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There is something special going on in the New York theater world, especially off Broadway; and it is too broad and too diverse to be simply explained by the activism inevitably brought on by an election year. Plays like "Biro" earlier this year at the Public and "Guantanamo: Honor Bound to Defend Freedom" at the Culture Project are showing Americans the results of America's actions and inactions around the world in human terms.
"Nine Parts of Desire," a one-woman show written and performed by Heather Raffo currently being performed at the Metropolitan Ensemble Theater, is perhaps the most powerful in a long line of advocacy theater which has swept through New York in recent years.
Building upon the foundations laid by solo performers Anna Deveare-Smith and Sarah Jones, Ms. Raffo has recreated the world...