Samar Dowidar, workshop manager at the second session of the International Isis Festival for Women’s Theater, a session of the artist Aida Abdel Aziz, was keen to pay tribute to the artists who were martyred in beloved Palestine during the festival’s closing ceremony.
Among the trainees in the workshop was Muhammad Kharrat, a Palestinian who arrived in Egypt in January last year. His personal connection to the festival was deeply felt as he shared the names of his artist friends, whom he had always collaborated with but tragically lost during the events in Gaza.
The closing ceremony, hosted by media personality and artist Sally Said, commenced with a soulful singing segment. This was followed by a touching display of rare photos of the late artist Aida Abdel Aziz, a gift from her son to the festival management. The ceremony concluded with a short film that encapsulated the most significant activities of the second session, leaving the audience with a lasting impression of the festival.
It is noteworthy that the second session of the festival was held from May 16 to 22, and 12 theater groups from 7 different countries participated.
The Jarat Al-Qamar Foundation, a non-profit cultural institution, organized the festival. It is held under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture and is supported by a large number of partners, including the National Council for Human Rights, the National Council for Women, the National Council for Persons with Disabilities, the Ministry of Youth and Sports, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, and the Cultural Production Affairs Sector, the Supreme Council of Culture, the Cultural Development Fund, the Academy of Arts, the Egyptian Opera House, the National Center for Translation, the Spanish Cultural Center, the French Cultural Institute, the Austrian Cultural Center, the German Goethe Institute, Imad El-Din Studio, the Greater Cairo Library, the Sami Amin Foundation, and Caltograph and E’lam dot com.
