There have been many renditions and adaptations of “The Arabian Nights” over the years, from kid-friendly adaptations of one of the stories to full-on fantasy action movies. In my opinion, one of the most unique and thought provoking adaptations is “The Arabian Nights” by Mary Zimmerman. Zimmerman’s version of the Arabian Nights is a live performance version that is meant to be performed by a cast of actors. Zimmerman made some bold changes to the classic “The Arabian Nights”, including changing the stories and the ending itself. These changes are primarily to keep audiences pulled in to the story by giving them a more engaging frame story and characters they can become absorbed in. However Zimmerman went the extra mile by making the ending shocking for the audience, and more relevant to modern times. That is why her version manages to stand out in the crowded field of Arabian Night adaptations.
The framing story is infinitely more important in Zimmerman’s version than it was in the original. In the original, Sharazad and Shrahyar were the focus of a few pages in the beginning and then faded out for the rest of the book. In the play, Sharazad and Shrahyar receive a scene in between each of the stories. Each of these break scenes has Sharazad and Shahryar talking about the story that was just shown, while showing off their personalities and the slow development of their relationship. In the book, the ending comes around and the reader is quickly hit with the twist that Sharazad and Sharahyar now have a family, which comes out of nowhere because the development of their relationship occurs entirely off page. In the play, the relationship is shown growing bit by bit through the intermission scenes and although the ending still comes as a shock as their children aren’t mentioned at all prior to that, the flow of the story and conclusion actually makes more sense. Zimmerman’s adaptation really humanises the two main characters and makes them a main focus rather than an excuse for the other stories to happen. Sharazad and Shrahyar go from footnotes to the main overall focus of the play, and this actually makes the story and the play more cohesive and stronger. The addition of Sharazad and Shahryar’s scenes help make things more interesting for returning Arabian Nights fans as they add a whole new dimension to the play.
The other major changed element in the overarching plot of “The Arabian Nights” is the presence of a recurring character who ties all the stories together: Harun Al Rashid. Harun Al Rashid and his trusted associates make an appearance in all of the stories in Zimmerman’s play. Their part range from providing the main source of conflict (executing the cheaters and being Sympathy’s main opponent in the mind game) to the audience surrogate (investigating the madman and Harun’s imposter) and brief cameo (the last story where he presents the musician but is absent for the rest of the story). The presence of Harun Al Rashid makes all the separate stories feel interconnected and help keep the audience invested as they now have a significant, singular character to latch on to. Now, let’s bring attention to the factor that helps differentiate Zimmerman’s version from the original.
In Zimmerman’s version, just as in the original, the story ends with Shahrayar realizing that he and Sharazad have kids and they all live happily ever after. Zimmerman added another section to the story (the coda). At the end of her play, air raid sirens go off and the entire cast, who were happily chanting the phrase, “the nights over Baghdad were whiter than the days”(Zimmerman 130) , fall to the ground like corpses and roll away. It is a very jarring change compared to the rest of the play. It’s supposed to represent the modern reality of air raids and bombs raining down on Baghdad. This ending acts as a wake up call for the audience after they spend a few hours in what can be described as an Arabian Fantasy. It manages to connect the fantastic past to the turbulent present. The ending is even more memorable than the original and will leave people walking out of the theater in deep thought. It’s definitely the boldest change from the original and probably the most controversial. But the direction Zimmerman went in can also be seen as challenging to the idea of adaptations being exactly the same as the original.
Zimmerman’s Arabian Nights sets itself apart from the rest because of three things: the improved frame story, the crossover character, and the ending. Due to these factors, the story feels like a bold new take and is able to keep the interest of even those who have seen numerous other versions. It updates itself for a live performance audience and makes a very bold ending change that may be controversial, but makes the play overall very thought provoking.
