The activities of the 10th Downtown Contemporary Arts Festival D-CAF continue for the second week, where the festival will witness a contemporary dance show with a number of workshops and events that highlight dance, theater and performing arts in all its forms, in addition to film screenings and workshops with a professional group of contemporary art creators.
On Friday, October 21, at the Tahrir Cultural Center, the “Contemporary Dance and Beyond” show from Egypt and Switzerland will be shown in cooperation with the Pro Helvetia.
The event consists of three performances, the first is a contemporary dance show dubbed “Cosmog” from Switzerland, which is an exceptional show and an example of how artistic performances can be done despite international travel restrictions.
The show is featuring three dancers, Susana Banades Diaz, Joseph Trevelli, and Rudi van der Merwe, who are filmed live in the company’s studio in Geneva and are shown in real time, 7,000 miles away in Egypt and specifically in the main park of the Tahrir Cultural Centre.
The second show from Egypt entitled “Search for Tarab”. It is a documentary film directed by Ahmed Abdel Mohsen, and Sandra Jessy.
The film tells the story of dancers from Switzerland who take a trip to Egypt, to learn the true and spiritual meaning of music and sounds.
This is followed by another documentary film entitled “People of Our Underworld” from Egypt and Switzerland, directed by Haitham Sharif, about Ayman Farghali, the sculptor and dancer. It tells the story of his challenge to the conditions of using a wheelchair.
On Thursday and Friday, October 20 and 21, a playwriting workshop will be held in Emad Eddin Studio about “Tabkha” show. The workshop is presented by Danish writer and playwright Jesper Pedersen as part of the special events program at D-CAF. “Tabkha” is a unique innovative theatrical show that was the opening of the 10th edition of the D-Caf Festival, written by Jasper Pedersen and Nassim Soleimanpour, where a new actor takes to the stage every night to perform a scenario he has not seen before.
In the workshop, Pedersen presents ideas on the process of creating an experimental theatrical work and re-drafts the rules of theatre. The workshop highlights ways to communicate with the audience in a fun and attractive way using games and interaction techniques.
Kinetic and Performing Theater Workshop
Emad Eddin Studio will also receive on Friday and Saturday October 21 and 22 a kinetic and performance theater workshop presented by Rachel Griffiths and Steve Teller in cooperation with the British Council Office (Gaza).
The workshop provides participants with a theoretical and practical introduction to the methodology of the famous Russian theater practitioner Konstantin Stanislavsky, as well as training on “In Motion Theatre”.
Participants will be introduced to the work of famous figures such as Jacques Lecoq and Ben Benison, who was Teller’s mentor at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London.
The second week of the festival will witness a contemporary dance show entitled “Long Show” from France and Egypt on Saturday and Sunday, 22 and 23 October at Startup House, and it is shown for the first time in the Arab world.
“Long Show” idea and choreography are by Alexandre Roccoli and Adam Shaalan, performed by Nermin Habib, Shadi Abdel Rahman, Gharib Litranjeh. The duration of the show, which is a musical, dance and interactive performance, is three hours.
