The Carthage Theatre Festival (JTC) 2022 on Saturday evening opened curtains at the Tunis City of Culture under the slogan: “برشا محبة” (a lot of love), in the presence of Arab and African artists.
Tributes were paid to Tunisians Salwa Mohamed, Mohamed Yangui and Alaeddine Ayoub, Egyptian Souhir Morchedi, Syrian Ayman Zaydan, Iraqi Kacem Bayatli and Malian Habib Dembélé. The JTC Honorary Tanit was handed over to them by Minister of Culture Hayet Ketat Guermazi.
Posthumous tributes were paid to actor, theatre and film director Hichem Rostom, as well as to actors Tawfik Bahri, Sadok Mejri, Mongi Tounsi, Ismail Bouslama, Bechir Khamouma and visual artist Adel Megdiche.
At the opening ceremony, the culture minister welcomed Senegal, the guest of honour at this 23rd session, which is a tribute to French-speaking theatre and to a great figure of Senegal and the African continent Léopold Sédar Senghor.
The JTC will feature 82 theatrical works from 23 countries. Lebanon, Sudan, Morocco and Syria which were absent during the last editions, are back this year.
A selection of 12 Arab and African plays are in the running for the Golden Tanit, including two Tunisian plays: Emittance by Taher Issa Ben Larbi and Dark Side by Nizar Saidi.
The other countries in competition are represented by L’aigle retrouve ses ailes by Walid Omar Boubaker (Sudan), Chams et Majd by Oussama Ghannam (Syria), Antigone by Okbaoui Cheikh (Algeria), Les Bijoux by William Sham Weteshe (DRC), Les jardins des secrets by Mohamed Elhor (Morocco), Bercail by Arona Ba (Senegal), Eizdan by Mohannad Ali Hamid (Iraq), Hamlet Inside Out by Mazan Gharbaoui (Egypt), Mine-terrestre by Georges Ibrahim (Palestine) and Savoir préparer un cocktail by Jana Bou Matar (Lebanon).
The jury for the official competition, chaired by Tunisian Leila Toubel, is composed of Lina Abyadh (Lebanon), Youssef Al Hamdan (Bahrain), Falah Chaker (Iraq), Abdelwaheb Mabrouk (Tunisia) and José Mena Abrantes (Angola).
The JTC programme also features 31 plays out of competition, including 12 world theatre plays, 4 amateur and 7 children’s plays and 8 street performances.
The JTC which celebrates its 39th anniversary from December 3 to 10, are organised by the National Institution for the Promotion of Festivals and Cultural and Artistic Events (ENPFMCA) under the aegis of the Culture Ministry.
Source: Tap News Agency