PRESS RELEASE
Armenian Studies Program
Ingrid Peterson, Administrator
University of Michigan
1080 S. University, Suite 3633
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1106
Phone: 734.763.0622; Fax: 734.763.4918
email: irjp@umich.edu

SOJOURN AT ARARAT
A play about the Armenian homeland, love, identity, and the horrors of
war
based on 2,000 years of Armenian literature in English

ANN ARBOR, MI, January 19, 2010 – The University of Michigan (UofM)
Armenian Studies Program (ASP) and the Center for World Performance
Studies (CWPS) present "Sojourn at Ararat," a play created and
performed by Nora Armani and Gerald Papasian. The performance combines
humorous and dramatic portrayals of the Armenian people and homeland
through the use of narrative text, poetry, songs and music of several
renowned Armenian artists. The piece has been performed
internationally and received eight Drama Logue Critics’ Awards and
multiple awards in Armenia.

The performance will be held in the D. Dan and Betty Kahn Auditorium,
Biomedical Research Building, 109 Zena Pitcher, Ann Arbor, Michigan,
on Thursday, January 28, 2010 at 7:00 p.m. It is free and open to the
public. For additional information please contact ASP (734) 763-0622
or CWPS (734) 936-2777.

"Sojourn" is a play with underlying themes, beginning with a love
story that draws upon the text of romantic era poems. It is also a
humorous depiction of war and human conflict using the central theme
of an epic piece, "One Drop of Honey," by renowned Armenian poet and
writer Hovhannes Toumanyan, when one drop of honey becomes the cause
of universal war and massacre. Further, it reflects the horrors of the
1915 Genocide, narrated through an eyewitness account of the dance of
20 innocent virgins who were doused in kerosene and torched to
death. It incorporates music by composers Jean-Jacques Lemetre of
Theatre de Soleil of Paris as well as Armenian composers Gomidas and
Sayat Nova.

Nora Armani is a film and theater actress who was born in Egypt to
Armenian parents. She was trained at RADA, UCLA and Ariane
Mnouchkine’s Theatre de Soleil. She has a BA in Directing from the
American University in Cairo and an M.Sc. from the University of
London (LSE).

Gerald Papasian was born in Egypt to Armenian parents. He holds an MFA
in Directing from the Yerevan State Institute of Art and Theatre of
the Stanislavski School, and he studied at thee Lee Strasberg
Institute in Los Angeles.

The University of Michigan’s Armenian Studies Program promotes the
study of Armenian history, culture, and society. A member of the
University of Michigan International Institute, the program organizes
educational opportunities for students, faculty and the community.
For more information, contact the Armenian Studies Program at (734)
763-0622 or visit

The University of Michigan International Institute houses 18 centers
and programs focused on world regions and global themes. The institute
develops and supports international teaching, research, and public
affairs programs to promote global understanding across the campus and
to build connections with intellectuals and institutions
worldwide. For more information, visit