Ayad Akhtar’s award-winning play Disgraced, an examination of Muslim-American identity issues in a post-9/11 America, premiered off-Broadway in 2012, and it remains just as urgent and relevant as it makes its D.C. debut at Arena Stage. Akhtar, also known for his successful 2012 novel American Dervish, is still unafraid to discuss the second generation immigrant experience in his work. In Disgraced, Amir (an assimilated and conflicted Muslim-American lawyer) and his wife Emily (a WASPy artist whose passion for Islamic themes is seen in her work) invite colleagues over for a dinner party. Before the party, Emily and Amir debate whether Amir should defend an Islamic leader charged with providing financial support to terrorist organizations. Amir has, so far, kept his Muslim background out of his professional life, but when this decision seeps into their once-polite dinner party conversation, all guests find a stake in the argument, turning a question about work into a full-blown battle over faith. The play is already a favorite with the D.C. theaterati; Washington Post theater critic Peter Marks was the head of the jury for drama when Disgraced won the Pulitzer Prize. The play runs April 22 to May 29 at Arena Stage, 1101 6th St. SW. $40–$110. (202) 488-3300. arenastage.org.