Characters from the play "Oslo":
Mona Juul
Official in the Foreign Ministry
Portrayed By: Jennifer Ehle (OBC), Bri Sudia (Broadway in Chicago)
An official in Norway's Foreign Ministry. Married to Terje Rød-Larsen. Mona's compassion and commitment to seeing the Oslo talks through to a peaceful outcome are a driving force behind the success of the negotiations.
- Only Sane Woman: Mona is the only negotiator to never lose her head because of jealousy, anger, or personal concerns. When she does raise her voice and get emotional, it's to give a Rousing Speech that brings everyone back to the table and remind them of what they're fighting for.
Terje Rød-Larsen
Director of Fafo Institute
Portrayed By: Jefferson Mays (OBC), Scott Parkinson (Broadway in Chicago)
Terje is married to Mona Juul. His theories on the personal/ interpersonal methods of negotiations provide a springboard for the format of the Oslo channel.
Marianne Heiberg
Executive with the Fafo Institute
Portrayed By: Henny Russell (OBC), Juliet Hart (Broadway in Chicago)
Marianne works for Terje at the Fafo Institute. She is married to Foreign Minister Johan Jorgen Holst.
Johan Jorgen Holst
Norwegian Foreign Minister
Portrayed By: T Ryder Smith (OBC), David Parkes (Broadway in Chicago)
Married to Marianne Heiberg.
Jan Egeland
Deputy Foreign Minister
Portrayed By: Daniel Jenkins (OBC), Bernard Balbot (Broadway in Chicago)
Yair Hirschfeld
Senior Professor of Economics at the University of Haifa
Portrayed By: Daniel Oreskes (OBC), Ron E Rains (Broadway in Chicago)
Yair is roped into the peace process when Mona introduces him to Ahmed, the Finance Minister of the Palestinian Liberation Organization. Building on their shared careers in the economic sector, Yair and Ahmed participate in the opening rounds of the Oslo talks. Though Ahmed is wary of speaking to Yair due to Yair's position at the University reflecting a lack of concrete political power, their meeting helps them to overcome their mutual suspicions about the other side.
Ron Pundak
Junior Professor of Economics at the University of Haifa
Portrayed By: Daniel Jenkins (OBC), Bernard Balbot (Broadway in Chicago)
A colleague of Yair's who is roped into the Oslo talks. He and Yair help to lay the groundwork for the eventual Oslo accords.
Uri Savir
Director-General of the Foreign Ministry
Portrayed By: Michael Aronov (OBC), Benjamin Thys (OBC), Jed Feder (Broadway in Chicago)
Yair and Ron's "replacement," Uri is the first member of the Israeli government to attend the Oslo talks. His style of negotiation is much less friendly than the other two, but he's able to connect with Ahmed over their shared desire to create a better future for their children.
- Commonality Connection: Uri and Ahmed discover that they both have daughters named Maya.
Yossi Beilin
Deputy Foreign Minister
Portrayed By: Adam Dannheisser (OBC), Stef Tovar (Broadway in Chicago)
Shimon Peres
Foreign Minister
Portrayed By: Daniel Oreskes (OBC), Ron E Rains (Broadway in Chicago)
Ahmed Qurie ('Abu Ala')
Finance Minister for the Palestine Liberation Organization
Portrayed By: Anthony Azizi (OBC), Anish Jethmalani (Broadway in Chicago)
Ahmed is the first member of the Palestinian Liberation Organization to meet with an Israeli delegate - his conversation with Yair on mutually beneficial economic practices that Israel and Palestine could adopt opens the door for the Oslo talks to begin.
- Code Name: Ahmed gets the embarassing codename "pantoffel," which is Yiddish for slipper.
- Commonality Connection: Ahmed and Uri discover that they both have daughters named Maya.
Hassan Asfour
PLO Liaison with the Palestinian Delegation
Portrayed By: Dariush Kashani (OBC), Amro Salama (Broadway in Chicago)
Ahmed's travel companion, Hassan is an intimidating figure.
Toril Grandal
Housekeeper and Cook at the Borregaard Estate
Portrayed By: Henny Russell (OBC), Juliet Hart (Broadway in Chicago)
A kindly older woman who works at the Borregaard Estate. Married to groundskeeper Finn. Toril's cooking is widely acclaimed by the Israeli and Palestinian guests alike — and her appearance with a tray full of freshly cooked waffles diffuses the tension at a critical moment in the negotiations.
- Supreme Chef: Toril's cooking is universally praised by guests of the Borregaard Manor.
Finn Grandal
Groundsman at the Borregaard Estate
Portrayed By: T Ryder Smith (OBC), David Parkes (Broadway in Chicago)
Married to housekeeper and cook Toril. Finn does not speak much, as his English is not as proficient as his wife's.
Trond Gundersen
Officer with the Norwegian Police Intelligence Service
Portrayed By: Jeb Kreager (OBC), Bassam Abdelfattah (Broadway in Chicago)
Part of the guard detail assigned to the delegates at the Borregaard Estate.
Thor Bjornevog
Senior officer with the Norwegian Police Intelligence Service
Portrayed By: Christopher Mc Hale (OBC), Victor Holstein (Broadway in Chicago)
Part of the guard detail assigned to the delegates at the Borregaard Estate.
Joel Singer
Senior Law Partner for a Washington, D.C. Firm
Portrayed By: Jeff Still (Opening Night), Joseph Siravo (OBC), Tom Hickey (Broadway in Chicago)
Joel is called in to review the documents produced by the peace talks. His job is to ensure that the legal language is sound and the agreements cover as much possible ground, leaving no room for dispute.
- Boring, but Practical: When discussion of the draft agreement begins, Joel opens by asking who will be responsible for collecting trash in shared territory. The other representatives object to discussing such mundane points when they could be hashing out more important disputes, but Joel points out the broad spectrum of issues the agreement is expected to cover isn't just about politics and territory — it's about living together peacefully, and that includes assigning responsibility for utilities and services.
- Omnidisciplinary Lawyer: Joel is a senior partner at a law firm in Washington D.C., but he's called in by the Israelis to negotiate potential international policy from a lawyer's perspective.
- Sir Swears-a-Lot: When Joel is introduced in Act 3, it's swearing up a storm over the draft agreement. He drops half a dozen f-bombs in his first ten lines of dialogue.
