‘AK-47 Sing-Along’ puts youth TV propaganda on stage

We can all remember waking up on a warm morning, running down to breakfast, and cozying up to “Sesame Street.” At the tender age of four or five, this cherished children’s program taught us our ABCs and 123s. But what would happen if we were taught intolerance alongside morals, manners, and personal hygiene? This is the tragedy that frames Samara Weiss’s “AK-47 Sing-Along.” The play, directed by Lucy Cashion, is a deeply disturbing and ironic perspective on Middle Eastern versions of “Sesame Street,” called “Rechov Sumsum,” “Shara3 SimSim,” and “Tomorrow’s Pioneers” (the last is identified as “Tomorrow’s Victors” throughout the play). The show opens on a young girl and cat, singing as Palestinians from Gaza about Israel on a seemingly lighthearted children’s show called “Tomorrow’s Victors.” However, looks can be deceiving. “Tomorrow’s Victors” proves to be a vehicle for misinformation, aggression, and distortion. A girl named Salwa, co-host on this realistic show, uses detailed accounts of murder and violence to urge viewers to rise to arms. Though this situation seems far-fetched, the play communicates the idea that propaganda is perpetuated on all sides of the conflict through a sub-plot concerning Jakob Eshel and Hassan Waked, TV personalities and friends on opposite sides of the conflict. The actors were clearly invested in their characters—tears welled in several actors’ eyes as they recounted the deaths of loved ones—but their pain did not leave the audience members weeping in their seats. Though not a visceral work, “AK-47 Sing-Along” is at once a story of disillusionment and hope, of heartbreak and beauty. With constant contradictions in reaction to loss—children’s television as a vehicle for violence, violence and martyrdom as the answer to family deaths—Weiss’s play illustrates how ludicrously television has manipulated and perpetuated different perceptions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Capturing the deadly and deeply emotional conflict proved quite difficult. Unfortunately, the minimalist scenery and prop usage—a few nondescript tables, chairs, telephones, and a colorful map of the contested territory—left much to be desired. With such sparse scenery, it was not until a scene of a border crossing at the end of the first act that I understood that stage left was Israel, that stage right was Gaza, and that center stage was the lively world of “Tomorrow’s Victors.” However, as the conflict escalates and the characters become more emotional and aggressive, the minimalist stage becomes bare and spotlighting is employed. While set design initially seemed lacking, this choice proved worthwhile as it put a focus on the actors’ words and the play’s overall commentary. Though the play soundly conveys the danger of spreading propaganda through children’s television programs and gives a genuine cry for peace, it is far more effective in evoking frustration than rallying its audience to actively right this wrong.