The Artistic Theatre House, a body operating under the Ministry of Culture and managed by Ismail Mokhtar, stated that its selection committee has announced its nominees for the plays participating in the upcoming 10th National Theatre Festival, set to be held between 13 and 27 July. The plays from the Artistic Theatre House's productions will compete in both the official competition and in the ‘selected plays' competition. The four plays nominated for the official selection include Qawaed El-Eshq El-Arbain (The Forty Rules of Love) by Adel Hassan, El-Galsa – Shoghl Afarit (The Sitting – Devil Works) directed by Monadel Antar, Yom Qatalo El-Ghenaa (The Day They Killed Singing) directed by Tamer Karam, and Wahda Helwa (A Pretty Woman) directed by Akram Mostafa. As for the ‘selected plays' competition, three works were nominated; Shaman by Said Soliman, Laabet Al-Araf (The Fortune Teller's Game) by Omar El-Shahat, both performed by El-Ghad Theatre troupe, and Wahed Tany (Another Man) directed by Shady Sorour and performed by El-Taliaa troupe. Mokhtar added in a press release that the selection committee took into consideration the artistic merits of the selected plays, the level of professionalism in the different elements, as well as their capacity to compete in the festival. “The selection was not easy, as all the plays were of comparable quality, and most of them were very popular and critically acclaimed,” Mokhtar stated. Last year the festival featured over 40 plays, 36 of which participated in the official competition. For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture
