Tuesday 14/October/2025 – 11:29 AM
The activities of the Young New Directors Forum in its fourth session were launched at the Samer Theater in Agouza, under the patronage of Dr. Ahmed Fouad Hanno, Minister of Culture, and organized by the General Authority of Culture Palaces, until October 22nd.
Khaled Al-Labban opens the activities of the Fourth Forum for Young Directors at the Samer Theater
The forum activities were opened by Major General Khaled Al-Labban, Assistant Minister of Culture for the affairs of the General Authority for Cultural Palaces, in the presence of the artist Ahmed Al-Shafi’i, Head of the Central Administration for Artistic Affairs, Mohamed Youssef, Head of the Central Administration for the Office of the Chairman of the Authority, Samar Al-Wazir, Director-General of the General Administration of Theater, writer Sameh Othman, Director of the Festival, and artists Hamdi Al-Wazir and Ahmed Al-Banhawi, director Mohamed Saber, Director-General of the General Administration for Talent Welfare, engineer Mohamed Jaber, director of Al-Samer Theater, and a group of people from Creators, critics and media professionals.
In his speech, Major General Khaled Al-Labban stressed that the forum represents a real platform for creating the Egyptian theatrical future, where a new generation of young directors who have undergone training experiences and specialized workshops come together to present contemporary artistic visions of international texts in a pure Egyptian spirit.
He added that this year the forum presents twelve theatrical performances that represent the culmination of a great effort of training and teamwork, and reveals promising energies that are today writing a new scene in the National Theater as an extension of a long history of experimentation and enlightenment that the Palaces of Culture carried over the decades.
Al-Labban concluded his speech by thanking Dr. Ahmed Fouad Hanno, Minister of Culture, for his support and sponsorship of the forum, and those in charge of preparing and implementing it, expressing his happiness in honoring symbols who contributed with their knowledge and effort to enriching the Egyptian theatrical scene, stressing that the Authority will continue to support young people, their coaches, supervisors, and everyone who believes that theater is a space for free expression, thinking, and collective awareness.
The artist Ahmed Al-Shafi’i stressed that the forum does not come only as an artistic event, but rather as an extension of a serious vision in building theatrical director and training young cadres.
He added: We are not only facing theatrical performances, but also the fruits of training workshops that embraced talent and provided them with a sound artistic and cognitive path.
Al-Shafi’i pointed out that the General Authority for Cultural Palaces places the process of preparing the young creator at the top of its priorities, thanking all those conducting the experiment and the trainers, and expressing his appreciation for the young directors who provide a practical model of the meaning of cultural empowerment, stressing that what we see tonight is not an arrival station, but rather the beginning of a broader and deeper path that establishes the role of theater as a space for expression, awareness, and character building.
For her part, Samar Al-Wazir explained that the forum confirms that cumulative work creates a real impact, noting that this course provides examples of young directors who began their careers from different environments, and then met in the workshops for each of them to formulate his vision and test his tools.
Writer Sameh Othman expressed his happiness at the opening of the forum for theatrical performances inspired by the text of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, which includes twelve new theatrical experiences that were the result of three stages of establishment, work and discussion, within an artistic project aimed at preparing a new generation of young theater directors capable of creativity and innovation.
He explained that the idea of the forum stems from the vision of Dr. Sobhi Al-Sayed, founder of the project in 2017 and 2018, which is based on developing the theater director through self-criticism and cultural and cognitive establishment.
The ceremony, directed by Mohammed Al-Taya and presented by Iman Al-Naqer, began with the screening of a documentary film about the performances participating in the forum and the workshop trainers.
The activities continued with the honoring of a number of Egyptian theater icons: Dr. Alaa Abdel Aziz, Dr. Sobhi El-Sayed, director Abeer Ali, director Ahmed Taha, director Sameh Bassiouni, director Mohamed Morsi, and director Mohamed Abdel Fattah.
Then the Zagazig Culture Palace troupe presented the theatrical show Hemophilia, Dramaturg and directed by Marco Fouad, in the presence of the jury consisting of: the distinguished artist Ezzat Zein, the writer Sameh Othman, and the directors Adel Hassan, Hassan Al-Wazir, and Ismail Mukhtar.
The Young New Directors Forum is held under the supervision of the Central Administration for Artistic Affairs, through the General Administration of Theater, and its performances are presented free of charge as part of the Authority’s endeavor to prepare a new theatrical generation capable of creativity, innovation, and presenting innovative theatrical visions.
Today, at 9 p.m., Al Samer Theater will receive the Next Station show, by the Damanhour Culture Palace Band, prepared and directed by Muhammad Abu Shaara.
