Avaaz Reviews
Washington Post- Highly Recommended
"...Shayan’s Roya walks through life buoyed by a quick-witted, casual, self-effacing humor, and a generous spirit of hospitality. She puts the audience at ease, even in the show’s heaviest moments, with her razor-sharp (if occasionally groan-inducing) quips. In Roya’s world, an activist is a politician without a job; a first date set up by your parents is a “fact check”; time living with her son is like the Iranian hostage crisis (“I was the hostage; he was in crisis”)."
DC Theater Arts- Recommended
"...Avaaz begins the second you round the bank of seats in the Olney Theatre Center’s Mulitz-Gudelsky Theatre Lab. The set, exquisitely designed by Beowulf Boritt, seems to appear by magic as festive Persian music surrounds you at party volume. It’s a feast for the eyes: hanging mirrors framed by fairy lights and flowers, an opulence of chandeliers, lush golds and greens, and a marvelous, multi-tiered table set for a grand event. As audience members entered with a chorus of wow’s, I was already leaning forward toward the story, full of curiosity."
Talkin Broadway- Highly Recommended
"...But Shayan wants to emphasize the story of his mother's bravery and self-determination, how she retained her joy and hard-won optimism in an unfamiliar country, and the way she stood by him in difficult times. Director Moritz von Stuelpnagel helps Shayan demonstrate the resilience of Roya, who left an unhappy marriage and took her young son to the United States in 1983, after the Iranian Revolution ushered in a repressive regime. (Michael identifies as queer, and he credits his mother with some of his fabulous attitudes.)"
Washington City Paper- Recommended
"...Spring is fast approaching, but those craving another celebratory adrenaline rush will be pleased to know that Nowruz, the Iranian new year, is just around the corner—March 19 on the Western calendar, to be exact. For a primer on the celebration, head to Olney Theatre Center to visit Roya, the main character in Michael Shayan’s solo show Avaaz, directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel. Roya is a generous and vivacious host who made her way to California from Iran in the 1980s following the Islamic revolution. Roya, portrayed by Michael himself, also happens to be the writer-performer’s mother—making Avaaz an engrossing (if sometimes uneven) pseudo-autobiography."
MD Theatre Guide- Highly Recommended
"...With a warm smile and welcoming arms, the sparkling hostess Roya invites you into her home for the Persian New Year. As patrons take their seats at Olney Theatre, she makes light small talk. “What a beautiful scarf! Have you tried Persian food? Well, you haven’t tried my food.” She oozes elegance in her shimmering golden robe, her beard neatly trimmed. Well, actually the beard belongs to her son, playwright Michael Shayan, who steps into his mother’s shoes in “Avaaz,” a loving, solo-performance tribute to her resilience, vivacity, and humor."