Emirates Airline Festival Of Literature At Alserkal Avenue

The Emirates Airline Festival of Literature arrived at Alserkal Avenue today, where the creative community came together in celebration of literature and stories in all their forms.

Highlights of the day included:

• Fashion, Football and Feminism was the topic of a fascinating discussion between Hafsa Lodi and FIFA coach Houriya Altaheri, trailblazers in fashion and football respectively.
• Literature Live Around the World – a whistle stop tour of the world’s most prestigious literary festivals, courtesy of Norway’s Bergen International Literary Festival.
• HE Omar Saif Ghobash in a far-reaching conversation about the state of play.
• The Alserkal Avenue community joined in the celebrations with activations and events that connected with the power of literature and the theme of the Festival, Change the Story. Wisdom Warehouse hosted a series of fun creative writing workshops for children, while at KAVE, spoken word artist Farrah Chamma encouraged self-expression in a workshop for adults. The Short+Sweet Theatre also showcased 10-minute plays by Shakespeare, which will continue tomorrow.

Coming up on tomorrow:

• Julia Johnson is sharing her latest children’s book, the delightful Where is Everyone?, which will bring reassurance and hope to all of us. This is a fun session for children age 6+
• Lemn Sissay will be appearing virtually to share his own incredible story, as it is told in his memoir My Name Is Why.
• Kateb Maktub, the Emirates Literature Foundation’s initiative which aims to bring Arab authors and literature into the spotlight, is hosting a free workshop which is the first step to becoming a verified Wikipedia editor.
• The Montegrappa Letter Writing Competition winners in the adult category will be revealed, and the winning letters will be read out.
• The Festival Finale featuring powerful performances from renowned artists including Lemn Sissay, Dana Dajani, Afra Atiq, Mark Fiddes, Shamma Al Bastaki, Zeina Hashem Beck and Danabelle Gutierrez will make this finale an unmissable event.