Ashraf AboArafe
Riyadh – The Theater and Performing Arts Authority (SPAA) announced the launch of a theatrical competition to select the teams participating in the “Riyadh Theater Festival”, which will be held at the Conference Center at Princess Noura bint Abdul Rahman University in Riyadh from 14 to 23 December 2023.
This came during a press conference in which Sultan Al-Bazei said
The CEO of the Theater and Performing Arts Authority, and the president of the Riyadh Theater Festival, the artist Abdul-Ilah Al-Sanani. It is possible to register and run for participation in the competition via the link: https://engage.moc.gov.sa/riyadh-theater/.
During his speech at the press conference, Al-Bazai revealed the criteria for selecting ten teams to compete and participate in the festival from all over the Kingdom.
Al-Bazei reviewed the stages of the competition, which will pass through receiving nominations for a period of 30 days, then comes the stage of sorting and evaluation, followed by the period of preparing the teams for theatrical performances in the areas in which they reside, and finally the stage of announcing the winners, then showing the teams’ play in the festival during the month of December.
Al-Bazai explained that there is a set of criteria and conditions that should be met in the theatrical performance, the most important of which are the principle of quality, serious and creative presentation, the development of the presentation language, the achievement of the integration factor in the elements of the theatrical work, in addition to the availability of the elements of attracting the audience in the work, and that the participating party be from The Kingdom, and that the percentage of Saudis in the nominated work is not less than 75%, and the festival requires that the theatrical show presented be new and has not been previously produced, and participation in texts that have been presented are excluded in this session, but on the condition that they are presented with a different artistic vision and direction, and the festival does not accept Monodrama works, or theatrical works directed to children.
The CEO of the Theater and Performing Arts Authority indicated that the Riyadh Theater Festival is working to revitalize and activate the Saudi theatrical movement through a package of Saudi theatrical performances, in support of local theater productions.
Al-Bazei stressed, saying: “Culture in general, and the Saudi theater in particular, has witnessed exceptional growth since the launch of the Saudi Vision 2030, which gave this sector utmost importance, and began to change its features through the establishment of the National Theater, as well as the launch of entertainment events, which achieves a real renaissance for the sector.”
He added, “The festival will devote cultural activities to commemorating the late Saudi artist, Muhammad Al-Othaim, for his pioneering contributions. A play written by him will be shown, along with a number of activities that express celebration of the honoree.”
For his part, Al-Sanani stressed that the launch of this festival will leave an imprint on the history of Saudi theater, which dates back to decades ago, indicating that the festival will constitute a huge gathering of pioneers and senior theater artists in the Arab world, pointing out that the competition that will be organized to select theatrical performances in the festival It will contribute to the discovery and development of young talents and the advancement of the theatrical sector, in line with Saudi Vision 2030 and the National Strategy for Culture.
