ABHA: The theater of Al-Miftaha Cultural Village in Abha will be the venue of a play for women on Friday evening performed by famous Arab actors at the Asir Summer Festival.
The play, âHarimco,â tackles the lives of women in southern Saudi Arabia and the impact of the communications revolution on them. It shows two US-educated women trying to convince women of the region the advantages of using the Internet.
Bahraini actor Muna Shaddad plays the lead role of a woman who had her education in the US while Egyptian Mimi Jamal plays the role of her friend. Kuwaiti actor Suad Al-Ali is a matchmaker who also owns a musical band singing at wedding parties. Her character is a mean woman who broke many marriages. The two US-educated women will try to convince her to use modern technology in promoting herself.
Arab News followed the actors during the rehearsals over the last two days. Some animosity arose between Saudi actors who were cast in minor roles and their more famous foreign counterparts.
A Saudi announcer who was given a small role was not happy that the three Arab actors were honored on the Al-Miftaha stage. She began to harass the leading character because she had a two-minute singing scene. She frightened the woman by saying she would be arrested by the vice police if they came to know that she would be singing on the stage.
CEO of the Tourist Development Board in Asir, Abdullah Mataein, said he would not allow anyone to bother the three Arab actors. âI will not allow anyone to harass our guests. Whoever does not like it should bow out. We are keen to make the festival a complete success,â he said.
Unlike the Saudi actors, the public gave a wholehearted welcome the visiting performers.
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