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"I’ve got 99 problems and palsy is just one. I’m Palestinian, I’m disabled, I’m female and I live in New Jersey," quipped Maysoon Zayid in her recent TEDWomen talk about "living, rather than suffering" with a disability. It went viral, with over 4 million views. We suggest you take just a quick moment and watch that TED talk before reading our interview with Zayid—for one thing, it'll be the funniest thing you watch all day, but it will also fill you with righteous indignation, give your heart a little lift, and maybe make you shed a tear or two. Zayid is a force of nature who's advocated for the rights of performers with disabilities; she's also a brilliant standup comedian, an actress, writer, and activist. (Check out her articles and video clips on her website, maysoon.com.) We spoke with her by email in advance of her very first St. Louis appearance as keynote speaker for Party to the Max, an event celebrating the birthday, as well as the life work, of Max Starkloff, founder of the Starkloff Disability Institute.
First: your comments about New Jersey during your TED talk reminded me a little bit of how St. Louisans sometimes talk about this city; was wondering if you’ve ever been to St. Louis, or this is your first time here?
Unbelievably, I’ve never been to St. Louis. I’ve been a lot of places, but this is my first trip to your fine city. I really don’t know what to expect, but I’m looking forward to Party to the Max.
You also mentioned Maysoon’s Kids, and would love to hear more about that project.
Maysoon’s Kids’ goal is to integrate kids with physical disabilities into the Palestine public school system. Right now, only private schools will take students who are blind, or have Cerebral Palsy, or any other physical disability. This year, we started a pilot class of seven students who we are teaching the same curriculum that is being taught at the schools that rejected them due to their disabilities. We hope that we can get them to the level where the schools have no reason to deny them entry. Our goal is to integrate these students by the third grade, and to replicate the project throughout Palestine so that no student is refused an education in the future. We haven’t finished a month yet, and the results have been miraculous. Children who have never attended school are reading, counting, and proving they can do everything their able-bodied counterparts can do with a little help from technology and teachers who believe in them. You can learn more about Maysoon’s Kids here.
Your story about not being chosen for the role of the character who had CP during your senior year in acting school also really stuck in my mind. Have you seen any progress in the entertainment world as far as greater opportunities for performers with disabilities? If not, what do you think would help as far as effecting change there?
What happened to me my senior year at Arizona State University is typical of Hollywood. Decades later, I see no improvement. People with disabilities are the largest minority group in America and remain grossly underrepresented in entertainment and media. I feel like there were more positive images of disability on TV when I was growing up, and there were only 5 channels than there are now with over a thousand channels available. What needs to happen for things to change is that a conversation needs to start between actors, directors, producers, and casting directors. We need able-bodied actors to turn down roles of characters with physical disabilities the same way they would turn down doing blackface. The history is different, of course, but cripface is just as offensive. Casting directors also need to be open to casting actors with disabilities, even if the character is not written as disabled. And studios for talk shows/news need to be built accessible. Hollywood seems to believe ADA does not apply to them. That needs to change.
The Arab-American Comedy Festival has been going for 10 years and some change—who’s involved with that, how has it evolved, and what have you seen as far as its impact?
In 2003, Dean Obeidallah and I founded the New York Arab American Comedy Festival (www.arabcomedy.com). Our goal was two-fold. The first was to combat negative stereotypes about Arabs and Arab Americans that were flooding TV and media. Our second goal was to get casting directors in Hollywood to cast Arab actors in mainstream roles, rather than as taxi drivers and terrorists. We have had great success on many levels. Our eleventh annual festival will be held at the legendary Gotham Comedy Club in New York City October 30th to November 1st, 2014. The Festival shows have a history of selling out, and our actors have gone on to be cast on television shows and in major motion pictures. I’ve met with several casting directors who swear our website is their first stop when looking for Middle Eastern talent. Unfortunately, we’ve been less successful combating the negative images of Arabs in media. It is still acceptable to say things about Arab Americans that are bigoted without facing any negative backlash.
Can you talk a little bit about your early career in comedy, and what it was like to shift away from acting and more towards stand-up?
I was really lucky when I started doing comedy. I’m part of the last generation that depended on getting stage time and doing open mics. Now comics have YouTube, and they can flood the Internet with content without a stage or audience. I came up waiting till 1 or 2 in the morning to get a 5-minute spot. But I also had the privilege of performing in NYC with the greatest comics ever to grace the stage. I’ve performed with Chris Rock, Dave Chappelle, and Louis Black. I also was just an average comic. I jumped through the same hoops as everyone else. In the New York comedy club scene, my disability simply wasn’t an issue.
What’s your writing/creative process like with comedy? How do you come up with your material, and then work it into the finished piece that you take to the stage? Do you have people you bounce ideas off, do you work more solo…? Or maybe the audience reaction is a good way to polish material?
When I’m writing, I definitely bounce my ideas off my typist. I dictate anything I’ve published, so it’s great, because I’m getting a real-time reaction. As for stand-up comedy, I’ve never written a joke in my life. I make them up in my head. I don’t have a set “set list.” I prefer to freestyle, but I keep old jokes in my back pocket in case I get stuck or have a particularly tough crowd. I do not recommend other comics do what I do. I was never one to take notes in school, because it’s physically challenging, so I’m very good at writing things in my head. My advice to young comics is write jokes every day, but don’t memorize your set. Leave something to chance, it’s more natural and funny.
You also do some writing for publication—where can people see your work, and what are your favorite things to write about?
I love giving people advice they don’t want to hear. I would love to have a column like Dear Abby, except mean. I wrote extensively on Palestine and Israel for The Daily Beast. I’ve also gotten to write fun stuff for Glamour magazine. All of my writing can be found by visiting my website www.maysoon.com or by doing a simple Google search : )
What was it like performing for Muhammed Ali?
It was epic, magical and a dream come true. Nothing will ever compare to that night. My outfit, hair, and makeup even worked out. It was really perfect.
Any creative projects or cool new things to mention (tours, film and TV appearances…? Anything is fair game!)
I’m pretty much constantly on tour. St. Louis is my first stop and then I will be in 14 cities and four countries during an eight-week tour. In my spare time, I’m penning a self-help comedy book and trying to get my movie If I CanCan made so I can win an Oscar. If I CanCan is about a small town dance teacher with Cerebral Palsy whose disability is the least of her problems. It’s not autobiographical, and I avoided the stereotypical disability story line. No one gets healed in this movie.
Party to the Max takes place September 20 from 6-11 p.m. in the Grand Hall of Union Station, and will include cocktails, dinner, and of course a performance by Zayid (which will feature sign language interpreters and live captioning). All proceeds from the event will go to continue the work of SDI, a groundbreaking nonprofit that seeks to create a world that is welcoming to people with disabilities. Cocktail attire is requested; complimentary valet parking is available at Market Street, in front of Union Station. Patron Tickets are $500 and Benefactor Tickets are $150. For more information, please contact Lori Becker, 314-588-7090 or lbecker@starkloff.org.
