THE struggles of four men in four cities, performed by just one actor is the latest cutting-edge show to grace the Mercury's new Studio space.

Love, Bombs and Apples is the latest play from award winning playwright Hassan Abdulrazzak who uses humour to highlight the problems facing the Arab, Jewish and Muslim communities across the world.

The stories are told from the perspective of four unrelated characters, Emad, a Palestinian actor playing Hamlet at the AlKasba theatre, Sajid, a Pakistani born aspiring writer who is jailed under suspicion of terrorism, a Bradford youth tempted by IS and a Jew torn between his liberal girlfriend and Zionist father.

While the themes visited in Love, Bombs and Apples are diverse, the stories are unified by Abdulrazzak’s deeply personal method of storytelling, both political and funny, set against the backdrop of worldwide, political instability, with the looming threat of civil unrest.

Abdulrazzak, who is of Iraqi origin, but born in Prague and now living in London, had his first play staged, Baghdad Wedding, in 2007 at the Soho Theatre in London, before it toured the world and was broadcast on BBC Radio.

Dealing with strong political themes, what is perhaps most striking about the piece is the performance by actor Asif Khan who has to shift seamlessly between the individual stories, one moment an Arab in Jerusalem, the next a Jewish man in New York.

Trained at RADA, Asif's previous credits include Twelfth Night at the National Theatre, Mixed Up North for Out of Joint), Queen of the Nile for Hull Truck, and Kabaddi Kabaddi Kabaddi for the Arcola Theatre.

Asif says: “There are many challenges such as fully embodying physically and vocally each of the four characters I'm playing. But I think the most challenging thing with this piece in particular is stamina. Having the stamina to keep the audience fully engaged for 90 minutes, with no interval. But it worked out last year and so we can take confidence from that.”

Directed by Rosamunde Hutt, and following an acclaimed run at last year's biennial Shubbak festival, London's largest festival of contemporary Arab arts and culture, Love, Bombs and Apples takes to the Mercury Studio Theatre, tonight and tomorrow, May 13 and 14, at 8pm.

Tickets are priced £12, available on-line at www.mercurytheatre.co.uk or by calling the box office on 01206 573948.