Egyptian artist Khaled Zaki said that his honor at the “Our Children” festival was different because he cares about the arts of “people with special abilities, and carries a noble message to integrate them into society.” He confirmed in his interview with Asharq Al-Awsat that the character “Shalabi Mamoun,” which he presented in the “Pride of the Delta” series last Ramadan, for which the festival honored him and his artistic career, was a different combination of a businessman who suffers from “Alzheimer’s.”
He pointed out that he had read a lot about this disease and found in the work a message to the viewer, stressing the need to benefit from the experiences of great artists, and to appreciate the artist’s artistic, literary and material history. He added that production companies are responsible for employing artists, and that the writing crisis is behind the lack of distinguished artistic works compared to their counterparts in the boom years of drama.
Khaled Zaki received the honor of the “Our Children” Festival, about which he says: “It was a different honor, because it is a festival that cares about the arts of people with special needs, works to integrate them into society, and carries a noble message. I was pleased with the participation of children and youth in the ceremony, and I was surprised that this was its tenth session.”
His performance as “Mamoun Shalabi,” a businessman suffering from “Alzheimer’s,” in the Ramadan series “Pride of the Delta,” was another reason to honor him, stressing that the role tempted him a lot, as he conveys to people an important message about the patient with “Alzheimer’s” through situations that bring him together with the artist Kamal Abu Rayya within the events of the series, but in a “light comedy” form.
Khaled Zaki is one of the first artists to talk about the lack of fair job opportunities for senior actors, and he draws a comparison that reveals the imbalance, saying: “Great actors in the world continue to work until the end of their lives, and works are written for them in particular, and they win awards like the great British actor Anthony Hopkins, so I am surprised that many of our works marginalize the role of the artist when he grows up, even though the life drama includes the child, the young man, and the old man, and each has his important role.”
With artists demanding the intervention of the Acting Professions Syndicate to address this matter, Zaki says: “The Syndicate may nominate some artists, but the production authorities are responsible for that.”
Khaled Zaki believes that every time has its own circumstances, but a good script, in his opinion, is the starting point in making drama. He stressed, “There are young writers with a degree of talent and competence who have presented distinguished works in recent years, but not as much as there was during the boom period of drama, with the presence of great writers like Osama Anwar Okasha, Wahid Hamed, Mahfouz Abdel Rahman, Muhammad Safaa Amer and others.” He continued: “There is no doubt that there is a crisis in writing in general, especially the roles of great actors that are played.” Marginalizing it.”
During nearly half a century of his artistic career, Khaled Zaki presented more than 360 works between television, cinema, and theater. Among them are: “Witness and Tears,” “So that Love Does Not Suffocate,” “The Assassination of Shams,” “Hwanim Garden City,” “His Excellency,” and in cinema, “The President’s Chef,” “The Embassy in Amara,” “A Heartbeat,” and “My Angel of Alexandria.”
He confirms that all of his works are close to his heart, because they were the result of careful choices, and that the material did not put pressure on him in his choices. What is important is the quality of the script and the distinctiveness of the role he plays, but he does not deny the importance of the material, because acting is his only source of income, pointing out that he was not interested at any time in entering into commercial projects, and that what is most important is that he makes good choices, because it is important for the artist to respect his audience, and remain in their good opinion, as they and the critics are the true mirror of the artist, just as he confirms that he cares about every word of criticism. It was written about him and he benefited from it in his artistic path.
Despite his cinematic debut through the film “School of Teenagers” with Fouad Al-Muhandis and Shweikar, television drama took over his work more than cinema, and he justifies this by saying: “I was not given to cinema as much as television, so I do not accept any work for the sake of mere cinematic presence. I have always apologized for roles, because I realized that they would not add much to my career despite my cinematic beginning, and when I presented my first starring role in the series (The Fog), I started in dramatic works.”
Zaki recalls the first time he stood on the National Theater, saying: “I was in elementary school, and I participated in a school show that was more like sketches in which I played the role of a doctor. I remember that day I was wondering to myself, ‘Is it possible when I grow up to stand as an actor on this stage?’ And as circumstances would have it, after I graduated from the institute, I was appointed to the National Theater to fulfill what seemed to me a distant dream. I continued to perform in it and achieved the rank of a capable artist.”
Zaki reveals that he became attached to acting to the beat of Umm Kulthum’s songs, as he used to memorize the words of her new songs that were published by “Al-Ahram” newspaper before each of her concerts, and he would stand up to perform them in a dramatic manner, which helped him pass the exams of the Institute of Dramatic Arts, after he gave a dramatic performance of the song “Ask Your Soul.”
His handsomeness nominated him for romantic roles, but he rebelled against them, heading towards evil roles. He says, “Maybe in the beginning, directors nominated me to play romantic roles, and I spent several years until I was able to achieve a different shift in evil roles. The first rebellion was during the evening of “Love Without Banks” in 1973, written by Osama Anwar Okasha and directed by Inaam Muhammad Ali, with which I won the first award in my life. I loved diversifying the roles, just as I loved evil roles, because it is not only features, but also intelligence, and it allows the artist a good space to perform.
During the opening ceremony of its fourth session, the “Isis” International Women’s Theater Festival recalled the career of “Cactus Flower” by the late artist Sanaa Jamil, whose name the session bears, in a celebration that did not stop at honoring one of the most prominent actresses in the history of Egyptian art, but rather evoked an artistic experience that was formed through theatre, cinema, and television, and was linked to the ability of its owner to give the characters a presence that goes beyond the boundaries of the role into the audience’s memory.
The opening ceremony, which was held on Friday evening at the Samer Theater in Agouza, witnessed the presence of a number of artists, including Fathi Abdel Wahab and Ahmed Eid. The biography of Sanaa Jamil was recalled through a film that dealt with her career and the impact she left on the conscience of Egyptian art.
The festival's management chose to begin its fourth session with the biography of Sanaa Jamil, based on the experience of an artist who did not come to Cairo on a paved path to stardom, but rather gradually made her position within the artistic scene. This is what the festival’s president, artist Abeer Lotfy, referred to in her speech, recalling the late woman’s struggle in coming from Upper Egypt to study acting and become a professional.
Abeer Lutfi confirmed that choosing the name Sanaa Jamil for the session comes in appreciation of an artist who was able to carve out a special place for herself in the history of Egyptian art, referring to her journey from Mallawi in Upper Egypt to Cairo, and the stages she went through that led her to become one of the most prominent actresses in Egypt, while she confirmed the festival management’s aspiration for the session to be a space in which the public participates and interacts with its performances and events.
The opening ceremony witnessed the honoring of the poet Kawthar Mustafa, the artist Nevin Allouba, and the critic Dr. Samia Habib, in appreciation of their careers and contributions to art, culture and creativity, along with the Egyptian artist Samah Anwar, who left the ceremony early before going up to the stage to receive the honor due to her commitment to prior appointments, as she confirmed in a video clip she posted on her Facebook account from inside her car, expressing her happiness at being honored at the theater festival.
The play “Shanab Al-Banat” opened the festival. It was presented in a fantasy format that addresses questions of identity and social acceptance through the story of 3 girls who live with their grandmother, before their lives are upended by a mysterious curse that turns some of them into men, while one of them survives the transformation. From this paradox, events begin in a mixture of comedy, drama, and show, putting the characters before a new reality that forces them to review their view of themselves and society, and the preconceived notions it imposes about masculinity, femininity, and belonging.
The fourth session of the festival continues until October 2, and includes 13 theatrical performances from Egypt, Arab and foreign countries, in addition to workshops and intellectual events, through a program that includes a round table on women’s issues in African theatre, and a session on the opportunities available to artists.
The “Nohad Saliha Incubator” at the festival presents a model that goes beyond the idea of making the stage available for new performances, to trying to build a path that helps theatrical ideas move from the project stage to the experience in front of the audience. The incubator gives the three selected projects an opportunity to test their ideas on stage, through performances that will be presented to the public. These are the plays “For Ladies Only... until 9 PM” by Mai Amer, “Bags”, which is based on the novel “Women Without a Lord”, and “The Invited”, which is taken from the novel “Night of Destiny” by Taher Ben Jelloun.
Theater critic Samia Habib told Asharq Al-Awsat that the continuation of the festival represents a necessity to support the new generation of female writers, provide more space for young talents to express their experiences, and present qualitative creativity that concerns women’s issues, explaining that the existence of a theater festival specialized in this field is long overdue, despite the importance of having a platform that collects these experiences and gives them the attention they deserve.
Samia Habib added that adopting young talents is in itself an important step, especially since creative experiments need spaces that allow them to grow and reach the audience. She pointed out that the matter is similar to what happened in independent cinema experiments, which provided for long periods of time for young people a space to work and achieve their ambitions. The festival gives them a real opportunity to display their work, and for it to be seen and discussed.
Researchers from the Universities of Montana and Michigan in the United States have developed a therapeutic program based on bird watching to help stroke patients with aphasia recover.
According to their research published in the journal Frontiers in Bird Science, stroke survivors participate in a comprehensive and intensive aphasia program, where bird researchers and experts in the fields of speech and language provide a group of activities based on bird observation through the Big Sky Aphasia Program.
The partnership between the two universities began in 2021, and this activity has evolved into an ongoing collaboration between Dr. Victoria Dritz, an avian ecologist in the Wildlife Biology Program at the University of Michigan, and Jenna Mosek and Katherine Off, researchers in the College of Speech-Language, Hearing and Occupational Sciences, who are experts in stroke rehabilitation and research.
Aphasia
One third of stroke survivors suffer from aphasia, and they often have difficulty speaking, understanding spoken language, reading and writing. Aphasia is an acquired neurological disorder, usually a chronic condition that affects language and communication. It can negatively impact individuals' ability to participate in their communities, leading to isolation and depression.
“Aphasia is like identity theft,” says Off, co-director of the Big Sky Aphasia Program at the University of Michigan. People affected by it do not suffer from intellectual difficulties, but rather are self-absorbed within their minds. The challenge lies in changing their linguistic functions.”
She added in a statement on Friday that the most effective rehabilitation strategies combine clinical treatment with opportunities for active participation in daily life.
Bird watching
The University of Michigan's Bird Science Center is a national leader in bird and natural resource conservation. Dritz directs the center, which embraces interdisciplinary research and collaborates with local, national and international organizations to address complex conservation challenges. But the most unique collaboration, according to Dritz, is the partnership with speech-language pathologists, reflecting the University of Michigan's commitment to interdisciplinary learning.
“Birdwatching in groups supports interaction through shared focus during the nature experience, both of which have been shown to improve mental health,” Dritz said. “Birds’ songs and sounds, their seasonal movements and rhythms, and their near-permanent presence in urban and rural areas, make them accessible and interesting.”
She added: “Birds are things that you can follow from anywhere, from sitting and contemplating in front of the window, to plotting a path to see a unique species. You can start where you are. What's in your backyard? "This is the essence of the matter."
Team members work side by side to support program participants through bird-centered activities, where stroke survivors discuss what they see, ask questions, help each other use equipment, and continue the conversation with their families later.
“They go home every night and talk to their caregivers about it, which encourages continued dialogue,” Mosic said.
The team is now focusing on measuring outcomes, training specialists, and expanding the model to include similar programs that benefit stroke survivors with aphasia in other new settings.
