehicles. Israel immediately retaliated with airstrikes over the Gaza strip, killing at least 26 Palestinians. Israeli officials blamed the Gazan Popular Resistance Committee for the August 18th ambush, a claim that, CNN reported, has been denied by leaders of the organization and Hamas. The eruption of violence comes just weeks before Palestinians are expected to request that the UN General Assembly recognize a Palestinian state comprised of Gaza, the West Bank, and east Jerusalem. The US and Israel are not surprisingly opposed to the move. This new spate of violence and international attention on the region serves as a provocative context to an already controversial play, entitled, “My Name Is Rachel Corrie.” Rachel Corrie, an American citizen, was only 23 when she was crushed by a bulldozer in Gaza in 2003 during a solidarity group action to prevent the demolition of Palestinian homes ordered by the Israeli government. An investigation by Israel determined her death was an accident. Her supporters contend she was murdered. The one-woman play based on the diaries and personal correspondence of its namesake premiered in London in 2005. Its US debut in Spring 2006 was delayed after the New York Theater Workshop postponed the opening date in the face of vehement protest by the Jewish community. The play was then picked up by Minetta theater in Greenwich Village and has since toured the United States and Canada. This Thursday’s performance of “My Name Is Rachel Corrie” at the Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum in Topanga Canyon marks the play’s Los Angeles premier, running for additional performances, all followed by audience talk back sessions.

GUESTS: Susan Angelo, Director, Alan Blumenfeld, Theatricum Board Member, both are Theatricum Company members

My Name is Rachel Corrie premieres in Southern California on Thursday September 1st, 8:00pm at the Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum, 1419 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd., Topanga CA, 90290. Call 310-455-3723 for tickets or click here: https://theatricum.secure.force.com/ticket#details_a0OA0000003v8TrMAI

The play is performed the first four Thursday of September on the 1, 8, 15, 22 — all begin at 8pm