The first edition of the African Theater Festival opened on Monday in Rabat under the High Patronage of His Majesty King Mohammed VI.
According to the Moroccan Minister of Youth, Culture and Communication Mohamed Mehdi Bensaid, "beyond the simple artistic event, this Festival is an opportunity for States and Territorial Communities to promote their cultural policies and their cooperation for the development of the creative and cultural industries of our countries”.
"We will thus honor the creativity of the women and men who today as yesterday have made theater in Africa a place of expression and creation at the crossroads of the cultural riches and commitments of an entire continent", he said. -he assures.
The Moroccan capital Rabat welcomes from Monday 24 to Sunday 30 April 2023, 10 companies from all over the continent, as well as personalities from the world of theater and culture for exchanges and fascinating debates.
"We hope that this African Theater Festival will be a highlight for the promotion of African culture and a springboard for the development of the creative and cultural industries of our countries," said Minister Mohamed Mehdi Bensaid.
The first edition of the African Theater Festival is supported by the Ministry of Youth, Culture and Communication and the Éclats de Lune Collective.
According to the Artistic Director of the African Capitals of Culture Khalid Tamer, "through this event, Morocco is hosting its first pan-African meeting dedicated to theater and thus affirms its desire to contribute to the development and structuring of the continental live performance market".
"Theatre of reality, resistance, resilience, utopias, theater of cities and neighborhoods, theater of men and women, of their struggles and their dreams: the programming of this first edition crosses 10 African countries and offers a vision unprecedented in contemporary African theatre, carried by emerging and internationally renowned authors and directors”, he underlined.
According to Khalid Tamer, “this festival is a space for exchange and sharing between different African actors in the performing arts sector”. It is "an opportunity to invite different companies and speakers to present their creation, their vision on theater and its creative processes and thus initiate an inventory of theater in Africa", he suggested.
The first edition of the African Theater Festival will be marked by the presentation of the plays in competition and professional meetings.
Burkina Faso is represented at the Festival with the play “Tears from the sky in August” written and directed by Aristide Tarnagda which is in competition. Also present on site is the director of Espace Gambidi, Kira Claude Guingané.
Source: Burkina Information Agency