The Beloved is a haunting and heartbreaking twist on the story of Abraham and Isaac, which reminds us that this historic tale of sacrifice began with just one family.

When Abraham returns home from a journey with his son, his wife is troubled by the boy's state of mind. What took place on the mountain that day is the beginning of a lifetime of suffering for his son and the dawn of a new age for millions. A haunting and heartbreaking twist on the story of Abraham and Isaac, which reminds us that this historic tale of sacrifice began with just one family. The Beloved follows writer Amir Nizar Zuabi's previous successes with I Am Yusuf and This Is My Brother and In the Penal Colony. The publication coincided with a co- production by Palestinian theatre company ShiberHur with the Bush Theatre and KVS Brussels.

. . . there is both a timeless quality and a flavour of the ongoing Middle Eastern conflict to a show that also has witty magical-realist properties . . . Zuabi's dialogue is capable of great lyrical intensity . . . A very powerful experience.