This week offers a particularly wide assortment of film screenings and musical events, topped with exhibitions, a book fair and more! Check our recommendations for 1 to 8 December in Cairo, Alexandria and Sohag Sunday 1 December Opening of the Sohag University Book Fair Between 1 and 10 December, the General Egyptian Book Organisation (GEBO) will hold a limited book fair for releases from Sohag University. The fair will contain most publications of the GEBO at a 20% discounted price. Open to the public daily between 9am and 5pm. Sohag University, Shark District, Sohag. (tel: [093] 4601820 / 4570142) 'The Trenches of the Virgins' by Wagdy El-Komy, at Diwan Zamalek, 7pm Diwan bookstore will host writer and journalist Wagdy El-Komy, who will sign and discuss his latest novel Khanadiq Al-Azrawat (The Trenches of the Virgins), recently released from Al-Saqi Publishing house in Beirut. Publisher Sherif Bakr will chair the discussion. Diwan, 159, 26th July Street, Zamalek, Cairo Eskendrella commemorates Fouad Haddad at the General Egyptian Book Organisation, 7pm Poet, Amin Haddad and Eskendrella band will commemorate the 26th anniversary of the death of the 'father of poets', Fouad Haddad. Amin Haddad will recite some of the poems of his late father to the rhythms of Eskendrella, led by vocalist Samia Jaheen. Corneish El-Nil, Ramlet Boulak, Cairo (tel: 02-25775109, 02-25775228) Townhouse: 15 Years. Celebrations and exhibitions launch at Townhouse Gallery, 7pm Townhouse Contemporary Art Gallery celebrates 15 years with three exhibitions. Two solo exhibitions by prominent contemporary artists Huda Lutfi and Lara Baladi will run throughout December. Lutfi and Baladi, both internationally renowned artists, exhibited their artwork at Townhouse's fourth exhibition in March 1999. The third exhibition, dubbed Social Security, is an experimental collective working space for emerging artists. The first floor of Townhouse will be transformed into studio areas for visual artists, graphic designers and a filmmaker. Exhibition runs until 8 January. Read more here 10 Al-Nabarawy Street, off Champollion Street, Downtown, Cairo ## Also on this day: 6th edition of Panorama of the European Film. See our section dedicated to Panorama, and the complete programme. Monday 2 December Hewar El-Nil at Cairo University, 12pm The Nile Project invites interested individuals to participate in a conversation about the sustainability of the Nile Basin and the role of students in this process. The talk will be preceded by the screening of a documentary about the Nile Project's 2013 gathering in Aswan, which featured 18 musicians from around the Nile basin, who gathered to explore their diversity and what they have in common. The event is part of a series of events within Egyptian universities. See more details here. Read more on the Nile Project here. View the video below for highlights on January 2013 musicians gathering in Aswan. Cairo University, Institute of African Studies and Research, Main Conference Hall Cairo Opera House Quartet celebrates Giuseppe Verdi at Cairo Opera House, 8pm For its first concert of the season, Cairo Opera House Quartet will be celebrating Giuseppe Verdi's 200th birthday. The program will include Verdi's rarely performed string quartet, together with a selection of famous opera arias by Verdi, Puccini, Delibes, Mascagni, and R. Strauss, arranged for string quartets. The Cairo Opera House Quartet was founded in 1991 by Osman El-Mahdy, who is also the ensemble's first violinist. The Quartet also includes Yasser Ghoneim on violin, Essam Abdel Hamid on viola and Mohamed Salah on cello. The same concert will be repeated on Wednesday 4 December in Alexandria. Cairo Opera House, small hall, Zamalek, Cairo. Cairo-Berlin collective contemporary art show As part of a Cairo-Berlin project at the German Embassy in Cairo, seven contemporary artists from the two capitals will exhibit their work at an artist-run space in Garden City, curated by Daniel Rode. The collective exhibition features artwork by Taha Belal, Jenifer Evans, Julian Faulhaber, Ganzeer, Sara Pfrommer, Daniel Rode and Klaus Walter. Read more about this project here. 1071 Cornish El-Nil, Garden City, Cairo; (Nile Sunset Annex Building) Apt 5, 1st floor Also on this day: - 6th edition of Panorama of the European Film. Check our section dedicated to Panorama, and the complete programme. - Book Fair at Sohag University. Check Sunday 1 December listing for more details. Tuesday 3 December Violin and piano recital at Cairo Opera House, 7pm Ahmed Ramzy on violin and Elham Ragab on piano will perform works by Handel, Stravinsky, Vitali and Tchaikonsky. Small hall, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek, Cairo Omar Khairat at Bibliotheca Alexandrina, 7pm Omar Khairat is a renowned Egyptian composer, pianist, whose original compositions -- which bridge contemporary Arab music and Western tunes -- have earned him a large following in Egypt and the region. Khairat performs across the region with his ensemble. This time he will be accompanied by the Bibliotheca Alexandrina Orchestra. Listen to Omar Khairat performing Am Ahmed (Uncle Ahmed) below. Bibliotheca Alexandrina, El Shatby, Alexandria Sweet Dreams: Amre Heiba at Mashrabia Gallery In a solo exhibition, running until 8 December at the Mashrabia Gallery in downtown Cairo, contemporary artist Amre Heiba showcases a selection of paintings produced between 2009 and 2013. The artist represents his observations of public life and express his private reflections. This collection features large scale oil paintings mostly depicting abstract figures in strong, raw colour. To the artist, painting is a medium through which he can capture his thoughts, feelings and dreams, according to his artist statement. 8 Champollion Street, Downtown, Cairo. Also on this day: - 6th edition of Panorama of the European Film. Check our section dedicated to Panorama, and the complete programme. - Book Fair at Sohag University. Check Sunday 1 December listing for more details. Wednesday 4 December Vampira band at Alexandria's Clay Cafe, 7pm Clay Cafe hosts Vampira, a band consisting of young musicians: Rami Mohamed and Rocky on guitars, Ahmed Mustafa on drums, Hossam Mohamed on bass guitar, and Amr Hossam and Maha Moussa as vocalists. The band will perform punk and classic rock, including covers of Ramones, Misfits, Guns and Roses, AC/DC and more. 156 Omar Lotfy St., in Front of tram station, Sporting El-Soghra, Alexandria (tel: 03-5901810) Screening and discussion of ‘Searching for a Sugar Man' in Bait El-Raseef at 7pm Rodriguez was the greatest '70s US rock icon who never was. His albums were critically well-received, but sales bombed, and he faded away into obscurity among rumours of a gruesome death. However, as fate would have it, a bootleg copy of his record made its way to South Africa, where his music became a phenomenal success. When his second album was finally released on CD in South Africa, two fans took it as a sign, deciding to look into the mystery of how Rodriguez died and what happened to all of the profits from his album sales. See official trailer below. Street 151, off Street 9, next to Midan El-Horreya, after El-Ezaby Pharmacy and in front of National Bank of Abu Dhabi, Maadi, Cairo. Verdi and Puccini Gala at the Cairo Opera House main hall, 8pm Cairo Opera Orchestra conducted by David Crescenzi, Cairo Opera Company and Cairo Opera Choir will perform the known arias from operas by Verdi and Puccini. The same event will be repeated on Thursday 5 December in Alexandria. Main Hall, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek Guitar recital at the Cairo Opera House small hall, 8pm Emad Hamdy with his ensemble will perform Latin and Spanish music: rumba, salsa, tango, merengue and gypsy music. The evening will also feature musicians and dancers: Yasmin Eid, Irene Philip, Tania Eskander, Sama El-Halaby, Nourhan Mohamed, Moustafa Medhat, Karim Sherif and Hany Zein. View Emad Hamdy performing Malaguena below. Small Hall, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek, Cairo Cairo Opera House Quartet celebrates Giuseppe Verdi at Alexandria Opera House, 8pm For its first concert of the season, Cairo Opera House Quartet will be celebrating Giuseppe Verdi's 200th birthday. The program will include Verdi's rarely performed string quartet, together with a selection of famous opera arias by Verdi, Puccini, Delibes, Mascagni, and R. Strauss, arranged for string quartets. The Cairo Opera House Quartet was founded in 1991 by Osman El-Mahdy, who is also the ensemble's first violinist. The Quartet also includes Yasser Ghoneim on violin, Essam Abdel Hamid on viola and Mohamed Salah on cello. This is a repeat of the event on Monday 2 December. Sayed Darwish Theatre (Alexandria Opera House), 22 El-Horreya Rd, El-Raml station, Alexandria Berlin, Symphony of a Great City in Cairo's Falaki Theatre, 8pm Old meets new at the Falaki Theatre this week, as contemporary Egyptian electronic musician Mahmoud Refat will deliver a live score to a documentary film by Walter Rutmann capturing 1927 Berlin. By delivering a contemporary live score to this silent documentary film of the city of Berlin, Mahmoud Refat presents a musical interpretation of the movie while placing it within a different context. Falaki Theatre, American University in Cairo, Falaki Campus, Downtown, Cairo Also on this day: - 6th edition of Panorama of the European Film. See our section dedicated to Panorama, and the complete programme. - Book Fair at Sohag University. View Sunday 1 December listing for more details. Thursday 5 December Last screening of 'Giraffada', part of the Panorama of the European Film, 10.30am Directed by Daniel Patrick Carbone, Giraffada is set in the West Bank town of Qalaqilya. The film follows the young loner Ziad, son of the town's Zoo veterinarian, who spends most of his time with the giraffes at the zoo. On one night during an Israeli raid on the town, the male Giraffe panics, and dies hitting his head on the cage, leaving pregnant female giraffe Rita depressed without a mate refusing food. Ziad, his father Yacine, along with a French journalist they met along the way set out to acquire a mate for Rita, but the only possibility is to take one of the six available at the Tel Aviv zoo. See our section dedicated to Panorama, and the complete programme. Plaza Cinema, Americana Plaza Mall, Sheikh Zayed Celebrating 25 years of El-Tanbura at the Cairo Opera House, 7pm The renowned Egyptian folk band from Port Said will celebrate its 25th anniversary. On this occasion, El Tanbura will be joined by El-Ma'alm Reda Zine, a band from Morocco, performing a rich repertoire of ancient African traditions, including Gnawa music and spiritual songs and rhythms. Watch El-Tanbura below. Cairo Opera House, Zamalek, Cairo Screening and talk with the director of 'The Square', part of the Panorama of the European Film, 6.30pm Directed by Jehane Noujaim, The Square is an immersive experience that transports the viewer into the intense emotional drama and personal stories behind the 25 January Egyptian revolution and its aftermath. It is the inspirational story of young people demanding their rights and building friendships across political lines, in the fight to create a society of conscience. Watch the trailer below and see our section dedicated to Panorama, and the complete programme. Also on this day: - 6th edition of Panorama of the European Film. See our section dedicated to Panorama, and the complete programme. - Book Fair at Sohag University. View Sunday 1 December listing for more details. - Verdi and Puccini Gala at the Cairo Opera House. Check Wednesday 4 December listing for more details Friday 6 December Screening and talk with the director of 'Sleepless Nights', part of the Panorama of the European Film, 6.30pm Directed by Eliane Raheb, Layaly Bala Nom (Sleepless Nights) tells the stories of Assaad Shaftari, a former high-ranking leader in a Christian militia who was responsible for many killings during the Lebanese civil war, and Maryam Saiidi,the mother of a young kidnapped fighter. The filmlooks closely at war wounds and asks if redemption and forgiveness are possible. See trailer below. Galaxy Cinema, 67 Abd El-Aziz Al-Saud St., El Manial Also on this day: - 6th edition of Panorama of the European Film. See our section dedicated to Panorama, and the complete programme. - Book Fair at Sohag University. View Sunday 1 December listing for more details. Saturday 7 December Fructose at 100 Copies Music Space, 7pm Yara Mekawei and Mahmoud Tarik will join forces in a performance combining electronic music with visual effects. 22 Talaat Harb Street, Downtown, Cairo Last days of Gamal El-Sagini at Zamalek Art Gallery Works by one of Egypt's most prominent sculptors, Gamal El-Sagini (1917-1977) are currently showing at the Zamalek Art Gallery. El-Sagini pioneered a movement of expressionism in modern Egyptian sculpture. Exhibition opened on 17 November and runs until 11 December. 6 Brazil Street, Zamalek, Cairo ## Also on this day: - 6th edition of Panorama of the European Film. See our section dedicated to Panorama, and the complete programme. - Book Fair at Sohag University. View Sunday 1 December listing for more details. Sunday 8 December Screening of film 'Asham' at Cairo Opera House, 6.30pm Egypt's critically-acclaimed 'Asham' is the first feature film for director Magy Morgan as both writer and director, following her direction of several documentary films. 'Asham' follows various intertwining stories of different characters dealing with hope, despair and the meaning of happiness, set against the backdrop of the crazy city they call home: Cairo. Screening is part of Cairo Opera's weekly cinema club. Watch trailer below. Small hall, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek Harp Recital at the Manasterly Palace, 8pm Harpist Manal Mohei Eldin will give a recital at the historic Manasterly Palace. She will perform works from Bach, Handel, Dussek, Debussy, Albeniz and Granados. Winner of State Incentive Award for Arts 2013, Manal Mohei Eldin is a well known and accomplished Egyptian musician. As a soloist she has a countless number of recitals to her name, along with performances with many orchestras in Egypt. Read a full profile of Mohei Eldin here. Manasterly Palace, Rhoda Island, next to the Nilometre. (For tickets contact Cultural Development Fund, tel (02) 27357001 / 27354234 or Manasterly Palace, tel (02) 23631537) Also on this day: - 6th edition of Panorama of the European Film. Check our section dedicated to Panorama, and the complete programme. - Book Fair at Sohag University. Check Sunday 1 December listing for more details. ------------- Follow Arts and Culture updates on Twitter:@AhramOnlineArts and on our Facebook page:Ahram Online: Arts and Culture http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/87879.aspx
