(Photo: courtesy of Hakawy Int'l Arts Festival for Children, 2020)
The 11th edition of the Hakawy International Arts Festival for Children will take place between 28 September and 5 October, AFCA for Arts and Culture, the company organising the festival announced.
The only theatre festival for children in Cairo, Hakawy takes place annually in March. However, due to the pandemic, its upcoming edition has been moved to the second half of the year.
“We are committed to our audience, which in large part includes school children. September and October is the best timing. Schools will reopen and the situation of the pandemic will hopefully be under control by then,” Mohamed El-Ghawy, the festival’s founder and artistic director commented to Ahram Online.
“We are already working on a strategy that will suit the festival’s upcoming edition and its audiences. As we continue to monitor the situation, we also put into consideration the changing realities of those months,” he said, adding that the festival’s postponement to the second half of the year will be implemented only for 2021.
“We will still look at the upcoming months and years and decide if this will be the fixed timing for further editions or if we will return to March later on.”
Founded in 2011 by Mohamed El-Ghawy, this annual event brings Egyptian and international theatre for children and other activities to Cairo and other governorates.
Over the years, the Hakawy festival has brought over 60 companies and over 200 artists specialised in theatre for children from 15 countries and four continents to Egyptian audiences.
The first round of the festival took place at the College du Sacre-Coeur in Heliopolis, and it brought together troupes from Egypt, Croatia, Ireland, and Finland.
The second round took place in March 2012 at Al-Ghad, Al-Gomhoureya, and the Cairo Puppet theatres in AFCA’s first large-scale cooperation with the Ministry of Culture.
In March 2013, the festival started taking place at the Hanager Arts Centre, with some troupes visiting other venues, such as the Children’s Cancer Hospital.
Each year, the festival presents captivating performances and attracts a growing audience. Over time, the Hakawy Festival hosted performances from many countires, with several of them showcasing their work in several consecutive years.
The festival’s 10th anniversary edition took place last year right before the pandemic, showcasing performances in schools and governorates.
The details of the festival’s 11th edition, which kicks off on 28 September 2021, are yet to be revealed.
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