It has been a grim 2009 for Palestine, and yet there is hope amid the rubble — not least in the state’s creative arts world. Palestinian theatre is capturing attention around the world, and much of this has been down to the efforts of Palestinian National Theatre director Amir Nizar Zuabi.

Born in the Galilee and now living in Palestinian-dominated East Jerusalem, Zuabi trained as an actor in an Israeli arts school before turning his hand to directing. He worked for Ramallah’s Al Kasaba Theatre and spent a year at London’s Young Vic theatre in 2003, as well as completing a stint at the Teatro Colosseo in Rome.

It was there that he first read ‘Jidariyya’, the epic poem by Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish who died last year at the age of 67. In 2008 Zuabi took an adaptation of the poem on the road, earning rave reviews in London and Edinburgh.

This year he has taken ‘Alive From Palestine: Stories Under Occupation’ to the US on a sell-out run, in a bid to expose the stories behind the headlines. Using a cultural agenda to press for change in Middle Eastern relations, Zuabi has enthralled and influenced audiences, winning critical acclaim on stages around the world.