Matt Dillon, Sarah Jessica Parker and RI Host George Packer’s Betrayed at the Kennedy Center

Washington, D.C. – On Monday, January 12th, 2009 Matt Dillon and Sarah Jessica Parker will join Refugees International to host a one-night only performance of the critically acclaimed George Packer play, Betrayed, at the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater. The play follows the stories of three young Iraqi translators as they risk their lives for Americans in Iraq. The production, and the article in The New Yorker it was based on, drew national attention to the Iraqi refugee crisis. Betrayed explores the complex relationships among the Iraqis themselves and with the State Department employee who supervises them.

"When I saw the play, I was struck by how powerfully it illustrates the crisis facing Iraqi refugees,” said Matt Dillon, co-host and board member of Refugees International.  “What better place to present it than with Refugees International in Washington, where it can have the biggest impact with policy makers."

“It’s an exciting time to bring this play to our nation’s capital. We hope people will walk away with a sense of the challenges Iraqi refugees are facing,” said co-host Sarah Jessica Parker.

Since 2006, Refugees International has successfully called on policy makers to resolve the desperate situations facing displaced Iraqis. There are now over 5 million Iraqis who have fled their homes, either displaced in neighboring countries or within Iraq, with little or no access to medical services, shelter, education, or jobs. After the performance of the play, RI president Ken Bacon will moderate a panel discussion about the crisis with playwright and journalist George Packer, director Pippin Parker, RI’s Iraq expert, Kristele Younes, and Kirk Johnson, on whom one of the play’s characters is based.

WHEN: Monday, January 12, 2009
6:30 pm VIP Reception ~ 7:30 pm Production (panel discussion to follow)

WHERE: Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater
2700 F St NW Washington, DC 20566

TICKETS:                     

www.refugeesinternational.org/Betrayed [1]

Ellie@refugeesinternational.org [2]; 202-828-0110 x227

VIP Reception, production and post-discussion: $250

Production and post-discussion only: $100

MEDIA INQUIRIES:   

Vanessa Parra; 202-828-0110 x225

Vanessa@refugeesinternational.org [3]

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