D-CAF 2016: Your Performing Arts Guide

With artists hailing from everywhere in the Middle East and abroad, get ready for a unique exposure of a myriad of life themes articulated through invigorating performing arts this year with D-CAF.

Gardens Speak

What? A soul-wrenching sound installation of narratives recorded by friends and family members of people who have been buried in Syrian gardens. The oral histories have been meticulously created the way the deceased would have recounted their own stories. 
When? 15^th, 16^th, 17^th, and 18^th of April
Where? 17 Gawad Hosni Street
Bi kaam? 20 LE
Note: The performance will be available in the English, Arabic, and French languages, depending on the date. 

In The Shadows of The Waves

What? Comfortably ensconced in deck chairs, you will have the opportunity to participate in a dreamy experience, where artist Kristoff K. Roll plays audio recordings of real dream stories edited with a twist of musical flavour.
When? 5^th, 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th of April 
Where? 22 Abdel Khaleq Tharwat Street; Radio Cinema Courtyard; Old French Consulate Rooftop; Greek Campus Rooftop
Bi kaam? 20 L.E 

Out of There & Mahalli & Belbaladi

What? A combination of dance performances comes to you from Syria, Lebanon, and Egypt. Out of There tackles themes of displacement through the conceptuality of movement, created from the perspective of Syrian culture and heritage. The show will articulate the collision between the country’s past and its current situation through dance. Mahalli (in Arabic meaning ‘my place’), is set to reflect to us important notions of the concept of one’s own body, representing a moving body that is simultaneously arrested with restraint. Hailing from Egypt, BelBaladi expresses through contemporary dance the living experiences of artists in Egypt. References to Egyptian culture and other elements of ‘shaabi’ or ‘baladi’ elements are abundant in the dance and fused with fitting mahragan music.

When? 14^th of April
Where? AUC Falaki Theatre
Bi kaam? 20 LE 

Sarab & May7komsh & Cell

What? Three artists from all over the Middle East will move your world with their dance performances. Sarab is Moroccan Fouad Nafili’s first solo project; a dance choreography and performance. May7komsh is a dance performance by Nagham Salah, whose performances include contemporary dance, hip-hop, and contemporary African dance. The choreography is performed by Shaymaa Shoukry, a visual arts and theatre major and a multidisciplinary artist who has worked on an international level as well. Cell, a solo whose research was also carried out by Youness Khoukhou, a Safi-born passionate dancer who has participated in numerous artistic and teaching projects in Morocco as well as in Europe.
When? 16^th and 17^th of April 
Where? AUC Falaki Theatre
Bi kaam? 20 LE

Small Rooms

What? Wael Qaddour creates a world in which Saba, Saad, Hanan, and Ammar attempt to find love under fear and pain. Set in Damascus 2010, the narrative exposes the nuanced feelings in human relationships, including the fear we induce upon one another, as well as the detachment we sometimes employ against the world.
When? 14^th and 15^th of April
Where? El Warsha (17 Sherif Street)
Bi kaam? Free (Registration required) 

Where Can I Find Someone Like You, Ali?

What? Raeda Taha, eldest daughter of Ali Taha, one of the hijackers of the Sabena Flight 571 in 1972, recounts in her play the story of Ali’s womenfolk and the way their life changed after the departing of Ali. The plot grants heroic roles to the martyr’s wife, his sister, and his daughter.
When? 16^TH and 17^th of April
Where? The Greek Campus Gym (AUC)
Bi kaam? 20 L.E

Zig Zig

What? Transcripts of the Nazlat al-Shobak’s investigation unfold through a documentary theatre performance, which revisits the accounts of brave Egyptian women who challenged and fought the humiliation caused by the British mandate in order to voice the rape incidents that have been committed against them during the occupation.  The documents were found in the archives of the British Foreign Office. 
When? 15^th and 16^th of April
Where? Jesuit Cairo
Bi kaam? Free (Registration required) 

For more information about D-CAF, check out their website and Facebook page.