Egypt’s acting Culture Minister Abdelaziz Konsowa opened the 33rd edition of the Cairo International Festival for Experimental Theatre on Tuesday, hailing the event as one of the world’s leading platforms for theatrical dialogue as it marks nearly four decades since its founding.
Speaking at the opening ceremony at the Cairo Opera House’s Main Hall, Konsowa, who also serves as minister of higher education and scientific research, told an audience of ambassadors, foreign delegations and artists that the festival had become a fixture on the global cultural map since its launch in 1988, giving Egyptian theatre a window onto international trends.
He said the gathering of so many artists, directors and researchers in Cairo carried a message that art could still unite people across differences of language, culture and geography.
Organisers said more than 400 productions had applied for this year’s edition, with 20 selected for performance alongside international workshops and panel discussions on the future of theatre amid rapid technological and cultural change.
Konsowa said the ministry viewed experimentation not as novelty for its own sake but as an ongoing search for new theatrical language and fresh ways of posing fundamental questions each generation faces. He pledged continued government support for Egyptian theatre “across all its generations and directions.”
The ceremony, hosted by actress Nourhan Shoeib, included the screening of a documentary titled “The Founder,” tracing the festival’s origins from an idea into one of the world’s most prominent specialised theatre festivals, featuring commentary by former culture minister Farouk Hosny, who founded the event.
Thirteen theatre figures from Egypt and abroad were honoured for their contributions to acting, directing, writing, research, set design and cultural administration, including Egyptian artists Hamza al-Eily and Tarek al-Dwiry, alongside international figures such as New Zealand choreographer and director Lemi Ponifasio, American director Patricia Lombardo Akira, and Britain’s Scott Graham.
Festival president Sameh Mahran said in his address that experimental theatre was not a “poetic space” where cultures blend seamlessly but a site of rupture that exposes gaps and shifts, describing experimentation as a break from habitual memory that reconnects lived reality with imagination.
The opening also featured a performance of “Haya” (“Life”), a movement-based production blending body, silence and text to explore themes of choice and human existence, directed by Karima Badir.
A jury for the festival’s official competition, chaired by Egyptian actor Riad al-Kholy, was also introduced, comprising members from Tunisia, Bahrain, the United States, France, and North Macedonia.
The festival runs until September 8, featuring 20 productions from 14 countries spanning drama, contemporary dance, puppetry, visual theatre and multimedia performance, alongside workshops and international partnerships.
