The kingdom of Sheba was a wealthy kingdom in southern Arabia (region of modern-day Yemen) that flourished between the 8th century BCE and 275 CE. This kingdom is most known in biblical contexts, with many mentions in the Quran and the New and Old Christian Testaments of the Queen of Sheba's visit to Jerusalem to gain wisdom from King Solomon. In the biblical tale, Sheba brings 120 golden talents among a collection of other lavish gifts to offer King Solomon. There is no evidence outside of this story that Queen Sheba ever existed, but researchers on the topic have speculated that she was an Ethiopian queen who found her wealth through Spice Routes and world trade. 

There have been many excavations in the area where the kingdom is mentioned in these various texts, and in 2012 (after our play was written mind you) a British Archeologist discovered remnants of Sabean writings and ancient columns. Since then, the remains of mines and an ancient city have surfaced. Some have speculated that the tale is true and that the kingdom did exist in its wealth, while others are still unsure of the existence of the kingdom of Sheba.  

The Darfur Tragedy refers to the genocide in the Darfur region in northern Sudan by the Sundanese government and their militia. This began in 2003, Sudan was controlled by an Arab dictatorship which was led by the president, Omar al-Bashir. Sudan is ethnically diverse, and in the years leading up to the conflict the people living in the Darfur region fell into land disputes and an unequal distribution of power. In 2003, four groups in Darfur coordinated organizations to try to gain more autonomy within their nation, forming the Sudan Liberation Army, and the Justice and Equality Movement. These groups launched an attack on a military airbase in April 2003. 

The Sudanese government responded by training locals to form violent militias who were instructed to launch violent attacks in Darfur. Between 2003 and 2005 thousands of villages were burned to the ground, women were systemically raped, and major areas in Darfur were bombed by the government. In total, over 200,000 people were murdered, and approximately 2.5 million were displaced. Since 2003, the Sudanese government has continued to target black Africans in the Darfur region, with approximately 2.7 million people in the area displaced. In 2010, the Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir was charged by the International Criminal Court with three counts of genocide.