Sunday 28 September
Approved for Adoption at Zawya at 6:30pm
The Belgian feature Approved for Adoption will conclude the screenings of Zawya’s first weekend dedicated to animated films. The film follows a comic book artist as he returns to Seoul after being abandoned at the age of five.
Odeon Cinema, 4 Abdel-Hamid Said Street, off Talaat Harb Street, downtown Cairo
Opening of Next to Here exhibition at CIC at 7pm
Next to Here is a photography exhibition which features works by 18 artists from the Arab world and North Africa. Curated by Leipzig-based Constanze Wicke, the exhibition is the result of workshops in Algiers, Casablanca, Tunis, Beirut, Ramallah, Amman, Khartoum, Erbil, Dubai, Alexandria and Cairo, organised by four branches of the Goethe Institute along with local partners. Read more here.
4th Floor, 22 Abdel-Khalek Tharwat, downtown Cairo
Hip hop evening at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina at 8pm
The concert will include line-up of several Egyptian hip hop bands: Revolution Records, Shahin & Boflot, Asfalt, Egy Rap School, and DJ Dekka. The same line-up will perform in Cairo on 30 September at El-Sawy Culturewheel.
Great Hall, Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Chatby, Alexandria
The Third Circle at Falaki Theatre at 8pm
A fusion of modern dance and electronic music, addressing the issues around how dance and music are seen in the context of Islamic sharia law. The show is the brainchild of Nancy Naous and Wael Kodeih and will showcase at the downtown theatre as part of Bidoun Takleef, a programme launched by Al-Mawred Al-Thaqafy to celebrate their ten year anniversary. Read more here.
Falaki Theatre, AUC Tahrir campus, downtown Cairo
Also on this day:
- 7th International Samaa Festival for Religious Chanting and Sufi Music in Cairo
- Go On Living play at Miami Theatre, 8pm
From the series 'Consumership. We don’t live life in our countries, we consume it' by Egyptian artist Nadia Mounier (Photo: Courtesy of Goethe Institut)
Monday 29 September
Manhattan Shorts at Zawya at 6:30pm
The evening is an international initiative to screen ten shorts in 250 cinemas across six continents during the week of 26 September and 5 October. Ten short films have been selected from 589 entries from 27 countries and will be now judged by a global audience. Cinema goers will become instant film critics as they will be handed a ballot upon entry that allows them to vote for Best Film and Best Actor. Results will be sent to the Manhattan Shorts headquarters and results will be announced on 6 October.
Odeon Cinema, 4 Abdel-Hamid Said Street, off Talaat Harb Street, downtown Cairo
Interruption exhibition at Townhouse
The exhibition, which opened on Sunday 21 September, is part of The Pick series, which in its current edition features works by Amna Badawy, Nouran Sherif & Muhammad Taymour, Reem El-Maghraby, Shadwa Ali and Tuqa El-Harouny, working around installation, sound art and photography. Read interview with curator here.
10 Nabrawy Street, off Champollion Street, downtown Cairo
Live from Casino Al-Shatby at Makan at 8pm
An evening of theatrical readings from the book Live from Casino Al-Shatby by Al-Shaimaa Hamed, accompanied by live music by Ahmed Omar, both from Egypt. The reading is part of Bidoun Takleef, a regional programme launched by Al-Mawred Al-Thaqafy to celebrate their ten year anniversary. Read more here.
1 Saad Zaghloul Street, El-Dawaween,Cairo.
Also on this day:
- Out to Sea - Cairo exhibition at Darb1718, Cairo (Read exhibition preview here)
"Pink Eye", an installation by Touqa Al-Harouny (Photo: Courtesy of Townhouse Gallery)
Tuesday 30 September
Screening of Zelal documentary at Zawya Cinema at 6:30pm
The 2010 documentary by Egyptian acclaimed director Marianne Khoury and Mostafa Hasanaoui delves into the world of psychiatry and madness in Egypt’s mental institutions. Khoury will be available for a Q&A after the film. Read more
here.
Odeon Cinema, 4 Abdel-Hamid Said Street, off Talaat Harb Street, downtown Cairo
Opera Aida at the Cairo Opera House at 8pm
Composed by Verdi to the libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni and based on a story written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette, Aida is among the most frequently performed operas at the Cairo Opera House. On 30 September, Aida, conducted by David Crescenzi, will open a new operatic season. The opera will be also performed on 1, 2 and 3 October.
Main Hall, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek, Cairo
Contrabass and piano at the Cairo Opera House at 8pm
The small hall of the Cairo Opera House will host Mohamed Seif El-Yazal on contrabass and Mohamed Saleh on piano. The evening will include compositions by Rachmaninoff, Dragonetti, Bottesini, Gershwin, Seif El-Yazal among other.
Small Hall, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek, Cairo
Screening of Divine Intervention at Arab Digital Expression Foundation at 7pm
Elia Suleiman’s Yadoun Ilaheyya, or Divine Intervention, is considered by many as a black comedy. The film depicts the fragmented encounters between a Palestinian living in Nazareth and his girlfriend who lives in Ramallah, chronicling life amid Israeli checkpoints. Produced in 2002, it won the FIPRESCI Award at Cannes Film Festival during the same year.
143, Street 8, off Al-Nafoura Square, Muqattam, Cairo
Also on this day:
- Out to Sea - Cairo exhibition at Darb1718, Cairo
- Interruption exhibition at Townhouse Gallery, Cairo
Wednesday 1 October
El Gezira 2 starts screening in cinemas
El-Gezira 2 is the sequel to Sherif Arafa's acclaimed 2007 drama El-Gezira (The Island), a movie that starred Ahmed El-Sakka, Mahmoud Yassine, Ezzat Abo Ouf, Khaled El-Sawy and Hind Sabri. El-Gezira transported viewers into a small community living and setting their own rules and social codes on an island in Upper Egypt. The sequel boasts an all-star cast, including
Khaled Saleh who passed away this week, and Arwa Gouda.
Coming to cinema screens across Egypt.
The Widow of the Desert dance performance at Gomhoreya Theatre at 8pm
Egyptian Modern Dance Theatre Company will stage The Widow of the Desert, a dance performance based on Sunset Oasis, a novel by Bahaa Taher. Taher is a renowned Egyptian contemporary writer, winner of many prestigious literary awards, including the International Prize for Arabic Fiction, the Arabic Booker prize. The Widow of the Desert will be also performed on Thursday 2 October.
12 El-Gomhoreya Street, Abdin, Cairo
Also on this day:
- Opera Aida at the Cairo Opera House, 8pm
- Interruption at Townhouse Gallery
Thursday 2 October
Long Live the Monster at El-Cabina, at 7pm
In partnership with Nazra for Feminist Studies, BuSSy is set to perform “Long Live the Monster” on El Cabina’s stage. The performance is based on a series of stories exploring masculinity in the Egyptian culture. The stories were collected and dramatized during a workshop held by Nazra last May. The show is not suitable for children, only 18+ audiences will be allowed in. Read more on BuSSy
here.
11 San Seba Street, El Raml Station, Downtown, Alexandria
Also on this day:
- The Widow of the Desert dance performance at Gomhoreya Theatre, 8pm
- Opera Aida at the Cairo Opera House, 8pm
Friday 3 October
Beat The Head at Room Art Space, 6pm
Dancer Mohamed El-Deeb and musician Mohamed Kamal will deliver a novel kind of performance: an improvised show anchored only by a few meeting points (which the two artists agree on prior to the performance) and a shared interest in the experimenting. This is the first installment of Beat The Head, a project fusing body and sound with minimal preparation. Read more on Room art space
here.
10 Etehaad El Mohamin St., Garden City, Cairo
Also on this day:
- Last performance of opera Aida at the Cairo Opera House, 8pm
Mohamed El Deeb in 'What's Left' on Falaki stage in January (Photo: Rowan El Shimi)
Short link: