The Spring Festival, set to run between 24 and 26 May in Cairo and Beirut, is an interdisciplinary feast. This year the event in Cairo also hosts the Red Zone festival This year'sSpring Festival, organised by Al-Mawred Al-Thaqafy (Culture Resource), is set to incorporate music, theatre, film, visual arts, dance and poetry. The festival will have a special focus on Africa. The line-up includes diverse artists from Egypt, the Arab region and Africa, and will also incorporate percussion, contemporary dance, capoeira and hip hop workshops given by the visiting performers. The event is also hosting parts of the Norwegian Red Zone festival -- which seeks to push the boundaries of free expression. Parts of this festival are brought to Cairo audiences. Thursday 24 April at 8pm Music: Miss Lira South Africa Prince Taz Palace, 27 Seyoufeya Street, off Saleeba Street, Khalifa free admission Saturday 26 April at 8pm Music: Miss Lira South Africa El-Genaina Theatre, Al-Azhar Park, Salah Salem Road, Darassa Monday 28 April at 8pm Contemporary Dance: The Meal and Mamela Nyamza South Africa Falaki Theatre, 24 El-Falaki Street, Bab El-Louk (Downtown) free admission Thursday 1 May at 8pm (Red Zone Festival) Music: Turab Palestine El-Genaina Theatre, Al-Azhar Park, Salah Salem Road, Darassa Saturday 3 May and Sunday 4 May at 8pm (Red Zone Festival) Spoken World: Spoken word street artist Aly Talibab (Egypt), multimedia artist Ghazi Frini (Tunisia), Tarek Abu Kwaik (Jordan/Palestine) and poet and rapper Mazen El-Sayed (Lebanon) present an evening of new original poems, sounds and visuals developed together for the festival. Falaki Theatre, 24 El-Falaki Street, Bab El-Louk (Downtown) Monday 5 May at 8pm Special event: A night to honour Nelson Mandela Screening of the 2013 biographical film Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom Film will be screened with English with Arabic subtitles Rawabet Theatre, 2 Hussein El-Me'mar st. off Mahmoud Bassiouni st., beside Townhouse Gallery Thursday May 8 at 8pm (Red Zone Festival) Theatre: Capharnaüm by Latefa Ahrrar – Morocco Points of Pain by Kate Pendry – UK/ Norway Falaki Theatre, 24 El-Falaki Street, Bab El-Louk (Downtown) Saturday 10 May at 8pm (Red Zone Festival) Poetry: Three poets,Michael Adel (Egypt), Mohamed Ellaghafi (Morocco) and Walid Al-Kubaisi (Iraq/Norway) will bring three unique voices and points of view for a night of poetry. Rawabet Theatre, 3 Hussein El Me'amar St., Downtown free admission Sunday 11 May at 8pm (Red Zone Festival) Film: This is Not a Film, 2011 Documentary, running time 75 min. Directed by Jafar Panahi and Mojtaba Mirtahmasb Falaki Theatre, 24 El-Falaki Street, Bab El-Louk (Downtown) Monday 12 May at 8pm (Red Zone Festival) Exhibit runs until May 25, from 12pm to 10 pm Visual Arts: Installation: Fictional Museum by Mohamed Said Baalbaki - Lebanon Combination of painting and collage: From the Square by Heba Khalefa – Egypt Viennoise Hotel, 11, Mahmoud Bassouni St. Downtown Thursday 15 May at 8pm (Red Zone Festival) Music: Badiaa Bouhrizi Tunisia El-Genaina Theatre, Al-Azhar Park, Salah Salem Road, Darassa Saturday 17 May at 8pm Music: Oliver Mtukudzi Zimbabwe El-Genaina Theatre, Al-Azhar Park, Salah Salem Road, Darassa Sunday 18 May at 8pm Music: Nawal Comoros Islands El-Genaina Theatre, Al-Azhar Park, Salah Salem Road, Darassa Tuesday 20 May at 8pm Theatre: Monsters by Al-Hamra Theatre Tunisia Falaki Theatre, 24 El-Falaki Street, Bab El-Louk (Downtown) Sunday 22 May at 8pm Music: Zaki Ibrahim South Africa El-Genaina Theatre, Al-Azhar Park, Salah Salem Road, Darassa Saturday 24 May at 8pm Dance: Afreekanam - Senegal El-Genaina Theatre, Al-Azhar Park, Salah Salem Road, Darassa Sunday 25 May at 8pm Music: Aziz Sahmaoui Morocco El-Genaina Theatre, Al-Azhar Park, Salah Salem Road, Darassa --- Ahram Online is a press partner of this year's Spring Festival http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/99795.aspx
