Spring Fest begins on February 25

Manama : The organisers of the Spring of Culture, the annual festival held every year, has announced the cultural programmes of its 13th edition, offering Bahrain’s audience a variety of choices from all over the world, activating the local cultural landscape in the coming two months. 

The announcement was made at a press conference held here yesterday by the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities (BACA), the Economic Development Board (EDB), the Shaikh Ebrahim bin Mohammed Al Khalifa Centre for Culture and Research, in collaboration with Albareh Art Gallery and La Fontaine Art Centre of Contemporary Art at the Bahrain Fort Site Museum. The event, which also marked the museum’s 10th anniversary, is part of BACA’s year-long celebration of Muharraq’s selection as the 2018 Capital of Islamic Culture. 

The conference was held in the presence of Shaikha Mai bint Mohammed Al Khalifa, President of BACA, Khalid Al-Rumaihi, Chief Executive of EDB, diplomats and ambassadors in Bahrain, as well as a number of sponsors of the Spring of Culture and members of the media.

“We chose to launch the 13th edition of the Spring of Culture Festival at the very first project that came as a result of our ‘Investment in Culture’ initiative. We are very grateful to Arcapita for supporting the establishment of the Bahrain Fort Site Museum believing in the importance of preserving our history,” said Shaikha Mai.

“Bahrain has been building bridges with the world through the festival for 13 spring seasons, supported by all our partners. From this museum in its 10th anniversary, we announce this cultural season as part of our celebration of the city Muharraq, Capital of Islamic Culture 2018. The Pearling Trail in Muharraq has much in common with the Bahrain Fort Site in Manama, as the two UNESCO World Heritage Sites reflect the history and civilizations of ancient and modern Bahrain and affirm Bahrainis’ ability to always be positive contributors.

“All of society comes together each year during the spring season for the sake of our Kingdom and our cultural movement,” she said.

“The continuous support from the private and public sectors towards the Spring of Culture festival reflects the importance of this annual international event, as well as strong overall confidence in the growth potential of Bahrain’s tourism sector. Tourism contributes more than 6 per cent to the Kingdom’s non-oil GDP and growth is set to accelerate further as the industry benefits from nearly BD 5 billion in tourism infrastructure investment,” said Al Rumaihi at the event.

“The EDB’s support of the Spring of Culture is in line with our mandate to create jobs through developing and growing key strategic sectors, including tourism and leisure, and attracting quality inward investment to Bahrain,” he added.

‘Epic of Gilgamesh’ opening event

The Festival’s lineup of music events will kick off with the “Epic of Gilgamesh” on February 25 at the Bahrain National Theatre. 

Bahrain Fort will host the interactive “The Sound and Light Show” displays that show the history of this ancient site, from the Dilmun era to present day every Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday (English version at 6:00 pm, and Arabic version will be at 6:00 pm. The Bahrain Fort Site Museum, meanwhile, will entertain audience with movie nights on March 15 and 26.

Moroccan singer Karima Skalli’s enchanting renditions of well-known works of great Arab poets is scheduled for March 1.

The United Kingdom’s S4K Music Theatre’s unique take on William Shakespeare’s classic “Macbeth” will be showcased on March 8. 

Korea’s Sookmyung Gayageum Orchestra’s strumming eclectic mix of traditional Korean music and Western hits is scheduled for March 14.

On March 17 and 20, the Cultural Hall will feature a stage adaptation of Road Dahl’s classic tale “George’s Marvellous Medicine”, 

Jerusalem Arabic Music Ensemble on March 22 will playa selection of patriotic and Arabic songs.

 The Cultural Hall will also host two exceptional duos from Italy in cooperation with the Italian embassy, starting with the Duo Etnopolis performing Italian folk music on March 25. 

Mezzosoprano Laura Capretti and pianist Francesco Maccarrone will perform on March 28. 

In collaboration with the US embassy, the Mary McBride Band will headline a concert on March 31 that will take the audience deep into the worlds of country music, gospel, blues and old school rock ‘n’ roll. 

On April 4, the venue will host “36 Abbas Street: Haifa”, a play which tells the story of resilience and determination of the Palestinian people in the face of occupation, diaspora and the right of return. This will be followed on April 6 by Turkey’s Mekder Sufi Ensemble’s performance of the Whirling Dervishes Ceremony, one of the most important distinguishing elements of Turkish culture, and finally the family-friendly play “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” by Eric Carle on April 12 - 16.

The music of Bahrain is also heavily featured during the festival season as the Mohammed bin Fares Music Hall in Muharraq hosts evening concerts every Thursday starting from March 1 by the Mohammed bin Fares Band highlighting the musical heritage of pearl diving, weddings and other occasions.  This apart, several Bahraini artists will perform throughout the month of April.