Podcast Summary: All Of It with Alison Stewart

Episode: Ari'el Stachel Explores His Identity in 'Other'

Original Air Date: October 27, 2025
Guest: Ari'el Stachel, Tony-winning actor & playwright

Episode Overview

In this episode, Alison Stewart sits down with Ari'el Stachel to discuss his autobiographical solo show, “Other,” currently running at the Greenwich House Theater. The conversation traces Stachel’s journey through his complex identity as a Middle Eastern Jewish American, his struggles with anxiety and OCD, and how performance helped him grapple with shame, belonging, and ultimately self-acceptance. Through candid storytelling, Stachel explores the interplay between personal challenges and creative growth, touching on post-9/11 identity politics, the power of theater to create empathy, and the universality of “otherness.”

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Aftermath of Winning a Tony

• Stachel’s Tony Speech & the Weight After
  • Ari recounts his cathartic acceptance speech for The Band’s Visit, sharing how he publicly claimed his Middle Eastern identity for the first time ([00:21–01:13]).
  • Quote (Ari Stachel, 00:21):
    “For so many years of my life I pretended that I was not a Middle Eastern person. ...I concealed and I missed so many special events... I’m just so thankful... for telling a small story about Arabs and Israelis getting along at a time where we need that more than ever.”
  • Admits that after the adrenaline faded, anxiety crept in, setting the stage for his solo show, “Other” ([01:13–01:55]).

2. Hiding Identity & Discovering Self-Expression

• Growing Up in a Post-9/11 World
  • Stachel describes actively hiding his Middle Eastern heritage to avoid prejudice and fit in, even auditioning for parts ethnically ambiguous to escape typecasting ([02:35–03:37]).
  • Finds performing in The Band’s Visit transformative:
    Quote (Ari Stachel, 02:35):
    “I had sort of believed for a large part of my adolescence that I would never reveal that I was Middle Eastern... when I got that role, it felt like life changing because it was a role that was Middle Eastern and that was proud and that wasn’t stigmatized. ...the ultimate collision of my dreams as an artist with sort of my purpose as a person.”

3. Anxiety & OCD: From Taboo to Center Stage

• Writing as Therapy and Revelation

  • Stachel started writing “Other” two months post-Tony win, originally focusing on identity, only later realizing the centrality of anxiety to his story ([05:06–05:48]).
  • Turning point came when director Tony Taccone pushed him to admit what his character truly wanted—“to be less anxious”—unlocking the show’s emotional core ([05:55–06:59]).

• Putting OCD in the Script and Onstage

  • Stachel’s OCD, present since childhood, is both a personal challenge and a performance piece—his anxiety given a name (“Meredith”) and actual stage presence ([07:06–11:22]).
  • Quote (Ari Stachel, 08:17):
    “There’s a force inside of me telling me something bad might happen if I don’t do things a certain way. ...the macro experience of OCD is your brain can’t turn off.”

• Juggling Audience Reactions

  • Discusses the unpredictability (and discipline) of solo performance; the audience itself becomes a character he must “play with” and adapt to ([11:37–12:27]).
  • Quote (Ari Stachel, 11:37):
    “A bad audience can make it more of a bummer, but they can’t stop you from doing your show. But a good audience can only help you.”

4. Family Dynamics & Inherited History

• Dissimilar Parents & the 'Other' Child

  • Mother: Ashkenazi Jew, service-oriented, runs international charity [12:56]
  • Father: Yemeni Jewish immigrant, raised in Israel, street smart but never had Stachel’s identity struggles ([12:56–13:34]).
  • As the only Yemeni-descended student in Jewish day school, faced bullying and isolation; parents unaware of depth of his struggle ([13:42–14:35]).

• Generational Dialogue & Hidden Shame

  • Stachel’s father learned of Ari’s pain and strategies for hiding their connection only through seeing the play—finding it easier to confess onstage than off ([14:49–15:54]).
  • Initiated new conversations on what it means (and if it’s possible) to be both Arab and Jewish, promoting self-knowledge across generations ([15:58–17:12]): Quote (Ari Stachel, 16:39):
    “I spent my entire professional career playing Arab characters... it’s very clear to me that we share ancestry.”

5. Passing & Identity Fluidity

• Passing as Black for Survival

  • In a vivid moment, Stachel discusses “passing” as Black to escape being seen as Middle Eastern (and thus a target), especially after a moment of acceptance on the basketball court ([17:18–18:46]).
  • Quote (Ari Stachel, 17:31):
    “Imagine being 10 years old after 9/11 and kids calling you Osama bin Laden and you want to do anything but be who you are. And one magical day you go onto a basketball court and another black kid sees you as one of his own… you are the culture, right?”

• Unsustainability of Concealment

  • As an adult, maintaining separate identities became impossible, fueling anxiety and the need to openly embrace all facets of self ([18:50–20:09]).

6. The Show’s Music & Universal ‘Otherness’

• Eclectic Soundtrack as Storytelling Device

  • Music in “Other” reflects the patchwork of influences—ancient Yemeni hymns, 50 Cent, show tunes, Fiddler on the Roof—becoming an emotional access point for audiences ([20:15–20:58]).
  • Quote (Ari Stachel, 20:54):
    “...the music is something that sort of viscerally brings people into these various periods of my life, but also it seems, brings them into their own experience of their lives too.”

• Audience Participation and Solidarity in Anxiety

  • Begins performances by asking audience to raise hands if they have anxiety—by the end, nearly everyone relates ([21:03–21:59]).
  • Stachel sees his vulnerability in performance as building community, inspired by public figures sharing mental health challenges ([21:59]).

7. Playing 40+ Characters, Resonance Across Demographics

• Performance Range

  • Stachel estimates he embodies 40+ characters nightly–across ages, genders, and ethnicities ([22:03–22:17]).

• Diverse Audience Connections

  • The theme of hiding oneself resonates with everyone from older gay couples to Japanese Americans whose families experienced internment, highlighting universal threads of shame, concealment, and courage ([22:21–23:15]): Quote (Ari Stachel, 23:00):
    “What really the show is about... is about hiding who you are and about the audacity it takes to just be who you are.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

| Timestamp | Speaker | Quote | |-----------|---------|-------| | 00:21 | Ari Stachel | “For so many years of my life I pretended that I was not a Middle Eastern person.” | | 01:08 | Ari Stachel | “I want any kid who's watching to know that your biggest obstacle may turn into your purpose.” | | 02:35 | Ari Stachel | “…I had hidden that I was Middle Eastern for about eight years after 9/11…” | | 05:55 | Ari Stachel | “At some point… after 30 minutes of what almost became a fight, I said, he wants to be less anxious. And [my director] said, interesting. Leave. Write about that.” | | 08:17 | Ari Stachel | “The macro experience of OCD is your brain can't turn off.” | | 14:49 | Ari Stachel | “Every time my father would meet a peer at school, they would compare him to Osama bin Laden… So I worked really, really hard to hide my family life.” | | 17:31 | Ari Stachel | "[On passing as Black:] One magical day you go into a basketball court and another black kid sees you as one of his own… you are the culture, right?" | | 20:54 | Ari Stachel | “…the music is something that sort of viscerally brings people into these various periods of my life, but also ... into their own experience of their lives too.” | | 23:00 | Ari Stachel | “…about hiding who you are and about the audacity it takes to just be who you are.” |

Essential Timestamps

• 00:21–01:13: Ari’s Tony Acceptance Speech (original audio & emotional context)
• 02:35–03:37: Hiding Middle Eastern identity; impact of The Band’s Visit
• 05:55–06:59: Breakthrough moment in developing “Other,” naming anxiety as the core conflict
• 08:17: Personal definition of OCD and ritualization
• 14:49–15:54: On hiding his father and family, staged confessions
• 17:31–18:46: Passing as Black for social survival in adolescence
• 20:15–20:58: Musical choices symbolizing diverse identity
• 21:03–21:59: Audience interaction around anxiety, collective vulnerability

Conclusion

This episode is a deeply personal exploration of how performance can heal—not just the storyteller, but audiences who recognize themselves in the journey. Ari’el Stachel’s “Other” is both confession and invitation, urging us to reevaluate shame, rewrite narratives, and recognize that everyone’s “otherness” is a source of authenticity and connection.