Sunday 9 March
Neighbours by Tahani Rashed at Bibliotheca Alexandrina at 7pm
This 2009 documentary by Tahani Rashed explores the neighbourhood of Garden City, especially the relationship between its deterioration and the 1952 officers’ movement. The film interviews veteran residents and prominent figures. Rashed will be available for a Q&A after the film.
Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Arts Centre, Azarita, Alexandria
Al-Nour Wal Amal anniversary concert at the Opera House at 8pm
Celebrating the sixtieth anniversary of the establishment of Al-Nour Wal Amal association for visually impaired Egyptian girls, Al-Nour Wal Amal Chamber Orchestra will perform at the Cairo Opera House. The orchestra -- consisting of blind female musicians -- was established in the late 1960s as part of educational activities of the association; the very first concert of the ensemble took place still at the Old Cairo Opera House. Since then, the orchestra has grown considerably, incorporating three generations of visually impaired musicians. The orchestra has toured the world, performing in over 20 countries and on five continents, with a repertoire of both Western classical and oriental music. Over the years, the Al-Nour Wal Amal Orchestra has achieved astounding acclaim, being called “a human miracle,” “the fourth pyramid on the Giza plateau,” and “an orchestra with no peer in the world.” Read more about Al Nour and Amal here and about their Germany concert here, with photos here. See below for a video about Al-Nour Wal Amal Orchestra performing in Germany.
Small Hall, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek, Cairo
Port of Memory and Wadjda screening at French Institute at 6pm and 8pm
Port of Memory by director Kamal Aljafari is a documentary about a Palestinian family living in the threat of eviction from their home in Jaffa, now a part of Tel Aviv. Wadjda, a feature film by Saudi filmmaker Haifaa Al-Mansour, tells the story of a young girl living in Riyadh who longs to buy a bicycle, and explores the difficulties she faces in Saudi society. The two films will be screened at the French Institute as part of the Film Week hosted by the Goethe and French Institute in Egypt. Watch the trailer for Wadjda below and check out more about the Goethe Film Week programme here.
1 Madraset Al-Hoqouq Al-Ferensiya Street, off of Qasr Al-Eini Street, Mounira, Cairo
Monday 10 March
Screening of Freedom Bus at the Goethe Institute at 6pm
Freedom Bus is a documentary by Fatima Geza Abdollahyan which follows protagonist Ashraf El Sharkawy as he embarks on a campaign to spread the concept of democracy in Egypt. Watch the movie trailer below and check out more about the Goethe Film Week programme here.
Goethe Institute: 5 Al-Bustan St., Downtown Cairo
Susanna's Secret at Al-Gomhoreya Theatre at 8pm
Susanna's Secret is an intermezzo in one act by Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari. Cairo's performance will include soprano Ingy Mohsen as Countess Susanna, baritone Moustafa Mohamed as the count, and Ahmed Abou Emara in the silent role of Sante, a dumb servant. Susanna's Secret will be performed for a second time on Tuesday.
12 Al-Gomhoreya Street, Downtown Cairo
Cairo Opera Orchestra to perform symphonic concert at Cairo Opera House at 8pm
Cairo Opera Orchestra Nayer Nagui will perform Beethoven's Concerto for Violin, Cello and Piano in C Major and Sibelius' Symphony No.6 in D Minor. Soloists of the evening are cellist Yuko Miyagawa, violinist Mark Gothoni and pianist Ralf Gothoni. Concert is part of the 7th Finnish Egyptian Musical Bridge taking place in Cairo from 10 to 15 March.
Main Hall, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek, Cairo
Tuesday 11 March
Young talents perform at the Cairo Opera House at 8pm
The children’s choir, youth choir and the ballet class from the Talents Development Centre will give a joint concert at the opera house. Read more about the centre here.
Main Hall, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek, Cairo
Lingering in Vicinity: Maha Maamoun at Gypsum Gallery
Gypsum Gallery, which recently opened in Zamalek, is hosting a solo exhibition of works by Cairo-based visual artist Maha Maamoun. The show presents two projects that the artists produced a decade apart: a series of large-scale photographs dubbed Cairospaces (2003), and a single-channel video named Shooting Stars Remind Me of Eavesdroppers (2013). "Seen together, the two works propose aesthetic, formal and conceptual threads that run through Maamoun’s practice," reads the curatorial statement. The exhibition runs until 25 March
5a Bahgat Ali Street, Zamalek, Cairo
Still from Shooting Stars Remind me of Eavesdroppers. (Photo: courtesy of Gypsum Gallery.)
Also on this day:
- Susanna's Secret at Al-Gomhoreya Theatre at 8pm. Check 10 March listings for more details
Wednesday 12 March
Frogz performance at Hanager Arts Centre at 11am and 6pm
Frogz, created by Jerry Mouawad, was shown on Broadway in the US. This performance is part of the annual Hakawy International Arts Festival for Children (12-18 March) organised by the AFCA for Arts and Culture. The show will be repeated on Thursday. See the trailer for Frogz below.
Hanager Arts Centre, Cairo Opera House grounds, Zamalek, Cairo
Launch of Zawya initiative in Cinema Odeon at 6pm
Misr International Films (MIF) will be launching their highly anticipated initiative 'Zawya', with a screening of internationally acclaimed Saudi film Wadjda, directed by Haifaa Al-Mansour. Zawya is an alternative cinema project that will screen arthouse films, both local and international, that do not normally make it to screens in Egypt at a number of movie theatres around the country. The first permanent venue for the project is the newly-renovated Cinema Odeon in downtown Cairo. Read more about Zawya here. The opening ceremony and accompanying press conference will begin at 6pm, and the film screening will begin at 9pm.
Cinema Odeon, 4 Talaat Harb Street, Downtown Cairo
Thursday 13 March
Yummm performance at Hanager Gallery at 5pm
The Yummm performance by UK theatre troupe Tell Tale Hearts is part of the annual Hakawy International Arts Festival for Children (12-18 March) organised by the AFCA for Arts and Culture. The show will be repeated on 14 and 15 March. Read more about the festival here.
Hanager Arts Centre, Cairo Opera House grounds, Zamalek, Cairo
Launch of Cairo International Jazz Festival at Al Azhar Park at 5pm
Annual Cairo International Jazz Festival returns this year with a great line-up. The festival will take place between 13 and 16 March. Opening day's line-up includes performances by Jakub Urban Trio featuring Noha Fekry, Massar Egbari, Michelle Rounds along with Kaz Okumura from Japan. Watch Ahram Online's video from last year's edition of the festival below.
Salah Salem Road, Cairo
Also on this day:
- Frogz performance at Hanager Arts Centre at 11am and 6pm (part of the annual Hakawy International Arts Festival for Children, 12-18 March)
Friday 14 March
AFCA celebrates tenth anniversary at Hanager grounds
Throughout the whole day Hanager Arts Centre, its theatre, gallery and grounds in front of the centre will celebrate the tenth anniversary of AFCA for Arts and Culture. The day will include a number of activities as well as performance of Yummm by Tell Tale Hearts, UK and Paradies Kinder. Check the festival's programme here.
Hanager Arts Centre, Cairo Opera House grounds, Zamalek, Cairo
Maspero II: Collective exhibition at Darb 1718
Maspero II: The Sequel is a follow-up to a 2011 exhibition curated by Ali Abdel-Mohsen, featuring the works of artists who dealt with the topic of censorship, media freedom and the iconic television building using painting, writing, video, photography, graffiti and even architecture. This time around, some of the artists from the original exhibition, along with new names, are revisiting these concepts nearly three years later to examine what has changed – or, rather, has not – since the outbreak of the Egyptian revolution. Maspero II: The Sequel will feature works by Ahmed El-Shaer, Aisha El-Shabrawy, Ali Abdel-Mohsen, Amr El-Kafrawy, Azza Eissa, Moataz Nasr, Moawya Helal, May El-Hossamy, Yassmin El-Meligy and Youssef Limoud. The exhibition opened on 1 March and runs until 1 April.
Qasr Al-Shamee Street, Al-Fakhareen, Old Cairo
(Behind the Hanging Church and Amr Ibn Al-Aas Mosque)
Maspero II: The Sequel
Also on this day:
- Cairo International Jazz Festival at Al-Azhar Park
Saturday 15 March
Cairo Symphony Orchestra’s weekly concert at the Cairo Opera at 8pm
Cairo Symphony Orchestra conducted by Yasser El-Serafi will take the audience through three centuries of music, from Bach to Mahler and to Gershwin. The evening will include the following programme: Adagietto from Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, J.S. Bach’s Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 1 in D minor, Dvořák’s Serenade for Strings in E major Op.22 and Gershwin’s Lullaby for Strings. The piano soloist of the evening will be Yasser Mokhtar.
Main Hall, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek, Cairo
Also on this day:
- Hakawy International Arts Festival for Children at Hanager Centre. Check the festival's programme here and watch fragment from the MadCap show, parts of the festival above.
- Cairo International Jazz Festival at Al Azhar Park
Sunday 16 March
Opening of Layer of Green at CIC at 7pm
Contemporary Image Collective (CIC) and Goethe Institute will open the Layer of Green exhibition. Over four weeks, numerous Egyptian photographers will present their works focusing on environment and change within the concepts of "green." The exhibition is a result of a photography workshop organised by the two institutions in November 2013.
22, Abdel Khaleq Sarwat Street, Downtown Cairo
Omar Khairat closes Cairo International Jazz Festival at Al Azhar Park
The annual Cairo International Jazz Festival returns this year with concerts being held between 13 and 16 March. The concert includes musicians from Egypt, Austria, Germany Japan, Lebanon, Portugal, France, Tunisia etc. The final day will feature Omar Khairat, well known Egyptian pianist and composer.
Salah Salem Road, Cairo
Painting by Shayma Kamel. Part of artist's ongoing solo exhibition Cinderella’s Tales. (Photo: courtesy of Mashrabia Gallery)
Also on this day:
- Hakawy International Arts Festival for Children at Hanager Centre. Check the festival's programme here
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