Disgraced Characters

Amir Kapoor, a successful Pakistani American lawyer of about 40, is the play’s protagonist. Although he and his wife, Emily, lead an affluent lifestyle, Amir is so haunted by his strict Muslim upbringing and… read analysis of Amir Kapoor/Abdullah

Amir’s wife, Emily, is a beautiful, white artist of about 30. Whereas Amir renounced his Muslim faith years ago and tries to distance himself from Islam, Emily is fascinated by his Islamic culture and… read analysis of Emily Hughes Kapoor

Isaac is an art curator who’s working with Emily; he’s the husband of Amir’s work colleague Jory. He decides to support Emily’s career even though he knows that her paintings may offend… read analysis of Isaac

Abe is Amir’s 22-year-old nephew who recently emigrated from Pakistan to the United States. He changed his name from the Arabic “Hussein” to the more stereotypically American-sounding “Abe Jensen” because he, like Amir, is… read analysis of Hussein (Abe Jensen)

Imam Fareed is a Muslim cleric who’s wrongfully accused of funding the terrorist organization Hamas using charity money he raised for his mosque. He’s not present during the play’s action, but other characters—notably Abe… read analysis of Imam Fareed

Amir’s mother, who died some time ago, was a Pakistani Muslim woman who hated non-Muslim people. She instilled antisemitic, racist, and sexist views in Amir, to the point that she spat on him when… read analysis of Amir’s Mother

Diego Velázquez was a 17th-century Spanish painter. Emily paints a portrait of Amir in the image of Velázquez’s 1685 portrait of his assistant (formerly his slave), entitled Portrait of Juan de Pareja. Emily’s and… read analysis of Diego Velázquez

Tariq is Hussein’s Muslim friend. Tariq and Hussein go to Starbucks wearing Muslim skullcaps and openly discuss Islam, and a barista (whom Tariq is rude to) assumes that they’re Islamic terrorists when Tariq makes… read analysis of Tariq

The barista, who works at Starbucks, gets annoyed when Tariq tries to flirt with her. When she asks Tariq and Hussein if they support Al-Qaeda (because they’re wearing Muslim skullcaps and openly discussing Islam), Tariq… read analysis of Barista

Steven is one of Amir’s bosses at the law firm. When he discovers that Amir was raised Muslim, he questions Amir’s ties with the Muslim community and seems to believe that he may be… read analysis of Steven

Rivkah is a Jewish girl whom Amir had a crush on in sixth grade. Amir’s mother was a conservative Muslim woman with antisemitic views, so when she found about Rivkah, she spat on Amir. The… read analysis of Rivkah