Mehdi Hasan and Mo Amer

Mehdi Hasan and Mo Amer are coming to Cullen Performance Hall on Friday, October 16, for a live conversation. It's presented by Zeteo and the Risala Foundation, and it's actually a live recording of an episode of Hasan's Zeteo podcast, We're Not Kidding, performed in front of an audience. The two will talk politics, Palestine, and comedy, and they'll open the floor to questions from the crowd.

Mehdi Hasan is a British-American journalist, broadcaster, and author, and the founder and CEO of Zeteo. He's known for a sharp political commentary style and a particular way of interviewing that doesn't let guests off easy. Mo Amer is a Houston comedian and writer of Palestinian descent, and he's the creator of the Netflix series Mo, which follows a fictionalized version of himself as a Palestinian refugee and won a 2023 Peabody Award. He's also put out three stand-up specials—The Vagabond, Mohammed in Texas, and Wild World—and was part of the comedy troupe Allah Made Me Funny, billed as the longest-running artistic collective of Muslim comic performers in the world.

The Risala Foundation has spent over a decade bringing together scholars, artists, thinkers, and community leaders to spark conversations on faith, identity, service, and the American Muslim experience. This fits right into that wheel: a journalist and a comedian talking through some of the same themes that have defined both of their careers. Between Hasan's political focus and Amer's perspective as a Palestinian refugee and Houstonian, there's plenty of ground for them to cover.

The show is at Cullen Performance Hall, 4300 University Dr, Houston, TX 77004, starting at 7:30 PM on Friday, October 16. Tickets run from $50 to $100 before taxes and fees.