His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, witnessed, this Saturday evening, the opening of the thirty-third session of Sharjah Theater Days, which is organized by the Department of Culture, at the Culture Palace in Sharjah.
Seven theatrical performances will compete for the Al-Ayyam Awards for this session, which concludes on the ninth of March, and 12 theatrical performances presented by a group of theatrical groups and groups in the country will participate, in addition to a wide participation of artists, playwrights and researchers from various countries in the Arab world within the intellectual programmes, dialogues and accompanying seminars. For offers.
His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah honored the Emirati artist Abdullah Rashid with the “Honored Local Personality Award” for this session, and the Omani artist Fakhriya Khamis, the winner of the “Sharjah Award for Arab Theatrical Creativity” in its seventeenth session. His Highness also honored the Fawanees theater group from the Kingdom of Morocco, which won the “Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi Award for Best Arab Theatrical Work 2023” for her show “Tekanza…The Story of Tuda.” The award was received by the show’s director, Amin Nasour.
During the ceremony, His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah, and the attendees, watched two visual presentations, the first of which included the biography of the Emirati artist Abdullah Rashid, who made great efforts and continuous giving through his activity in the local theater in the UAE as an actor, writer and administrator since its beginnings in the year 1984 and his contribution to the development of the theatrical movement.
The second show covered stations from the career of artist Fakhriya Khamis, and the immortal works she presented that earned her honor throughout her career in the Omani and Arab theatre.
The ceremony witnessed the introduction of the members of the jury for this session, which includes: writer Hazza Al-Barari from Jordan as head of the committee, artist Walid Al-Zaabi from the UAE, director Dr. Masoud Bou Hussein from Morocco, director Nasser Abdel Moneim from Egypt, and director and writer Ihab Zahida from Palestine.
A group of performances were qualified to participate in this year’s competition, which were selected through the viewing and classification committee. They are: “Marwad Kohl” by the Dibba Society for Culture, Arts and Theater, “Iskan” by the Ras Al Khaimah Theater Troupe, and “Easter” by the Dibba Al-Hisn Society for Culture, Heritage and Theater, and “Eid Feast” by the Sharjah Modern Theater Troupe, “The Last Tariq” by the Dubai National Theater Troupe, “Scene Zero” by the Khor Fakkan Arts Theater Troupe, and “How Do We Forgive Us?!” For the Sharjah National Theater Band.
Two theatrical performances were chosen to be presented outside of this year’s “Al-Ayyam” competition: “Zaghrouda” by the Kalba Folklore and Theater Society, and “Ash” by the Fujairah Theater Troupe.
The program of the 33rd session of Sharjah Theater Days includes two performances from the tenth session of the Kalba Short Play Festival, which are: the work that won the Best Show Award, which is “The Chairs” by director Hamid Muhammad, and the work that won the Best Direction Award, which is “The Last Choice” by director Abdullah. Al Ali.
A group of graduates of the Sharjah Academy for Performing Arts, and a number of graduates of Arab theater colleges and institutes, are participating in the “Sharjah 12th Forum for Pioneers of Arab Theater,” which annually celebrates outstanding Arab theater academies, and gives them the opportunity to keep up with the activities of theatrical days, and learn about the cultural scene in the Emirate of Sharjah. In addition to attending a group of lectures and training workshops presented by a group of Arab theater professors, and a program of introductory visits to the most prominent cultural edifices in the emirate.
The intellectual forum accompanying this session is organized under the title “Theatrical Directing between Impact and Influence,” with the participation of researchers and theater practitioners from several Arab countries.
The cultural program accompanying the 33rd session of Sharjah Theater Days includes an interview with the artist Fakhriya Khamis on the occasion of her winning the Sharjah Award for Arab Theatrical Creativity, and another interview with the artist Abdullah Rashid on the occasion of his selection and honoring in this session. The program also includes two cultural seminars, the first entitled “Semantics and Aesthetics of Costumes in Theater.” Today,” and the second is titled “Authorship Techniques in Contemporary Theater: The Bahraini Experience as a Model.”
The opening ceremony was attended, alongside His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah, by: His Excellency Dr. Abdullah Belhaif Al Nuaimi, Chairman of the Advisory Council of the Emirate of Sharjah, Major General Saif Al Zari Al Shamsi, Commander-in-Chief of Sharjah Police, Abdullah Mohammed Al Owais, Head of the Department of Culture, Dr. Mansour bin Nassar, Head of the Legal Department of the Government of Sharjah, and Jamal Al-Tarifi, President of Al-Qasimia University, and a number of senior officials, artists, intellectuals, media figures, and theater lovers and enthusiasts.
