By Ayad Akhtar. Directed by Richard Wolfe. A Cultch presentation of a Pi Theatre production. At the Cultch's Historic Theatre on Wednesday, April 6. Continues until April 23

The recent leak of the Panama Papers gives even more timeliness to The Invisible Hand, a play that investigates two of the western world’s big preoccupations: Islamic terrorism and financial corruption.

Ayad Akhtar’s taut play is set in Pakistan, where Nick Bright, an American bank officer, is being held hostage by agents of Imam Saleem. The kidnappers have two problems: they’ve got the wrong man (they were actually after Nick’s boss), and the Americans won’t negotiate for Nick’s release because Imam Saleem has just been declared a terrorist.

But things don’t seem to be too bad for Nick at the outset: in the opening scene, we see one of his captors, Dar, trimming Nick’s nails and then recounting how, by following Nick’s advice to buy low and sell high, he has made a tidy sum on his cousin’s potatoes—and prudently converted his rupees into more stable American dollars.

That story is a microcosm of the play’s larger plot. Nick persuades his less friendly captors, Bashir and Imam Saleem, that he is worth more to them alive than dead: he has $3 million in an offshore account that he can parlay into a much larger amount by playing the market. Imam Saleem agrees to the deal, on the condition that Nick’s hands never touch his laptop; instead, Bashir will do the trading according to Nick’s instruction, in the process gaining an education in market economics.

This setup requires a certain suspension of disbelief, but the eagerness with which radical anticapitalists latch on to the lure of big money may be part of Akhtar’s point. And though some of the dialogue feels like it’s drawn from an Intro to Economics lecture, there’s no shortage of dramatic tension as the balance of power among the characters is constantly in flux.

Director Richard Wolfe helms an assured and handsome production, and all four members of the cast deliver solid performances. Craig Erickson’s Nick lives and breathes trading; he wants to save his life, yes, but he’s also excited about sharing his knowledge. With his imposing stature and seething anger, Munish Sharma’s Bashir is credibly threatening, but he’s also a keen student. As Imam Saleem, Shaker Paleja is a study in high-status; his measured delivery of every word shows that the Imam is firmly in command—at least for now. Conor Wylie is convincing as Dar, whose actions are largely controlled by others.

David Roberts’s set suggests a warren of clay walls connected to the surprisingly cozy room Nick is being kept in. Gordon Grdina’s gorgeously evocative original music and Alan Brodie’s lighting help to ratchet up the tension.

The Invisible Hand doesn’t offer any easy answers to the problems it explores, but it’s engaging, thought-provoking, and sure to stimulate lengthy postshow discussions.