One Hour Before Sunrise

Synopsis

Hussein has written a play of extreme brutality and poignancy. It describes the experience of a political prisoner, a poet Moneer in his incarceration.  The piece is structured as a 'play within a play' with a conversation between the poet (who also plays Moneer) and the director. This allows these two characters to comment on the torture occurring in Palestine.  The torture described is barbaric and the audience is struck by the sheer inhumanity of the prison. Eventually Moneer gets out of prison, helped by a drug dealer he meets in his cell. His father picks him up and no longer recognises his once young, strong son. This is a remarkable and thought-provoking comment on the lack of human rights and the indefatigable nature of the human sprit.  Greer Ogston refers to One Hour Before Sunrise as a "frightening reminder of what human beings and even our own government are capable of" (The List 17 October 2006).  John Martin in The Big Issue says it is "an intensely emotional piece of work that has the ability to collapse hearts and burst tear ducts" (12-18 October 2006). Ghazi Hussein also wrote The Jasmine road for Theatre Workshop (2003)