Dhofar International Theatre Festival 2024 To Kick Off In October

Dhofar International Theatre Festival to begin with participation of 50 countries

Salalah: The administration of the Dhofar International Theatre Festival 2024 announced that the festival will be held in the Wilayat of Salalah in its first session in 2024, organized by Dhofar Municipality in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth and the Omani Theatre Association during the period from October 2 to 9, with the participation of 35 theatre groups from 50 countries.

This came during a press conference about the festival’s activities and programmes this year, which was held by the Dhofar International Theatre Festival Management today at Anantara Salalah Resort.

His Excellency Dr. Ahmed bin Mohsen Al Ghassani, Chairman of Dhofar Municipality and Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Dhofar International Theatre Festival, delivered a speech in which he said: “The festival coincides with the Serb season in Dhofar Governorate to combine the natural beauty of the governorate with the diversity of theatrical and cultural arts.”

He pointed out that the Dhofar International Theatre Festival is a competitive international artistic gathering that aims to gather the most important international theatrical performances in the Dhofar Governorate to enhance theatrical talents and create new generations that will complete the journey of Omani theatre artists who have influenced the theatrical movement in the Sultanate of Oman and abroad.

The Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Dhofar International Theatre Festival confirmed that the festival will be attended by theatre amateurs and professionals from around the world in a cultural and civilisational theatrical carnival to reflect the importance and value of the role played by culture and arts in developing the theatrical, tourism and economic fields towards solid and sustainable social development.

Regarding the festival programme, Musa bin Abdullah Al Qasabi, Director General of the General Directorate of Culture, Sports and Youth in Dhofar Governorate and Deputy Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Dhofar International Theatre Festival, explained that the festival will be attended by 35 theatre groups competing in six tracks: major performances, public theatre, children’s and youth theatre, monodrama performances and duo theatre, over the course of 8 days, during which training workshops will be held by a number of specialists in theatrical art.

He explained that the Dhofar International Theatre Festival aims to activate the theatre movement at the level of the Sultanate of Oman and integrate it with global theatre cultures, as well as support and enhance specialised tourism by hosting theatre groups from around the world and encouraging the attraction of more cultural investments to the governorate in particular and to the Sultanate of Oman in general.

Ammar bin Obaid Ghawas, Director of the Events and Awareness Department at Dhofar Municipality and General Coordinator of the Dhofar International Theatre Festival, said: “The festival represents an opportunity to celebrate our ancient culture and highlight the artistic heritage of Dhofar Governorate, through which we seek to provide an exceptional experience that combines art, heritage and tourism with the aim of enhancing cultural identity and preserving popular heritage, so that this event will be the starting point for a series of events that contribute to enhancing the position of the Sultanate of Oman on the cultural and tourism map regionally and internationally.”

It is noteworthy that the Dhofar International Theatre Festival 2024 seeks to contribute to enriching the theatrical arts scene by presenting various performances and training workshops through accompanying events that are concerned with enhancing and refining theatrical talents.