|
1- The Wooden Mother:
Prof. Mohammad
Sheiha - our children and the mother's embraces – Al Masrah magazine 1998:
The performance poses a lot of
questions. It is a successful performance that managed to attract the attention
of the children and urge them to follow it till the end although it is directed
to children at a late stage of childhood (above 10 years old).
We agree with the author that
Egyptian children are more intelligent than what some might think and that they
can understand the deepest scientific issues not through watching the techniques
and theories of science presented in a theatrical performance but by forming an
overall view of science and its effect on development and progress and also by
adopting an attitude if awareness towards some scientists who manipulate science
to achieve their own interests and purposes among human beings.
The creativity if the poet Nabeel
Khalaf is undoubtedly a true gain not only to child theatre but to the theatre
of adults as well.
Hanan Moog – a
chick changes the shape of the world in the coming century- Radio and Television
magazine 1999:
It is easy to bet on many things,
but it is very difficult to bet on a child's mind specially that the child
today is the pupil of computer internet. This is why Nabeel Khalaf, author of
the operetta (The Wooden Mother) , is considered a daring writer whose bet might
seem for the first sight uncalculated, specially that the performance is written
in an elegant poetic language, a language that is very simple and very deep at
the same time.
Al-Sada magazine, Emirates – The
Wooden Mother is a performance that exposes technology – 1999:
Following the last Cairo theatre
season we find many performances presented by both the public theatre and the
private sector. In spite of the multiplicity and excellence of these
performances, we find that they have ignored a large and important section of
society namely, the children. Although children must always be paid attention,
we find only one theatrical performance (The Wooden Mother) presented by Child
National Theatre....I was attracted to this play not only because it was the
only one to address children but also because of a number of other aspects the
most important of which is this author Nabeel Khalaf whose star has shined in
writing for theatre with the operetta ( The Wooden Mother) beside many other
stories the most important of which is (The Red Butterfly of the Princess, Raven
Man in the Jungle of Mist, and sun fish).
Al-Akhbar – Egypt in Cartage
Festival and The Wooden Mother – 28/10/1999:
Child National Theatre participates
with the play ( The Wooden Mother ) in two festivals in Tunisia. The first is
(Niapolis) Festival from the 29th of October to the 5th of
November. The play will then be presented in Cartage Festival from the 8th
of November to the 12th of the same month.
Al-Akhbar – Egypt Cartage
Theatre Festival 18/11/1999:
Child National Theatre participates
in the activities of Cartage Festival with the operetta The Wooden Mother on the
9th, 10th, and 11th of November.
Egyptian Ambassador has attended the performance which met huge success.
Tunisian children were keen on watching the performance.
2- The Red Butterfly of the
Princess:
Al-Akhbar – Ayman Al-Shandaweely
The Red Butterfly of the Princess for all the members of the family:
The Red Butterfly of the Princess
is a musical show that includes 30 songs through which we travel about the magic
world of dream and freedom, on the stage of Huda Sha'rawy's theatre at Al-Kasr
Al Aini....
The dream of Rana and other
creatures mixes with the dream of humanity at large.
When the gap is bridged between
Rana and her working mother who is always busy with her scientific researches,
and when the father who works on sea science is back, the mother and the father
make the dreams of their daughter come true. The parents also participate with
their researches in building a city under the sea, a city that contains all
creatures without assaulting any creature's right to live.
Satellite Magazine – soon on
satellite channels: An operetta for children 16/12/2000:
The musical play The Red Butterfly
of the Princess which addresses children was recorded and broadcast by many
Arab satellite channels.
The is due to the rich content of
the play which directs the children towards scientific and logical thinking.
Radio and Television – with The Red Butterfly of the Princess
16/12/2000:
This man does not only write for
children, he has a strong desire to a child himself.
This is how one of the outstanding critics described the poet and playwright
Nabeel Khalaf whose The Red Butterfly of the Princess is currently being
presented on the stage. It is a play for children at a time in which writers of
child literature have become very rare....... At the end, all the other aspects
of the play work together to present a beautiful image for the children of this
time,
the hope in a future full of dreams.
Al-Wafd – Anas Elwogood Radwan-
The Red Butterfly of the Princess on Huda sha'rawy's theatre 20/1/2001:
After the success of The Wooden
Mother operetta which continued to be staged for more than two years in most
Egyptian governorates and which is considered the first Arabic theatrical
performance to discuss the moralities of genetic engineering and to reject the
undervaluation of the sacred symbol of the mother.....this operetta was
translated into French....another work for the same author " The Red Butterfly
of the princess" is currently presented on stage.
The play is directed by Yahia
Zakaria and the author says that the incidents of the operetta takes place in
the magic world of the tripartite "dream- knowledge-liberty" where the dreams of
survival, development, progress and justice will never come true except through
science which goes ahead of humanity and affects all the aspects of our life.
Al-Masa'a – Ateef Al-Raa'y :
from among the spectators of the operetta The Red Butterfly of the Princess
9/2/2001:
The operetta has an important
message directed to the parents more than the children. It deals with the
results of the lack of communication between children and parents in most
Egyptian families, a circumstance which can result in a wide gap between the two
parties, a gap that is really difficult to bridge.The operetta also stresses the
fact that children have the right to participate in making the decisions related
to their lives and that fathers and mothers should learn how to think of their
children and respect their opinions in order for them to be able to deal with
the children seriously and to reach a good understanding of their psychological
life. About the spectators comments on the operetta, here are some interviews:
Prof. Mohamed Ammar:
The author of this work has
enriched the atmospheres of creative writing for children. I hope that the
television would be able to attract such a writer in its direction, and to make
a good use of his writing and creativity so that we can benefit from his works,
because we badly need an author who can write for children and respect their
mentality. This operetta is a creative work that does respect the mind of the
child.
Ra'fat Mohamed Hassan-a student
in the preparatory stage:
I did not know that
penguins put one egg every several months, but I learned this piece of
information from the operetta. I wonder where are such works that simplify
information for the children more than the television does though TV. programs
are more widespread.
Horriaty Magazine- Ahmed Soliman
–The Red Butterfly of the Princess is a respectable work that
attracts both children and adults
24/12/2000:
At the present time, it is really
rare to find a good theatrical performance that respects the mentality of the
spectators and which is presented by the public sector and to find the seats of
the theatre always complete since its opening in the first week of Ramadan and
until now...child operetta The Red Butterfly of the Princess has managed to
achieve this hard equation, the thing that attracted the attention of the
Ministry of Culture which made arrangements with the Algerian Ministry of
Culture to present the performance on the Algerian stage after the Lesser Bairam...
the performance creates an atmosphere of delight among the spectators who find
it a joyous Ramadan soiree that runs for two hours during which three scenes are
staged.
Al-Ahram Al-Masaa'y Mohamed
Abdulbary – " The Red Butterfly of the Princess"... a stone in the stagnant lake
of child theatre 5/2/2001:
Two months after the fascinating
performance "The Red Butterfly of the Princess" has started, we must adopt the
position of observers and examine the cultural issues which playwright Nabeel
Khalaf discusses in his musical play so that we can come up with some of the
positive concepts he presented to our minds and to the minds of the children
through his seemingly easy style. Among these concepts: First, his honest
attempt to sound the alarm and warn the parents against getting too busy with
their work and leaving the children to suffer killing emptiness.
Second, not to underestimate the minds of our children because the huge
scientific leaps which address themselves to us every second are not really
far-fetched for our children's mental abilities. Third, humanity can never
progress through scientific researches which disregards values and morals, such
as the researches on cloning which the whole world has opposed. Through these
concepts which are new to the reality of child theatre in our country, Nabeel
Khalaf was able to throw a huge stone in the lake that has been stagnant for
decades. I would like to say that we need more good works that address the minds
and sentiments of the child using a respectable language.
3- A Rabbit , A Scorpion and An
Elephant:
Al- Gomhurya- The Ambassador of
Malta Attends a seminar on " A Rabbit, A Scorpion and An Elephant".
The performance rejects racial
discrimination... plants values...its artistic aspects are unique-Sunday
29/9/2002.
Cairo Center for Human Rights
Studies held a discussion meeting on the theatrical performance " A Rabbit, A
Scorpion and An Elephant". The session was attended by the members of the cast
of the play, the Ambassador of Malta in Cairo, Prof. Baheiy Eldeen Hassan –
Chief of the center- and the outstanding critic Prof. Nagy Furzy ... The
Ambassador of Malta praised the performance and the creativity with which the
children who participated in the play managed to present important issues such
as the rejection of racism and discrimination, the need for equality among all
creatures,the warning against misusing science andthe importance of planting
high moral values in the sentiments of the children.
Al- Waka'i Al-Arabia- Ashraf
Ezzat Lotf Allah- dwarfs starring the performance A Rabbit , A Scorpion and An
Elephant 26/9/2002.
The play aims at emphasizing the
need for unity with nature with all its creatures of humans, birds, animals and
plants because separation from nature can lead to the extinction of Mankind. The
play also aims at inculcating the values of preserving nature in the minds of
children to help them to form a critical view of the achievements of science
and technology so that they might take a moral stand against some of these
achievements which can be harmful to some aspects of humanity. Science must be
devoted to achieve and preserve the welfare of Man and must aim at respecting
the rights of the other, rejecting racial struggles, granting the children the
right to express their own opinions and views of life and respecting their
ability to change the world and to clarify the issue of democracy and firmly
establish its basis by electing those who can represent the interests of the
children in participation with adults who believe in this.
Hawaa, Eman El- Emary – in A
Rabbit , A Scorpion and An Elephant – children put racism to trial – 5/10/2002.
The right to live regardless of the
narrow limits of racism where the strongest puts inhumane rules to rob the world
of its elements of survival so that the he can be the master for the longest
possible period.These ideas, rich as they are, may seem complicated for the
first sight. But it was only a play for children, it is as if those who
participated in the making of the play wanted the new generation to the reject
the injustice that prevail the world today.
Al- Maidan – Magda Khairallah-
at the highest point of the tourist season, an enjoyable performance for
children – 10/9/2002.
Although the summer holiday tempts
the private sector to present performances with special characteristics that
makes summer plays come very close to the stuff presented in night clubs. I was
surprised to find a theatrical group present a performance for children called A
Rabbit , A Scorpion and An Elephant. Strangely enough, the theatre was
overcrowded with children whose ages ranged from six to fourteen years old ....
the huge crowds of spectators are indicative of the thirst of the children and
their families for superior kinds of theatrical arts that can present to the
children an amount of joy as well as an opportunity to think and realize
important issues...the play follows the pattern of "Chaleela and Demna" where
wisdom is introduced by animals and birds . This technique is the closest to the
heart of the child who does not accept advice and directions from humans (
father – mother- teacher). However, author Nabeel Khalaf mixes animals and birds
with humans in a wonderful homogeneity, for the universe includes all creatures
and sophisticated societies have put rules to regulate the relationships among
the creatures so that Man will not dominate over other creatures and disturb the
balance of the environment.This disturbance spoils the beauty and balance of
life and leads to the extinction of some creatures. The
play calls for the acceptance of the other through the presence of a group of
talented dwarfs.The performance provides those dwarfs with a big chance to
appear on the stage without being targets of ridicule like what happens in other
performances. The other can be different in color,
culture or religion but we to accept him and give him a chance to express
himself without being oppressed.
"A Rabbit , A Scorpion and An
Elephant" is a respectable theatrical performance and it is suitable to all the
members of the family...children and their parents and this is what we have been
lacking for years.
Akhbar Al-Youm – Mariam Bannah
-14 years old- A Rabbit , A Scorpion and An Elephant is a beautiful play:
" We are all one...of one
origin...created by one god... I have the right...you are not my master.. and
I'm not your slave". Beautiful words written by poet and playwright Nabeel
Khalaf. These words occur at the end of the wonderful performance A Rabbit , A
Scorpion and An Elephant.The operetta consists of musical sketches that
introduce scientific information and let the values of justice and goodness
triumph over the powers of evil.
Al –Gomhurya- Ahmeed Abdul
Hameed- children and politics in A Rabbit , A Scorpion and An Elephant
8/9/2002:
The play of A Rabbit , A Scorpion
and An Elephant is a poetic musical play that can be categorized as an
operetta...but I tend to think of it as an opera for children...it appears that
Nabeel Khalaf rejects the common understanding of the mentality of the child of
the third millennium.. the child of electronic culture and satellites , this is
why we find him expressing the mentality of childhood with an understanding that
is different from the traditional, even retarded understanding...in the concept
of theatre as it appears in the three works of Nabeel Khalaf, the culture of
the adults mingles with the culture of the children, and we find him
intentionally addressing the children through science fiction and political
thought, because they represent the basic structure for the future...when this
happens at the time of El-limpy , going against the current becomes a form of
defending the future of the home country.
Al-Kawakeb- Wala'a Tahseen –
dwarfs shout " we are here" 20/8/2002 issue 2664:
The performance is about the values
of goodness, justice , the preserving of environment and the mad desires of
some people who want who want to control the world...these and other values are
dealt with in an attractive dramatic framework in the play A Rabbit , A
Scorpion and An Elephant...dwarfs Khalid Al- Sha'eer , his wife Naheed Abu Al-So'oud
and Ashraf Abu El- Ainain all agreed that their participation in the play was
motivated by the work being about a problem that is relevant to them namely, the
way society treats them and this is what they have expressed in a sentence they
shout together in one breath:( I'ma human being exactly like you).
Al-Masa'a – Clearly- 15/8/2002 :
Poet and Playwright Nabeel Khalaf
is about to originate a phenomenon worthy studying and assessment. In all his
literary, theatrical and poetic works, he focuses on the children, his favorite
world...within the framework of this interest in children he presents his new
play A Rabbit , A Scorpion and An Elephant. This play is an operetta that aims
at introducing scientific information within a theatrical and poetic frame that
discusses the idea of freedom and not restricting the children. The author uses
in his work a good number of symbols and situations that sheds light on the call
for justice, order, happiness, love, purity, fidelity, seriousness in work,
patriotism and the preserving of environment....he also calls for equality among
human beings and for the rejection of discrimination based on external
appearances specially in the case of dwarfs (extremely short people) and for
treating them as normal individuals.The author also calls for equality in all
rights and duties and for respecting the humanity, thoughts ,sentiments and
dreams of those who are different. It is a new world where the children put new
and correct basis away from any discrimination based on appearances...a happy
childhood based on ideals, seriousness in work, respect for the rights of
others and rejection of racism in all its forms. It is a work that does not
treat the children as feeble- minded . The play calls for equality for all, this
idea is crystallized in the final scene through the song ( we are all one...of
one origin and created by one god).
Al – Ahrar - A Rabbit , A
Scorpion and An Elephant , a new spirit for child theatre –23/7/2002
In the middle of the flood of plays
in which main roles are played by outstanding comedians, the new child
performance (A Rabbit , A Scorpion and An Elephant) joins the summer season
marathon. The incidents of the play take place in the garden during the break
while the students together with the teachers and the headmaster play the game
of masks and thus introduce a play within the performance.
Al- Akhpar – Nabeel Badran- a
strong defense of equality among human beings 25/7/2002.
If the play A Rabbit , A Scorpion
and An Elephant was only about the strong and honest defense of dwarf and about
giving them back their dignity and respect after the insults directed to this
group of people by tens of comedies, that would have been enough to be the noble
message of the author of the play, Nabeel Khalaf.This message is crystallized in
the final scene (we are all one...of one origin) which is a frank call for
equality among human beings without treating the physical deformity of some
people as the dwarfs as a target of insult and ridicule. The respect and
dignity given back to dwarfs are emphasized by choosing a dwarf for the position
of the headmaster in appreciation to his fidelity and intelligence ( my
appearance is childish but...I'm a responsible dwarf....my mind is my
qualification...or my human culture). However, this is not the only theme of the
play A Rabbit, A Scorpion and An Elephant which rejects destruction both of
original values and of beautiful natural scenery...signs and expressions keep
repeating to remind us to reject deceit and false-testimony. It is a performance
which aims at first, firmly establish original values in the children....short
concentrated sentences that enjoy the beauties of form and poetic sense with no
contradiction between simplicity and depth...the simplest thing to be said about
the performance is that it is a performance that does not treat the children as
feeble-minded and does not shake the values of society.It
calls for equality among human beings and promotes the values of fidelity,
seriousness and creative effort. The author of The Wooden Mother, The Red
Butterfly of the Princess reminds us in his third text (A Rabbit , A Scorpion
and An Elephant) that writing for children is a message of life that should not
be undervalued.
4- Mickey's Planet:
Shashaty – Prof. Hassan Attyia –
a theatre that poses questions:
Author and poet Nabeel Khalaf
enters new unexplored world in child theatre in Egypt. In the wording and
phrasing of his texts he uses a new language. It is amazing that he insists on
presenting works that are different from the works presented on our stage. These
common works, as few as they are, are naive, simple for the most part and deals
with the children as unknowledgeable. On the other hand, the theatre of Nabeel
Khalaf insists on dealing with a child who is different from the image which
the theatre imagined that it exists. The theatre of Nabeel Khalaf believes that
psychological differences between the years of childhood and youth have been
erased in the age of information attack. Another amazing
fact is the over-crowdedness of the theatre wit children and adults. The company
responsible for the production of this performance managed to advertise and
market the performance while public sector theatre is unable to market its
performances because of red tape and other things.
Al-Khamees – Mustafa Saad –
Mickey Mouse controls the universe:
The child in the works of Nabeel
Khalaf is a new child with extraordinary abilities , and with a mind and heart
full of love , honesty and goodness. This child manages to do what grown ups
failed to achieve. Nabeel Khalaf has already given us joy before through his
amazing works " The Wooden Mother", " The Red Butterfly of the Princess", " A
Rabbit , A Scorpion and An Elephant" and now " Mickey's Planet".
Al- Kawakeb – Ali Mahmoud- "
Mickey's Planet" the revolution of children against America:
In this performance, author Nabeel
Khalaf almost shocks the spectators with the contrast between our deeply rooted
thoughts about that beautiful "Mickey Mouse" and this culture which implies
control, fascist thinking and monopoly of the individual all around the world.
The author turns "Mickey Mouse" into a symbol of America and its monopoly of the
mind of the children is nothing but the American control over the children of
the world through art.
Al-Akhbar – Abla Al-Rowainy- the
children challenge Mickey Mouse:
Exactly like flying against
gravity. The play of "Mickey's Planet" chose to challenge the common and to face
control in its most fascinating enjoyable and attractive images not only in the
world of children but in the world of adults as well. "Mickey's Planet" chose to
challenge Disney World with all its fascinating technological abilities in
animation, lighting and music and to face Mickey in an obvious and powerful way.
Al- Gomhurya- Ahmed Abdul Hameed-
attention "Mickey's Planet" is the theatre of the 21st Century:
In attempting to describe the new
performance "Mickey's Planet" , I did not finda more honest and precise
expression than the theatre of the Twenty First Century. It is different and
unique in relation to form, techniques of staging and performance and content .
It is also different from the last century's understanding of the concept of
theatre. The poet and author Nabeel Khalaf has chosen the most fascinating,
attractive and famous world models:
The Walt Disney cartoon characters,
and challenged them through the acting abilities of the cast of the play, and
this is a thousand times more difficult from the artistic point of view.
Al Watan Al- Arabi- Nabeel
Badran- actors are sometimes critics " studies on Mickey's Planet" 4/7/2003:
Against the common slogan: the
largest possible number of roles with the least possible artistic effort, and in
the atmospheres of rapid fame and quick profit , it is strange the author asks
the actors and actresses to make a study on the play and to express their
opinion about the roles they are going to play and to present these
opinions in a written form during the rehearsals long enough before the opening
of the play. This act was almost impossible but now it is possible after the
author of the play Nabeel Khalaf has asked the actors and actresses, specially
famous ones such as Ahmed Rateb, Sawsan Badr, Ahmed Salama and Sha'aban Hussein
to make studies on the play. The actors and actresses were not annoyed nor were
they afraid of wasting the time they could invest in participating in other
works. A written study requires deep reading , not only one or two readings. In
the case of Mickey's Planet, the aim is no longer that every actor and actress
should be able to simply memorize his or her part without thinking about and
understanding the other parts. Actors and actresses are now asked to understand
the relationship between the major characters they play and secondary roles and
characters.
Al- Watan Al-Arabi – Nabeel
Badran – the children criticize Mickey's American country 1/8/2003:
In the age of computer and internet
it is no longer valid to deal with the children as feeble-minded and as lacking
the ability to understand, satisfied with educational advices as orders that can
never be discussed or disobeyed. This is exactly what distinguishes the
plays of the author and poet Nabeel Khalaf who presents ideas and issues that
are new to child theatre , refusing the naivety which has become a major
characteristic of most child performances. The author and poet Nabeel Khalaf has
borrowed some of the characters, tools and signs of Walt Disney but used them
differently to serve the main theme of Mickey's Planet operetta. For Mickey the
world is a huge puppet theatre and he is the one who controls the movement of
everybody using his amazing abilities and techniques which fascinate the eye and
the mind. He uses the magic of the art of cartoon to control the world, and he
threatens to use force, to use even microbes to make all the people followers. The
introducing of the play as an operetta for children from ten to seventy years
saves the author and the director the trouble of answering the expected
question: can a child who is five or seven years old understand the content of
the play easily?.
The theme of the text will easily
find its way to the children who are ten years old and above.
The performance is also directed to
adults but certainly it will not attract those who are accustomed to myths and
naive stories that has nothing to do with the changing reality that has become
more strange than the creations of any powerful imagination. All
this in one performance the simplest words to be said about which is that it
respects the minds of the children, and that it is bold enough to present what
is not common or stock-in-trade in child theatre.
Al-Kawakeb –Ali Mahmoud –
"Mickey's Planet" a play for children and adults 5/8/2003:
In spite of the fact that "Mickey's
Planet" is a play for children , its talented author Nabeel Khalaf has chosen
the most exiting and attractive artistic model namely, The Walt Disney
characters to express the issues he wants to discuss.The performance acquires
extra beauty through author and poet Nabeel Khalaf's use of a mixture of
colloquial and classic Arabic, a technique first introduced to us by the genius
poet " Beiram Al-tonsy".
If the American globalization which
means American artistic, cultural, political and military control over the world
is the most important issue in the present time, the play of "Mickey's Planet"
or its author has managed to incarnate this serious issue with a daring
theatrical view.
Nabeel Khalaf wants to stress the
fact that we must resist the American control over our children...this is not an
issue for adult only, it is an issue for children as well.
Finally, my dear artist
and talented poet Nabeel Khalaf, you are worthy of praise for this beautiful
and noble work because it is a patriotic artistic work that both children and
adults are strongly urged to watch.
5- The Chess Revolution:
Al-Kawakeb 20/ 7/2004 –Ali
Mahmoud- in The Chess Revolution, Sawsan Badr is a very liberated woman:
The Chess Revolution is a poetic
play that criticizes and analyses the relationship between man and woman since
the dawn of human race starting from the feminine maternity age when women were
in control of all affairs, and when children carried the names of their mothers,
not their fathers .we move then to the patriarchal society that dominates the
world today, the society where woman is regarded as an inferior creature despite
her achieving many goals. In brief, Nabeel Khalaf, the creative and talented
author of the play, is trying to make the concept of a democratic family prevail
among men and women, and he does not side with either men or women since the two
parties belong to the human race as a whole.
Al-Masa'a newspaper 25/ 7/ 2004
– Ahmed Soliman – A daring respectable work:
Man- woman struggle is an eternal
issue that has been discussed by many writers and authors; however, playwright
Nabeel Khalaf has re-tackled this issue in a modern style. Despite the fact that
using some of the words and expressions that were never used outside bedrooms
and among spouses remains something of a shock, the great skill of the author
brought such words and expressions to the light and used it openly to shed light
on the thorny problems which the society suffers from, but which are kept in the
dark because of shyness and timidity. Added to this is the dazzling artistic
element in the dances, the music and the presentation of the symbols of
technological development.
Al-Ahram Al-Masaa'y newspaper
23/7/2004 – "The Chess Revolution" on the stage of Nasr City theatre.
Al- Gomhurya newspaper
25/7/2004- Ahmed Abdul Hameed- "The Chess Revolution" and the fascination of
poetic theatre:
It seems that our national theatre
has changed its address and moved from Al- Azbakia Garden to Nasr City theatre
where the poetic play :"The Chess Revolution" is currently staged. For the first
time in the history of our modern theatre a private company dares to present a
poetic play ….not to mention the fact that government theatre no longer presents
poetic performances in the first place. "The Chess Revolution" is written by
poet and playwright Nabeel Khalaf whom we have got to know through his poetic
collections and his stories and novels for children.
From the first sight you feel stunned with fascination starting from the
introductory piece of music that precedes the lifting up of the curtains,
passing through the physical frame work which includes the sets, the costumes,
the lighting, the dramatic verse and the high quality performance on the stage,
and concluding by the overall effect of the show.
Al-Masa'a newspaper 26/7/2004 –
Haitham Twalah – Sawsan Badr : " The Chess Revolution " is a shock for viewers
and critics, and it discusses thorny issues in a daring, yet not degraded
,style.
Star Sawsan Badr said that she is
happy to participate in the play " The Chess Revolution " by poet and playwright
Nabeel Khalaf , and that the source of her happiness is the theme of the play
which discusses the eternal man- woman struggle and who should be the ruler and
who should be ruled. Badr added that author Nabeel Khalaf has treated the issue
to the core.
Star Ahmed Salama stated that for the first time the private theatre in Egypt
presents such a respectable and sophisticated work that discusses important
issues.
In addition, Shady, one of the artists participating in the show, said that he
is really impressed by every issue raised in the play because such issues affect
the society and it is time to deal with them, thorny and tabooed as they are.
Akhbar Al-Nogoum 24 / 7/2004 – A
new revolution led by some of the members of " Mickey's Planet " – A historical
battle between Adam and Eve settled by the couple "N":
The couple "N" is a
nickname used by some people to refer author Nabeel Khalaf and director Nasser
Abdul-Moneem as they present together their third play after "A rabbit, A
Scorpion and An Elephant "and " Mickey's Planet" . In their third show, the
couple "N" decided to discuss the relationship between man and woman and to call
for a balanced and democratic relationship where the two parties can recognize
that each of them has his / her rights and duties, and that they complement each
other.
Al-Ahrar newspaper 28/7/2004 –
Sameer Al-Dossouky- "The Chess Revolution " and democracy in the relationship
between Adam and Eve:
"The Chess
Revolution" represents a return to poetic plays. It criticizes and analyses the
relationship between man and woman since the dawn of human race, particularly
the way society looks upon women according to the culture common through all
ages starting from the feminine maternity age when women were in control of all
affairs.
The play is written by playwright Nabeel Khalaf who has previously presented
four theatrical performances: "The Wooden Mother "," The Red Butterfly of the
Princess", "A Rabbit, A Scorpion and An Elephant "and "Mickey's Planet".
Radio and Television magazine
24/7/2004 – Hanan Moug – male and female….good and evil…the struggle for
authority, all in on daring and respectable play.- " The Chess Revolution"…a
repulse against private theatre :
Perhaps for my being a
woman I was attracted to the theme of Nabeel Khalaf's new play, especially when
I knew that it discusses the eternal relationship between man and woman. Because
the author is a man, I was curious to find out how would that man express the
beliefs he repeatedly declared in relation to the issue of equality between the
two elements of the universe namely, man and woman, an issue which I have always
thought can be probed to the core only by the woman.
Although the private theatre has certain requirements known to all of us, I
received the first shock as soon as the curtains were lifted up in an atmosphere
surrounded by extremely soft music composed by the wonderful composer Rageh
Dawood. Then there was the verse, and that was the last thing I can imagine in
Nabeel Khalaf's first play for adults, and on the stage of a private theatre.
The second shock was the author's insistence on treating his themes through the
culture of science and technology.
Finally, "The Chess
Revolution" is a theatrical performance that enjoys extraordinary richness in
the flow of verse away from redundancy and repetition of events. It is also
characterized by the beauty of the show and the unity of the theme although the
plot does not maintain the chronological order when presenting historical
events.
Workers' magazine 31/7/2004 –
"The Chess Revolution "..A new theatrical creation:
"The Chess
Revolution" is a poetic play that criticizes and analyses the relationship
between man and woman since the dawn of human race, particularly the way society
looks upon women according to the culture common through all ages.
Al-Orouba newspaper 1/8/2004 –
Sawsan Badr :"The Chess Revolution " is a shock for viewers and critics, and it
"discusses very thorny issues in a daring, yet not degraded, style".
Star Sawsan Badr said
that she is very happy to participate in "The Chess Revolution", written by
Nabeel Khalaf and directed by Nasser Abdul-Moneem. Badr added that she drives
her happiness from discussing an old issue in a modern and new style, as the
play deals with the eternal relationship between man and woman, and who wins the
struggle for authority and becomes the ruler and who will be ruled.
Al-Kawakeb magazine –Ali
Mahmoud- Stars attend "The Chess Revolution":
In the first week of staging the
poetic play "The Chess Revolution" written by the talented playwright Nabeel
Khalaf, stars in all fields of arts including actors, authors, directors,
journalists and critics started to visit Nasr City theatre to attend this
outstanding performance.
Hawaa magazine 21/8/2004 – Ahmed
Zaki Abdul-Haleem – The words:
In his amazing new poetic play "The Chess Revolution ", the creative poet and
playwright Nabeel Khalaf recalls all the images of the ancient and middle
periods of history to confront the age of technology where all the aspects of
life are turned into mere buttons.
Because life is like a chessboard, the author decided that all the incidents of
the plot should take place on that chessboard. The play consists of four acts
and it starts by the eternal and specific issue of achieving justice for women,
and ends by the general and also eternal issue of achieving equality among all
humans in a community that knows neither prejudice nor injustice.
In fact, I do not
know how was the poet Nabeel Khalf able to collect such a huge amount of history
and such a large number of historic personalities that covered the period from
the age of the pharos to the age of the Mameluke.All those characters reappeared
to express a certain opinion and an attitude and to emphasize the fact that the
memory of history is stronger than the memory of Man.
Al-Anba'a Al –Dawlia newspaper
17/7/2004 – mohammed Hussein Bakr – Nabeel Khalaf's revolution on the
chessboard.
It is difficult to
find a creative literary introduction that suits the creative richness and the
literary thinking of Nabeel Khalaf. Consequently, I did not find a better
introduction than Reda Al-Taweel's words in his introduction to (The Complete
Works of Nabeel Khalaf) where he writes: Nabeel Khalf does not only write for
children, he has a strong desire to be a child himself.
In brief, as the
author and the director of the play emphasize , the play does not side with
either men or women , it rather adopts an objective view that emphasizes the
necessity of establishing a democratic relationship between man and women ,
regarding the two parties as belonging to the human race as a whole.
Nabeel Khalaf is against the
classical theatrical categories such as political theatre and comic theatre. He
believes that he is presenting a play and only a play, and you as a viewer are
free to decide while attending the performance to watch it as a political play
one time , as a comic play another time , as a scientific play a third time and
so on.
It is worthy mentioning that some countries, including Morocco, requested that
the play be staged in their theaters. A schedule for the play's traveling will
be set after its staging in Egypt is over.
Radio and Television magazine
4/9/2004 – Hanan Moug – "The Chess Revolution"
rebels against the saying "that is what the viewers want".
"The Chess Revolution" is a
completely different performance in both form and content….even the actors and
actresses, you may feel that you are watching them for the first time ….their
energies erupted and they singled perfectly with characters who have found their
way to excellence, the stage then became something of a mother's bosom where all
anxieties melt away.
Sabah Al- Khair newspaper
7/9/2004 – mohammed Bagdady- Women's' revolt on the chessboard:
The director who has
always presented everything that is unique presents nowadays on Nasr City
theatre a new performance under the title "The Chess Revolution". The text of
the play is written in verse by the poet and the multi- talent author Nabeel
Khalaf.
In its first act, the play presents the Arab woman's revolt against the
traditional shackles which the Eastern man uses to besiege her on the chessboard
or in life, so that she cannot move to the left or to the right without the
permission of the game owner or the man or king " Ahraman", as the heroes of the
play state.
The play ends by declaring general
rebellion against all forms of authority and suppression in the words of the
great poet Nabeel Khalaf whose long breath allowed him to write such a huge
number of verses in an amazing poetic performance
|
