Sharif شريف - is a staged reading of a gripping and deeply moving new drama about the precarious lives of LGBTQ+ Palestinians.
The play follows Sharif, a queer Palestinian man forced to flee the West Bank after being outed. Seeking safety in Israel – a place that represents both refuge and threat – he must navigate an unforgiving system while trying to hold onto his identity and truth. Inspired by real testimonies, the piece moves between memory and present-day storytelling to explore the themes of resilience and belonging.
Told through a series of interwoven flashbacks and present-day scenes, the play brings to life Sharif’s struggle for survival, his longing for love, and the quiet courage it takes to endure in the face of constant danger. Based on real testimonies, Sharif shines a rare light on the lives of LGBTQ+ Palestinians living under occupation.
It’s a heartbreaking, urgent, and ultimately hopeful call for empathy, justice, and human dignity.
Written by Israeli playwright Tomer Aldubi who worked closely with Palestinian dramaturg to ensure authentic representation of the story and narrative. Performed in English with Arabic and Hebrew interwoven, the play offers an intimate, human perspective on lives too often flattened by politics.
This is a staged reading of the new play, ahead of its production in London later in the year. It will be followed by a post-show Q&A.
About the Playwright
Tomer Aldubi is a queer Israeli journalist, playwright, and theatre director. In the past three years, Tomer has been part of the Israeli Fringe Theatre awards committee. He’s been working as a freelance journalist for the news media website Mako since 2014, where he had
published hundreds of articles and interviews about various LGBTQ+ issues. It is through his journalism practice that he was first introduced to the situation of queer Palestinians in 2020 and was one of the first-ever journalists to publish articles and interviews about that community.
His knowledge of that community was also deepened through his time as a volunteer during the last two years for The Different House - المختلف البيت, an Israeli non-governmental organization dedicated to empowering and assisting Arab LGBTQ+ people in Israel and in the
occupied territories. The NGO works to empower the community and provides legal and personal support to Palestinian asylum seekers in Israel and Arab transgenders.
Tomer has a B.A in Theatre Directing from the Tel Aviv University.
