Originally performed in a National New Play Network rolling world premiere across several American cities in 2023, Kareem Fahmy’s American Fast makes its DC regional debut at Theater Alliance, being performed for the first time, as the playwright notes, “during the intersection of Ramadan and March Madness.”
The intersection of Ramadan and March Madness sets up the central tension for the play and its main character, Khady Salama (Gigi Cammaroto). Khady, an Egyptian-American senior point guard at an unnamed university, is eager to pursue a national championship (and the attention of WNBA scouts) when her mother, Suzan (Raghad Makhlouf), reminds her that the tournament coincides with the Ramadan fast, where observant Muslims abstain from food and water from sunrise to sunset.
SUZAN: God wants you to fast so you can win!
KHADY: I can’t win if I’m fasting!
While Khady would prefer to keep the fast — and her mother — at a distance and focus single-mindedly on her pursuit of the national championship while keeping her private life private, Suzan soon flies halfway across the country and shows up at her daughter’s dorm room to “help her keep the fast.” When Suzan shows up at a press conference for Khady’s team at the start of the tournament and announces that her daughter will be fasting during the games, Khady’s media-savvy Coach (Renee Elizabeth Wilson) realizes that she can harness the moment to draw national attention to her team and her university.
Before long, Khady is internationally known by her full name, Khadija (previously used only by her mother), and billed as the first female basketball player to compete in March Madness while fasting for Ramadan. While she is initially uncomfortable with being held up as a role model for young Muslim girls and women everywhere, Khady, a “textbook narcissist” in the words of her boyfriend and fellow basketball star Gabe (Travis Xavier), also craves the spotlight — even as it threatens to consume her.
Audiences for American Fast have courtside seats to this fast-moving drama in Theater Alliance’s intimate pop-up space at The Westerly in Southwest DC. Nadir Bey’s scenic design requires minimal moving of props (Isabel Simoes deCarvalho, props designer) and set pieces as the action moves between the basketball court, the locker room, Khady’s dorm room, and a bar where she shares moments with Gabe — including some of the play’s most revealing conversations. Sound designers Brandon Cook and Sayf Turkomani combine a soundtrack of Arabic music (delightfully sung along to by Makhlouf in some of her domestic scenes as Suzan) with club hits in the bar and the sounds of the basketball court — sneakers squeaking across the hardwood, a referee’s whistle, the buzzer. On opening night, cheers from the audience frequently drowned out the piped-in crowd noise during the basketball scenes!
At times, American Fast feels like watching an ESPN 30 for 30 feature on stage, with snippets of on-court action (delivered in stylized solo fashion by Khady) interspersed with dramatic monologues from each of the four characters. However, the play is at its most explosive — and most powerful — in its most intimate and interpersonal moments, as each of its characters struggles to reveal their true self amid the roles they are expected to play. Coach feels the expectation of the university’s administration and their wealthy donors that she deliver the national championships as a coach that she once won as a player. Suzan swells with pride over Khady’s successes and expresses deep shame at her daughter’s failures, explaining that in Islam, “the mother is responsible” for the fate of her child. Gabe, the son of Black American Muslim converts, and Khady, the daughter of Egyptian Muslim immigrants, struggle with the expectations of their families and the religion they were raised in, and with their sense of never having had a choice in the religious identity their parents passed down to them — an identity that both question as they come of age.
While Coach shares her relief that social media did not exist when she was a college basketball star, Gabe and Khady’s generation comes of age under the scrutiny of social media, which adds to Khady’s ever-present sense of being watched. Watched by her coach and university, who are concerned with maintaining the school’s reputation and financial standing; watched by her mother, who appears on FaceTime in the wee hours of the morning to remind her daughter of the start of Ramadan and then moves herself into Khady’s dorm room; watched by WNBA scouts and sportscasters as the tournament progresses; watched by an ever-growing number of fans and “haters” analyzing and commenting on her every move on social media; and watched by the all-seeing eye of God. Hailey LaRoe’s projections of Suzan on FaceTime, of a fictionalized ESPN SportsCenter broadcast, of social media posts, and of the “Eye of Providence” representing the divine gaze powerfully create the fishbowl that Khady lives in — and is soon drowning in.
Under Reginald L. Douglas’ direction and brought to life by the outstanding performances of Cammaroto, Xavier, Makhlouf, and Wilson, American Fast moves at a thrilling pace without sacrificing emotional intimacy, keeping audiences invested in both the on-court and off-court drama while well-timed and well-delivered humor keeps the story from collapsing under its own weight. Opening at the intersection of Ramadan, March Madness, and Women’s History Month, and speaking to broader questions of intergenerational conflict, immigrant family dynamics, religious and personal identity, and so much more, American Fast is both timely and timeless in the themes it explores. Get your tickets fast!
Running Time: Approximately 90 minutes, with no intermission.
American Fast plays through April 13, 2025, presented by Theater Alliance performing at The Westerly, 340 Maple Drive SW, Washington, DC 20024. Showtimes are Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8:00 pm, with 3:00 pm matinees on Saturdays and Sundays. Tickets ($40) can be purchased online, from the box office at boxoffice@theateralliance.com, or at (202) 241-2539. Discounts are available for students, seniors, active and retired military, East of the River neighbors, and industry professionals; details here.
The digital program for American Fast is available here.
COVID Safety: Masks are optional.
American Fast
By Kareem Fahmy
CAST
Khady: Gigi Cammaroto
Gabe: Travis Xavier
Suzan: Raghad Makhlouf
Coach: Renee Elizabeth Wilson
CREATIVE TEAM
Director: Reginald L. Douglas
Scenic Designer: Nadir Bey
Costume Designer: Cidney Forkpah
Lighting Designer: Minjoo Kim
Projections Designer: Hailey LaRoe
Co-Sound Designers: Brandon Cook and Sayf Turkomani
Props Designer: Isabel Simoes deCarvalho
Assistant Costume Designer: Logan L. Benson
Choreographer: Siani Nicole
Basketball Consultant: Nathanael Hatchett
PRODUCTION TEAM
Stage Manager: Regina Vitale
Assistant Stage Manager: Isabella Tapia
Substitute Stage Manager: Samba Pathak
Wardrobe Supervisor: Logan L. Benson
Audio Supervisor: Allison Pearson
Electricians: Ben Harvey, Trinity Joseph, Emily Pan, Elliot Peterson
SEE ALSO:
Theater Alliance to close season with ‘American Fast’ regional premiere (news story, March 6, 2025)
