They talk about the right to return. No one talks about our right to love.

MAJENIN — A Palestinian Love Story is a darkly funny, romantic and ultimately heartbreaking story about a Palestinian comedian and a Palestinian artist whose intense, short‑lived love affair pushes them both to the edge of majenin – madness. Written and performed by Palestinian comedian Marena Riyad, it is heading to the Edinburgh Fringe this August — and we need your help to get it on stage.

Why this project matters now

MAJENIN refuses the lens of victimhood. It is not a story about the occupation; it is a story about two people who, like all of us, are trying to find someone to come home to. It treats Palestinian life with humour, complication and grace, focusing not on news headlines but on the human experience of love, fear and longing.

In a moment when Palestinian stories are too often reduced to suffering alone, MAJENIN insists on the right to be complicated, to be messy, to be in love. Bringing this show to Edinburgh — the largest arts festival in the world — puts a tender, contemporary Palestinian love story in front of thousands of people who might never otherwise encounter it.

What MAJENIN is

Written and performed by Marena Riyad and directed by award‑winning theatre‑maker and long‑term Amos Trust collaborator Justin Butcher, MAJENIN is a three‑hander that blends stand‑up comedy with intimate theatre. It is, very simply, a love story between two Palestinian artists in exile, trying to create something safe in a world defined by impermanence.

Marena is a Palestinian writer, comedian and actress. She spent her childhood in a refugee camp in Tulkarem and her teenage years in Texas; she now lives between Ramallah and London. MAJENIN is her first full‑length play.

The show plays Pleasance 10Dome at the Edinburgh Fringe every day from 5–31 August 2026 at 11:45am, with London previews at Pleasance London on 1 August. After Edinburgh, it transfers to the AT&T Performing Arts Center in Dallas, Texas, as part of the Elevator Project.

https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/majenin-a-palestinian-love-story

Please support us to get this show to the Fringe!

What your donation supports

Edinburgh is the largest and most expensive theatre festival in the world. Our total budget for MAJENIN is £30,000 — covering rehearsals, the full Edinburgh run, the London previews and the onward transfer to Dallas. We are pursuing several grants alongside this campaign, but the gap is real, and it is mostly the cost of paying artists fairly.

Here’s where your money goes:

Cast fees for three Palestinian and Arab actors across rehearsals and the full Edinburgh run — eight weeks of paid work for the company. This is the largest single line in the budget, and the one we are most determined to honour.

Set, costume and production — kept simple by design, but the show still needs the materials to build it.

Travel and accommodation between London and Edinburgh, and within Edinburgh during the run.

Marketing, press and listings so critics fill seats and the show reaches the audiences who need it most.

Accessibility — relaxed and audio‑described performances, audience access support, and provisions to keep the show open to as many people as possible.

Onward touring — keeping the show alive after Edinburgh as it transfers to Dallas.

What different gifts make possible:

-£15 prints a run of programmes for an audience.

-£50 funds half a day’s rehearsal pay for one of our three actors.

-£150 covers a single train fare between London and Edinburgh for a cast or crew member.

-£500 pays one actor’s full weekly fee on the Edinburgh run.

-£1,000 covers a full day of rehearsal for the entire company.

Who is involved

MAJENIN features three Palestinian performers, led by writer-performer Marena Riyad, and is directed by Justin Butcher and produced by Aisha Josiah, in association with Pleasance Theatres.

About Amos Trust

This fundraiser is hosted by Amos Trust, a small, creative human rights charity working with grassroots partners in Palestine, Nicaragua, South Africa, Tanzania and India. Amos believes deeply in the power of artists and storytelling as instruments of human rights advocacy.

Thank you for being part of MAJENIN