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In keeping with the slogan of the Arab Theatre Festival being held in Cairo - Arab solidarity is an imperative - several of the plays appearing address the Arab situation, according to festival chairman Amr Duwara.

However, the fact that the festival was sponsored - for the first time - by the Egyptian Ministry of Culture has proven controversial, and raised fears of official interference in the festival.

"The idea of non-interference by an official institution in the festival seems impossible; we already tried this co-operation before and noticed it was one-sided on several levels, such as the selection of the scripts and the method of approach," said theatre director Adel Abdul Wahab.

Ahmed Abasiry, a filmmaker, disagreed, saying that some believed state institutions could support these festivals financially without interfering in technical matters.

The thirteenth annual instalment of the festival will run until 30 April at Cairo's Miami Theater, with the participation of more than 100 Arab directors, actors and critics.

The idea of non-interference by official institutions in this festival seems impossible. - Adel Abdul Wahab, director

"Arab dramatists will discuss their reality against the backdrop of the conflicts currently raging in the Arab region during a seminar," said Duwara.

Viewing committee member Yusri Hassan said "the priority was given to plays based on Arabic texts".

A wide range

Organised by the Egyptian Society for Amateur Theatre since 2001, the festival includes performances by Arab professionals and Egyptian amateurs competing for the festival awards.

The viewing committee has selected ten plays for the contest, in addition to four others nominated by al-Thaqafa al-Jamahiriyya, the Institute for Dramatic Arts, the Ministry of Youth and Sports, and the Egyptian Church.

The plays featured in the festival include:
- The Difficult Question, written and directed by Faisal Bahso (Yemen);
- Dream of a Bloody Night, written and directed by Abdul Majid Shakir (Morocco)
- Mona Louisa, directed by Tounès Aït El-Hadj (Algeria)
- Sorry Dad, directed by Izz al-Din al-Mahdi (Libya).

Iraq is participating with two plays: The Silent Women, written and directed by Awatif Naeem, and You, Hailing From There, written and directed by Mounir Radi.

Tunisia is also competing with two plays: Warda, written and directed by Al-Omri Kawan, and The Opposite is Right, written and directed by Hadi Abbas.

Last but not least, Saudi Arabia is represented by The Mask, directed by Nouh al-Jamaan.

Several seminars will be held on the sidelines of the festival to discuss the issues facing Arab theatre and the crises it is experiencing.

The jury is chaired by Egyptian actor Ezzat al-Alaili and includes Abdul Aziz Ismail from Saudi Arabia, Amira Jawad from Iraq, Watfa Hamadi from Lebanon, Saad al-Maghribi from Libya, and Sawsan Badr from Egypt, and will award prizes to the winning plays during the closing ceremony.

This is an edited translation from our Arabic edition.