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H.E Shaikha Mai bint Mohammad Al- Khalifa, Bahrain Culture and Antiquities Authority (BCAA) President, congratulated Awal Theater technical and administrative teams taking part in the 1st edition of Sharjah Festival for GCC Theatre. The festival was organized under the patronage of H.H. Dr. Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah. Bahraini participants won four prizes; grand prize of the Arbitration Committee, Best Actor in a Supporting Role by Ahmad Ahmad Majlli, Best Actress in a Supporting Role by Shafiqa Youssef and the Best Décor Award went to Abdullah Youssef. 

H.E Shaikha Mai expressed her gratitude and pride for the outstanding artistic capabilities performed by Bahrainis, which reflects the historical creative heritage of the country. H.E said that Bahrain’s cultural institutions such as museums, music centres, culture centres, theatres, and cinemas as well as craft centres are all places that must be promoted. They must be able to contribute to the educational effort of each nation and more specifically to the education of the arts. Another rich source lies with artists themselves: dancers, actors, musicians, poets, writers, painters, sculptors and craftspeople all have undeniable skills in terms of creativity, action and reflection. H.E said, “We value very highly the role of the Bahraini artist to raise social awareness values. Actors are also the living memory of a community’s art and culture and the magicians that transform these traditions into future memory.”
Bahrain Culture and Antiquities Authority (BCAA) had earlier formed a special selecting committee to choose the nominated playwright, which would represent Bahrain Sharjah Festival for GCC Theatre. The committee included Dr. Ibrahim Abdullah Ghuloom, actor Abdullah Youssef, and actor Hassan Abdularaheem. They studied all proposals and went through all the theater groups over a two year period to select a screenplay which would represent Bahrain this festival. The final choice was ‘Jorouh/Wounds’, written by Ismael Abdullah, directed by Abdullah Soweid, and produced by Awal Theater.

‘Jorouh/Wounds’ participated in the 1st Edition of Sharjah Festival for GCC Theatre together with five other theatrical performances from GCC countries. The public had the chance to attend and enjoy these performances along with the arbitration committee, composed of Jiyana Al-Eid from Syria, Dr. Sameh Mahran, from Egypt, Dr. Ezzedine Bounite, from Morocco, Dr. Faisal Jawad, from Iraq and Abdullah Rached, from the UAE.