Below are four excerpts from Betty Shamieh’s world-premiere play Territories. Alia, the headstrong sister of Sultan Saladin, is being held captive by a leader of the Crusades, Reginald. In the scenes below, the tension between the three begins to simmer, and their true intentions and feelings begin to shine through.

EXCERPT 1

SALADIN
I will be praised for my chivalry in poems and epics for hundreds of years. It won’t only be my people who talk of my valor as a soldier and a king.

REGINALD
I will be a footnote of a footnote. In that footnote of a footnote, I will be called a pirate.

Alia takes off her face covering and places it on-stage.

ALIA
No one will think it worthwhile to write down my name.

SALADIN
The descendents of people who considered me their enemy will praise me too.  Dante, Sir Walter Scott, the list goes on.

REGINALD
However, I prefer to think of myself as the Official Royal Plunderer of God’s Greatest Gifts in His Holiest of Holy Lands.

ALIA
(as she takes off her headscarf) I will be known only as one man’s sister and another man’s captive.

EXCERPT 2

ALIA
I often tell my brother and – by the way he is my brother - I tell him that he’s too lenient on you Crusaders.  You are the ones who attacked us in our own land and slaughter our people.

REGINALD
Well, you know.  Everyone has got a different way of getting through the day.

ALIA
Well, your day will soon be over.  We will be victorious over you.

REGINALD
How do you know?

ALIA
We are defending ourselves and, when you are defending yourself, you have one advantage in battle that can make up for almost any other.

REGINALD
What’s that?

ALIA
We have no choice but to fight.

REGINALD
And when, even with that advantage your forces still don’t add up to much, you have no choice but to die.

EXCERPT 3

REGINALD
Never, my sweet little gimp.  You know what?  I think we’re probably due for a new prophet.

ALIA
Can’t be.  No new prophets after Muhammed. 

REGINALD
According to you.  According to me, we’re ready for a new person to spring up based on the Jewish-Christian-Muslim timeline and declare herself a prophetess. 

ALIA
If it’s based on the Jewish-Christian-Muslim timeline, there isn’t going to be any prophetess involved.  At least not a major one and what’s the use of being a prophetess if you can’t be a major one?

REGINALD               
I’m going to convert you to Christianity. 

ALIA
Not a chance.

REGINALD
Do I have to wring your little neck to get you to convert?

ALIA
Yes, probably.

REGINALD
First, I’ll baptize you.  (he licks her face) 

EXCERPT 4

ALIA
I won’t tell you a thing, Brother.  I am ashamed.  Can’t you understand?

SALADIN
I understand.

ALIA
You don’t.  Men have no idea what it’s like to be a woman in the world. 

SALADIN
I meant only that I understand if you don’t want to tell me, but trust me that it is right for a doctor to- 

ALIA
Trust?  When I was a girl, our mother took me aside and said ‘Alia, you are almost a woman now.  Don’t trust anyone.’  I looked at her, confused.  Did she mean what she said?  Not my father?  Not my brothers?  Not anyone? She answered questions I could not ask by repeating “Anyone.” So, no, I don’t trust you, brother.  Your mother told me not to. 

SALADIN
You have to be checked in case...in case you have a disease that our doctors can cure.

ALIA
No.

SALADIN
Call the doctor Benjamin.

ALIA
No!