GOWRI MANICKAVASAGAM
The cultural fiesta of the world, Fringe Festival, has made its debut in the Middle East with its first event in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. Presented by Shurooq from January 16 – February 1, more than 600 family entertainment performances are being presented by more than 50 artists from around the world.
With this, Sharjah’s position as the cultural capital of the United Arab Emirates has received a boost as it hosts the first Sharjah Fringe Festival – joining a long list of international fringe festivals that include Edinburgh, Brighton, Adelaide, and the New York Fringe.
The seventeen-day gathering of street performers from across the world, including the United States, United Kingdom, South Korea, South Africa, Australia, and the Middle East, theatre, dance, illusion and more has a family focus in Sharjah and will see 1100 hours of creative inspiration for residents and visitors to the emirate.
The streets and stages of Sharjah are the backdrops for 600 performances featuring a pandemonium of performers, colours and creativity at key destinations in the emirate – the Al Majaz Waterfront, Al Qasba, Al Noor Island, and The Flag Island.
Sharjah has long been known as the cultural capital of the UAE, a reputation that has grown through recent events like the Sharjah Book Fair and the Sharjah Art Biennale, produced by the Sharjah Art Foundation.
Presented by Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq) in strategic partnership with Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority, Ahmed Obaid Al Qaseer, Chief Operating Officer of Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq), explains, “Through Fringe, we want the 200-plus nationalities residing in the UAE to connect with the global language of the arts and build bridges across cultures in a variety of entertaining journeys with artists at our top public destinations.”
Performances include bubbleologists in The Amazing Bubble Show and The Fantabulous Bubble Show, Australian beat-boxing duo Tom Thum and Jamie MacDowell, mentalist Brendon Peel in Mind Games, Fidget Feet’s aerial dance performances Hatch and Strange Feathers, Bulgarian dance and multimedia performance Silent Legends, shadow puppet piece Sticks, Stone and Broken Bones as well as revue shows and comedy from many UAE performers and comedians – and more.
Sharjah Fringe Festival is being produced by South Africa’s National Arts Festival, the largest and most diverse arts festival in Africa, and international festival consultancy Dolphin Creative. Spokesperson for the National Arts Festival, Tony Lankester said, “Sharjah Fringe Festival is a truly global effort, our technical and production team has come from South Africa, artists come from all over the world and so do the audiences. Sharjah is a beautiful city with wonderful locations and public spaces so it is the ideal place for an interactive festival like this.”
