The Cairo International Monodrama Festival in its current ninth edition bets on a rich program of performances, seminars, and artistic workshops presented by a number of Egyptian and foreign theater artists, including Italian acting coach Paolo Avataneo, who gave an artistic performance on stage that was widely interacted with by the audience during the opening ceremony held on Monday at the open-air theater of the Egyptian Opera House, under the supervision of the Ministry of Culture.

The opening ceremony witnessed the honoring of Arab and international figures, including the late artist Farouk Al-Fishawy, in appreciation of his prolific artistic career. Besides his great cinematic and television legacy, he had an active theatrical career from his early artistic beginnings until his death, including plays such as "Bidaya wa Nihaya" (Beginning and End), "Al-Nas Illi fi Al-Talet" (The People in the Third), and "Al-Princissa" (The Princess).

His sons Ahmed and Omar Farouk Al-Fishawy received the award on his behalf, both ascending the stage together. Omar thanked the festival administration, while Ahmed joked with his brother, saying, "I have been wondering a lot how Ahmed and I will divide this award."

Ahmed and Omar Al-Fishawy at the opening ceremony (Festival Administration)

The festival also honored actress Mimy Gamal, whose absence due to emergency circumstances was announced by the festival president. The actress had attended the press conference held days before the festival, stating in her remarks, "It is a great honor to be honored at this festival for my artistic career," expressing pride in her artistic history and all the theatrical performances she presented with major theater stars and directors.

Mimy Gamal presented theatrical works that enriched Egyptian theater, including "Numra 2 Yiksab" (Number 2 Wins), "Matrib al-Awatif" (Singer of Emotions), "Ana Min Fehm" (Which One Am I?), and "Al-Qashash" (The Straw).

The opening ceremony of the Cairo International Monodrama Festival began with a documentary film documenting the festival's journey over its previous editions. The festival's founder and president, Dr. Osama Raouf, said in his speech, "The festival continues its mission of bringing theater artists from all over the world under the umbrella of creativity and cultural dialogue exchange. The ninth edition represents a new milestone in its journey, in which we bet on important shows, events, and artistic workshops."

Actress Mimy Gamal attended the press conference but was absent from the honoring ceremony (Festival Administration)

Monodrama performances rely on a single actor who narrates the event and may portray multiple characters within the text, demanding high performance skills from the actor to convey the message of the show. The festival competition includes performances from several Arab and foreign countries, including Saudi Arabia, Palestine, Jordan, Iraq, Tunisia, Albania, and Australia.

The opening ceremony also honored renowned theater director Samir Al-Asfoury. His daughters Mona and director Taghreed Al-Asfoury, along with his grandchildren, received the honor. Al-Asfoury has a long history of successful classical and artistic works such as "Isis in Paris," "The Tragedy of Al-Hallaj," "Al-Ayal Kubrit" (The Kids Have Grown Up), and "Innaha Haqqan 'A'ila Muhtarama" (It's Indeed a Respectable Family).

On the Arab level, the festival honored the Diba Association for Culture and Arts in the Emirate of Fujairah, UAE, in appreciation of its role in supporting the Arab theater movement and promoting cultural and artistic cooperation among Arab theater artists. Internationally, Albanian actress Justina Aliaj was honored for her rich theatrical career, and the festival screened a short film about the journey of each honoree.

A notable number of Egyptian, Arab, and international theater artists attended the opening ceremony, including actor Sami Maghawry and actress Sama Ibrahim.

Albanian actress Justina Aliaj receives her honor (Festival Administration)

Several Arab and international performances are participating in the festival competition this edition, held at Al-Ghad Theater in Cairo. The competition jury includes Sudanese director and actor Ali Mahdi, one of the most prominent figures of Sudanese theater, alongside Italian acting coach Paolo Avataneo, and Dr. Abeer Mansour, head of the Theater Department at the Faculty of Arts.

Two performances from Egypt are participating in the competition: "Sama" produced by Al-Hanager Theater, written by Sonia Bumad, directed by Ayman Mostafa, and starring Marwa Abdel Moneim; and "Sudden Death" written by Hani Mehran, directed by Adham Safwat, starring Assem Turk, and produced by the Academy of Arts.

The ninth edition of the festival features a number of workshops and artistic activities, including a masterclass by Italian artist Paolo Avataneo titled "Introduction to Visual Comedy," a workshop by artist Hossam Dagher titled "The Meaning of Acting... When the Single Actor Becomes Representative of Humanity," and a workshop by artist Amr Abdel Aziz titled "Comedy between Monologue, Monodrama, and Storytelling." The festival also holds a competition among Arab authors in the field of monodrama and a school theater competition.

"Sama" is one of the Egyptian performances at the festival (Festival Administration)

According to theater critic Mohamed Bahgat, monodrama is considered the most difficult type of theater in terms of writing, acting, and directing. He explained in statements to Asharq Al-Awsat that it relies on a single actor filling the theatrical space throughout the performance duration, confirming that "writing it is more difficult and requires a skilled author and a great storyteller, as the text is written in the voice of a single character that transforms into roles, and this is difficult in writing and acting."