Shubbak Festival Announces Projects Chosen for ‘Between Two Shores,’ Dates Set for July 2017

The biannual Shubbak Festival, a celebration of Arab arts held in London, has announced the first events that will be available at the  2017 fest, and have opened ticket sales for “Displacement,” by Syrian choreographer Mithkal Alzghair:

shubbakShubbak 2017 is set to take place from July 1-16, and “Displacement” is scheduled for Sadler’s Wells on July 6 and 7.

The festival also announced the performance pieces chosen for “Between Two Shores,” two theatrical works and one dance performance. They are: Suspension and Disbelief by Hani Sami (Egypt), Personal Empathy Machine by Amal Omran (Syria), and Transaction by Mithkal Alzghair (Syria). The “Between Two Shores” project commissioned, and will support tours for, these three new works. The artists involved have all been living in Europe for a maximum of six years.

According to Shubbak organizers, “Personal Empathy Machine is an original performance work by Amal Omran, Hatem Hadawe and Kathryn Hamilton about Syrian prisons, Virtual Reality and the limits of empathy.”

Sami’s Suspension and Disbelief is, meanwhile, “an interactive lecture performance on how we perceive and consume images in our current age, intertwining theoretical musings and visual projections. Focusing on iconic images from the last decade, particularly from the Arab world, the lecturer will guide audiences on a journey of intellect, trauma, and catharsis.”

Alzghair’s dance performance Transaction asks: “How can we continue to produce images today, to show to the world what could be going on? How can the ‘un-representable’ be represented?”

Shubbak is also seeking a “festival and engagement producer” based in their London office to produce projects and develop engaged relationships with London’s Arab communities. The application deadline is November 28; more abotu the position at: http://www.shubbak.co.uk/shubbak-seeks-festival-engagement-producer/

You can also follow Shubbak 2017 festival organizers on Facebook and Twitter for updates.