DISGRACED at McCarter Theatre

*Philly.com, “Ebrahimzadeh, charm ablaze, repeats the smartest trick in Akhtar’s playbook, the same one at the heart of The Invisible Hand: With whom do we identify? Amir is so likeable, so reasonable. He’s us, and yet he’s not. And if he’s not us, who are we?”

*DCMetroTheatreArts, “At the center of it all, Maboud Ebrahimzadeh is captivating as protagonist Amir… He has an easy grace and an infectious smile, at war with an inner turmoil, yet still especially compassionate in scenes with his nephew Abe (Abit Dileep). There are times when the circumstances seem so stacked against him that the playwright retains the upper hand, but Ebrahimzadeh’s natural charisma and nobility make this uniquely flawed anti-hero a joy to explore.”

*Phindie.com, “Of the three productions I’ve seen of Ayad Akhtar’s honest, far-reaching play, Marcela Lorca’s staging for Princeton’s McCarter Theatre is the best. By far. By miles. One reason for that is the stirring tour de force performance of Maboud Ebrahimzadeh, already in award contention for his work in another Akhtar piece, Theatre Exile’s The Invisible Hand. Ebrahimzadeh thoroughly and humanly shows you the thousand compartmental traits and dimensions that compose his character, Amir Kapoor… Ebrahimzadeh is an actor of super-tactile sensitivity and honest emotion. ”

*NJArts.net, “The production, directed by Marcela Lorca — and featuring an intense, wrenching performance by Maboud Ebrahimzadeh as its central character, Amir, a Pakistani-American lawyer — does justice to this powder keg of a play…  It’s doubtful that you’ll ever have a chance to see a significantly better [production].”

*BroadStreetReview, ” Ebrahimzadeh plays Amir with humor and charm, revealing a man who’s reinvented himself to fit into a culture wary of Muslims, but who now doesn’t know who or what he is, as we find out in an explosion of violence that doesn’t ring true, more because of the script than the performances, after secrets are revealed.”

*NJ.com, “Ebrahimzadeh is a wonder, allowing us to understand the internal contradictions of a man who has spent decades trying to come to terms with his religious upbringing — and his experiences as a Muslim in America — but remains incapable of making sense of things.”

*CentralJersey.com, “Ebrahimzadeh is brilliant as Amir, a man whose confidence is shattered. His emotional turmoil is truly affecting.”

*TownTopics.com, “Ebrahimzadeh as Amir provides a strong, convincing focus for the action of the play — in his sophisticated swagger as a confident, successful lawyer; in his loving, often difficult interactions with his wife; in his attempts to help his nephew; in his contentious relationships with Isaac and Jory; in his struggle to reconcile his Muslim heritage with his ambitious pursuit of the American Dream; and in his ultimate disgrace.”