Andy Warhol in Iran

 How Brent Askari came up with ‘Andy Warhol in Iran,’ now at Mosaic Theater

The playwright talks about his thought-provoking, deliciously funny play about justice, art, and politics and the clash of cultures between East and West.

Nathan Mohebbi as Farhad and Alex Mills as Andy Warhol in Mosaic Theater’s production of ‘Andy Warhol in Iran’ by Brent Askari. Photo by Chris Banks. Courtesy DC Theater Arts

by Ravelle Brickman, DC Theater Arts

“Making money is art.” That’s the credo of the money-making pop artist — known for his portraits of Marilyn Monroe and Campbell’s Soup cans — whose imagined plight at the hands of a timid revolutionary is the core of Andy Warhol in Iran, the new comic drama making its DC debut at Mosaic Theater Company.

The show, now extended through July 6, begins with Warhol — played by a radiantly comic Alex Mills — musing about his detachment.

Speaking directly to the audience — his face obscured by the signature wig and large dark glasses — he describes himself as an observer. He identifies with his camera, an ancient Polaroid and a relic, even in 1976. (The role is reminiscent of I Am a Camera, the 1951 play by John Van Druten and Christopher Isherwood, in which the latter describes himself as a passive observer, but then is drawn, reluctantly, into the world he observes.)

Warhol is in his room at the Tehran Hilton, waiting to hear from the Shah’s wife about a commission to paint her portrait. But, in the words of Brent Askari, the playwright pulling the strings, Warhol admits that he is really waiting “for something that could have happened … or would happen … or will happen.”

I was curious about the evolution of the play, and tracked Askari down for a video interview at his home in South Portland, Maine.

“Originally, the play I had in mind was about Warhol going to Iran,” he said, adding that the artist really did go there, in 1976, in order to do a portrait, using Polaroid and paint, of the Shah’s wife.

“But there was no conflict, and without conflict, there’s no drama,” he concluded. However, he was hooked on the idea of a play about Warhol’s trip. “Once I realized that I didn’t have to stick to the historical facts, I knew there was a lot to write about.”

While reluctant to give away any of the details of the plot — audiences will have to see the play in order to find out exactly what happens — he did provide me with this summary.

“Warhol goes to take Polaroids of the Empress,” Askari said, “and he’s stuck in his hotel room, waiting to get summoned. So he’s hanging out in the hotel for a few days and doing some touristy things and ordering caviar, which is only $12 for a large serving.

“And then, one day, he has this encounter with a young revolutionary who comes to his hotel room and challenges his notions of art and politics. This young man has a very critical view of the Shah” —  restored to power through the intervention of the West — “because of the regime’s secret police and widespread use of torture.

“So Andy and the passionate young Iranian end up in the hotel room together and have a lot of debates about politics and art and the roles of each in the other, and they both end up changing each other’s views — a little, and only for a moment. We see that there are similarities between the two men as well as differences. In a sense, they’re both ‘revolutionaries’ of a sort.”

One of the most astonishing things about the play, which I saw at its opening, is that the would-be terrorist — played by Nathan Mohebbi, with a wonderful blend of idealism and anxiety — manages, in between the threats and the jokes, to deliver a history lesson, at whirlwind speed, that touches on every act of perfidy for over two centuries.

“The would-be kidnapper doesn’t want to erase history,” Askari said. Instead, he forces Warhol — and by extension the audience — to relearn it.

Much of the speed of the play — both in the history lessons and in the sparring between the two men — is the work of Mosaic’s managing director, Serge Seiden, who is back on the creative side after serving on the business end of the theater.

Although Askari and Seiden had never met, they have a lot in common. Seiden grew up in Maine, then settled in Washington, DC. Askari, just the opposite, grew up in the DC area and now lives in Maine. Both began their careers as actors.

And both are graduates of Swarthmore College. (As a result of this shared background, Mosaic is offering a special Swarthmore Alumni performance on June 29 at 3 pm.)

Other coincidences abound: Andy Warhol in Iran was originally commissioned by the Barrington Stage Company in the Berkshires, where Mosaic’s artistic director, Reginald L. Douglas, directed the workshop. Prior to that, Askari worked with Douglas on a play called White Party.

“So we connected twice,” Askari said. “And when he asked me to think about Mosaic for the play’s DC premiere, of course I said ‘yes!’”

Like many playwrights I’ve interviewed, Askari has worked both on and off the stage. He began his career as an actor, and though he continues to move back and forth — he currently performs with the Mad Horse Theater Company in Maine — he is today focused primarily on writing. More than a dozen of his plays have been produced. His latest play, Advice, opens next week in Sacramento.

“As a playwright, I find it very helpful to have been an actor, since you understand the craft of acting,” he explained. “You know what an actor needs and doesn’t need in order to bring a character to life.”

Of course, Iran is very much in the news today, so this play — with its artful look at some of the forces leading up to the revolution in 1979 — is very relevant. It’s a painful reminder of what went wrong, both before the revolution and after it. Far from saving the country, the number of deaths from torture, tyranny, and execution far exceeds that of the past.

For Askari, the play is a way of talking about issues like justice, art, and politics, but it’s also about cultural differences.

“The differences are especially important,” he said, pointing out that he is a product of a biracial marriage. His father is from Iran, and his mother is a New England WASP. “Those are two very different cultures. I’m interested in the interaction between the two, and the relationship between East and West.”

As for the comic bits: “Yes, a play always needs humor. And Warhol was such a character. He was a trickster in fact.” In a play, he reminded our readers, having something to say and offering entertainment are not mutually exclusive.

My favorite line in the play, spoken by Warhol, but probably echoed by many of those who read DCTA, is this: “It’s hard for people who studied literature to find work.”

Andy Warhol in Iran plays through July 6, 2025, presented by Mosaic Theater Company performing in the Sprenger Theatre at Atlas Performing Arts Center, 1333 H Street NE, Washington, DC. 

The digital program is downloadable here.

SEE ALSO:

A far-out artist meets a real rebel in ‘Andy Warhol in Iran’ at Mosaic (review by Charles Green, June 2, 2025)

Mosaic Theater Company to present DC premiere of ‘Andy Warhol in Iran’ (news story, April 22, 2025)

Via DC Theater Arts