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The Muslims Are Coming Comedy Tour Packs House in Nashville
“The Muslims are Coming!” comedy show, with jokes celebrating cultural differences, pleased a diverse crowd Saturday, packing most all 450 seats at MTSU’s Wright Music Building.
“We try to bring people together,” show host Dean Obeidallah told the audience at the free show and noted he was raised by a proud Christian mother and Muslim father. “Everyone has the same rights and religious freedom.”
Obeidallah got several laughs when he did his own version of comedian Jeff Foxworthy’s “You might be a redneck if … ” shtick.
“You might be an Arab redneck if your trailer faces Mecca,” Obeidallah said.
Obeidallah took turns doing stand up comedy with fellow Muslims Omar Elba, Negin Farsad and Maysoon Zayid.
Audience member Bill Larson said he saw the show as a way to bridge the gap in a community divided over issues surrounding the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro.
The local congregation seeks to build a bigger place of worship on Veals Road while facing fierce opposition, including 17 residents who filed a lawsuit seeking to stop construction of a mosque off Bradyville Pike southeast of Murfreesboro city limits.
“I support the Muslim community here in town and their right to freedom of religion,” said Larson, a Murfreesboro resident who is a retired engineer. “I’m not even religious.”
The Muslim comics were joined by Peter Depp, a gay Jewish comedian, and a Monty Mitchell, who identified himself as being the Christian part of the show.
“I don’t have that many good jokes because I’m not that good of a Christian,” said Mitchell, who described his Southern accent as being Appalachian “with a hint of incest.”
Elba cracked jokes about coping with moving to the United States as a child from Egypt a few days before Sept. 11 and living in Texas. After terrorists attacked America, he recalled what the school sign said the next day.
“We don’t let terrorists interfere with our class schedule,” he said. “Yee-haw!”
Zayid scored the night’s biggest laughs with her stories about getting married to a Palestinian man and feeling pressure to find someone even as a free-spirited 33-year-old American from New Jersey with many Christian friends.
“Thirty-three in Arab years is 67,” said Zayid, who let her long, brunette hair flow freely while telling the audience how she got even after being a bridesmaid in ugly gowns 17 times. “I decided to dress my bridesmaids in burqas.”
Farsad told stories about how tough it can be for an American Muslim such as herself to visit family in Iran who mock her for using modern toilets or imply that she’s promiscuous.
“Iran is an Islamic Republic, which means alcohol is banned, but people still get wasted,” Farsad said. “It’s like the roaring 1300s.”
When it was over, all the comedians came out on stage to answer audience questions. Obeidallah polled the Muslims in the audience to ask them if any of them wanted to impose Shariah law on America, and none of them applauded.
“It’s ridiculous,” said Obeidallah, who added that the goal of the touring show is to make sure everyone’s “rights are not diminished by those on the far right.”
Audience members Rita Jones and friend Don Lockridge enjoyed the show in which the comedians talked about religion, sex, politics and many other sensitive subjects.
“It’s so real,” said Jones, who is an MTSU junior English major.
“We really need this,” said Lockridge, who resides in Nashville. “It’s awesome to throw it in our face. It definitely illustrates that we have to express our thoughts in sensitive matters.”
MTSU senior aerospace major Robby Deaton said he came to the event with fiancee, Emily Cardwell, after hearing about it on a morning news show.
“We’re pretty open-minded and interested in broadening our horizon,” Cardwell said.
Scott Broden
DNJ