Rajiv Joseph’s play Guards at the Taj is set to run February 6-22 at El Portal Theatre in North Hollywood.
Presented by Plan Beh and Luchima Productions, the Los Angeles production marks a historic first by being the first professional production to be granted approval from the playwright to cast a woman in the lead role.
Guards at the Taj won the 2016 Obie Award and the Lortel Award for Best New Play. It was last produced in Los Angeles 10 years ago, and this time it’s being produced with an all-new innovative concept.
Set centuries ago, yet piercingly relevant today, Guards at the Taj follows two low-ranking imperial guards stationed outside the Taj Mahal before its grand unveiling. An impossible task tests their lifelong friendship, shakes their faith, and shatters their lives forever. This darkly funny and deeply moving play asks us: follow duty or follow beauty?
Directed by Behzad Dabu (How to Get Away with Murder, The Chi, Disgraced), who also stars as Babur, the production will also features Kausar Mohammed (Jurassic World: Chaos Theory, The Flash, Mo) as Humayun.
The production of Guards at the Taj is an independent community production and helps bolster live theatre in a divisive moment in the entertainment industry and the world. The performances will include post-show discussions, collaborations, and affiliate nights throughout February.
WHAT: Guards at the Taj
WHEN: February 6 – 22
WHERE: El Portal Theatre, Monroe Forum, 5269 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood, CA
For more info and tickets visit GuardsPlayLA.com.
