Message of Mehdi Shafiei, Dramatic Arts Center Director
Outdoor Theater Has Turned into an Effective Art Medium
Mehdi Shafiei, Dramatic Arts Center director, released a message on the occasion of 11th Marivan International Street Theater Festival.
The message of Mehdi Shafiei, Dramatic Arts Center director, on the occasion of 11th Marivan International Street Theater Festival follows;
In the name of God
Street theater is one of the most uncomplicated and immediate type of theater. It is a theater genre in which the artists do not wait for audience to see their works but they walk to their audience to welcome them candidly.
The outdoor theater will make the distance between theater group and the audience minimum and make them one of the main elements of the piece to share the events of the drama directly.
This is a valuable potential that turns outdoor theater (in various types) into an influential art medium, particularly in today's society with its all characteristics and features, modern technological and mass communication advances, speed, diversity in tastes and approaches, needs, norms and abnormalities.
Artists of the field must revise the features, bases and principles of this type of art smartly, rely on creativities and innovation of this art in the world and have a serious look into a treasury of ancient street theater forms in Iran to produce new and effective pieces.
Marivan street theater festival is among art events which has been experiencing its gradual development thanks to solidarity of Iran street theater artists, officials and art-loving citizens of Marivan. The special capacities of this border city –a land of resistance and security – make it a suitable candidate to turn into a global model for outdoor theater after its infrastructure improved.
I am hopeful the 11th Marivan International Street Theater Festival will pave the way for growing development of this ancient art, especially street theater. I respect the solidarity and efforts of all artists, officials and organizers of this valuable art event, especially the culture- and theater-loving people of Kurdistan and Marivan and wish God will bless them success and victory.
Mehdi Shafiei
Director of Dramatic Arts Center