17 July 2009

Preview

BEIRUT: During the summer months Leba-non bristles with cultural festivals. The most prestigious of these are to be found at the historic sites of Bei-teddine, Baalbeck and Byblos. Scads of smaller festivals can be found scattered along the coast and in the mountains as well. Take Festivals Deir al-Qamar.

Once home to the Fakhreddine Maan (1572-1635) the Druze notable credited with putting a place called "Leba-non" on the political map today, this picturesque mountain town is marked by historic stone houses with red-tiled roofs, old streets marked with ancient carvings and distinguished traditional cuisine.

For the last decade, Festivals has seen Deir al-Qamar host members of the younger generation of celebrities performers and personalities from musical icon Marcel Khalife to pioneering fashion designer Rabih Kayrouz.

The Festivals, which runs through September, opens on July 17 with a slideshow retrospective of the numerous Le-banese talents to have appeared at Deir al-Qamar. The projections will have textual and musical accompaniment, to encourage audience members to further support the Lebanese art scene.

This presentation will be followed by a performance by The Four Musketeers, who will perform an array of original and folklore songs the latter made famous by singers like Fairuz, Nasri Shamseddine, Wadih al-Safi and Tony Hanna. Interspersed among the tunes will be several political satire skits, among them "Al-Zuama Falou min Libnan" ("The Leaders have left Lebanon").

French mezzo-soprano Ra-phaelle Ivery will perform a repertoire of opera and operetta arias by composers ranging from Mozart to Offenbach on July 18.

On July 19 painters throughout Lebanon will gather in Deir al-Qamar to produce canvases on the theme "Once upon a time [in] Deir al-Qamar." The paintings will be exhibited and offered for sale at the end of the day.

Residents and visitors alike will also enjoy a good manqousheh and other Lebanese cuisine on July 19 as Souk al-Tayeb draws local farmers and bakers together to present various simple but enticing delights.

"L'arbre Dor" puppet show will attempt to entertain the kids on July 23 with a performance of "Princess Chaterelle." Performed to the accompaniment of Mozart's symphonic music, this show is set in a magical world where the princess loses her voice and must struggle to find the Golden Tree, where she's told she can retrieve it.

Since Beirut is the World Book Capital this year, Estivals, in collaboration with UNESCO and local partners, dedicate the week of July 24-August 2 to events that range from reading activities and children's book exhibitions to donations, the goal being the collection of 7000 books to donate to public libraries.

On July 24, opera fans will enjoy tenor Eliya Francis' performance of arias from prominent Italian operas, as well as popular Neapolitan songs. Often compared to the renowned ex-tenor Luciano Pavarotti, the Lebanese vocalist will be accompanied by violinist Jokine Solban, pianist Dori Francis and Elie Yammouny on percussion.

Michelle Ocelot's animated feature "Azur and Asmar" will keep spectators entertained on July 26. Friends who have been brutally separated, Azur and Asmar undertake a quest to find The Djin Faerie. This enchanting film will have an open-air projection, subtitled in Arabic and English.

The French musical "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" with its French bohemians, gypsies and anatomically challenged bell-ringers will also receive an open-air projection, this time at Deir al-Qamar's French Cultural Center, on August 7.

Saturday August 8 will be a frantic day for the fans of Leba-nese contemporary music as four bands will roll into town for concerts in several venues around Deir al-Qamar.

Heading up the line-up will be Beirut's post-punk heroes Scrambled Eggs. Elsewhere, Youmna Saba and Fadi Tabbal will perform a repertoire of classic songs, as well as original tunes from her first album. The Incompetents Abed Kobeissy, Amine Daher, Fadi Tabbal and Serge Yared will celebrate their first year as a concert ensemble, performing a variety of newly composed songs as well as more known ones.

The night will climax with the seven-member musical collective Mashrou3 Leila. This tribe of AUB architecture and design students produce a brand of oriental rock that's as dreamy as it is violent, and will almost certainly leave the audience wanting more.

The Festivals wraps on August 15 with a show by the much-loved Charbel Rouhana. After performing with Marcel Khalife in the overture of Festivals in 1999, Rouhana returns in 2009 to perform some songs from his album "Dangerous," as well as new material.

For more information ring +961 1 486 476.

Copyright The Daily Star 2009.