‘Oranges and Stones’ retells the story of Palestine at Birzeit University

The Deanship of Student Affairs at Birzeit University hosted a rendition of “Oranges and Stones,” a play by Mojisola Adebayo, on Saturday, November 3, 2018. 

Featuring Edward Muallem and Iman Aoun, the play chronicles how the home of a young Palestinian woman is taken over by an older man, resembling in a sense how the Israeli Occupation took over Palestine. 

First, the man enters the house holding a piece of paper in his hand, symbolizing the Balfour Declaration. A struggle ensues between the woman and the invader, which ends with him settling into the home with his briefcase. 

Within minutes, the silent antagonist makes himself at home, taking over the house and replacing the woman’s belongings with his own. He destroys her sunflower plant, and lights a match in celebration, as if he’s celebrating the Israeli Occupation in 1948. 

The struggle between the man and the woman continues, with him replacing the oranges lying around with houses - as the Israeli Occupation removed orange orchards to make room of settlements. 

After many confrontations, with the house looking unrecognizable due to the invader’s attempts to change it, the woman collects his belongings and exits the house, a sign that she was finally able to drive him away from her home.