Qatar joins Gulf Theatre Festival in Fujairah with ‘Dhabia’

The activities of the Gulf Theater Festival for Non-Governmental Groups will kick off tomorrow, Friday, in the Emirate of Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, with the participation of six theatrical performances from the Gulf Cooperation Council, including the Qatari show "Dhabia" by the Al-Watan Theater Company, in addition to Qatari participation in the intellectual symposium accompanying the festival.

The play "Dhabia" is written and directed by artist and academic Saad Burshid, a faculty member at the Community College, and will be performed on November 18.

Director Saad Burshid said in a statement to the Qatar News Agency (QNA): "The play deals with the memory of the sea and social life in Qatar and the Gulf during the twenties of the last century, evoking a pivotal stage in maritime history, and the stories associated with it, diving, cruises, waiting and returning."

He explained that the play revolves around the character of "Dhabia", who embodies women in the Qatari and Gulf maritime community, with their strength, loyalty and wisdom, in the face of the challenges imposed by the nature of life at the time, and highlights through her dramatic plot the values of courage, patience and belonging, in the story of a person, a home and a homeland.

The team includes artists Ahmed Afif, Sarah Al-Rouhani, Abdullah Mubarak, Abdulrahman Al-Mansoori, Munther Thani, Bassem Ibrahim, and Salman Salem.

On the intellectual side, Dr. Marzouq Bashir bin Marzouq, a researcher in the field of media and drama, will participate in a scientific paper entitled "Between Impressionism and Critical Methodology: A Study in the Problems of Contemporary Gulf Theatrical Criticism", as part of the festival's intellectual symposium that discusses the issues of Gulf theater criticism.

The paper examines the dominance of impressionist criticism over objective methodological criticism, examines the limits of impression and its functions, the position of the critical self between taste and knowledge, and the possibilities of moving to an analytical vision based on multiple critical approaches, while balancing academic rigor and aesthetic sensitivity.

It also provides recommendations at the institutional, training, professional and media levels, with the aim of developing an objective critical system that supports Gulf theatrical creativity.

Six theatrical performances will take part in the festival, starting tomorrow (Friday) with the Emirati show "Fin Chromosome", written by Ismail Abdullah and directed by Mohammed Al Ameri, followed by the Bahraini show "Al-Zuba" on November 15, written by Taghreed Al-Dawood and directed by Hassan Flamarzi, then the Saudi show "Al-Saram" on November 16, written by Abdulaziz Al-Ismail and directed by Sultan Al-Noah.

The Omani show "The Other Face" will be presented on November 17, written and directed by Osama Al-Sulaimi, followed by the Qatari show "Dhabia" on November 18, while the performances will conclude on November 19 with the Kuwaiti work "What is Not Mine", written and directed by Ali Boland.

The festival will be accompanied by practical seminars after the performances, a workshop on "Playwriting Techniques" from November 15 to 18, and an intellectual seminar "Theater Criticism. From Impression to Media Vision" on November 16 and 17.

The festival will conclude on November 20 with a ceremony at the Fujairah Cultural Centre Theatre, where the winners will be honored with the participation of Gulf theater delegations.

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