Emirates Airline Festival Of Literature Celebrates Final Weekend At Alserkal Avenue With LemnSissay And Omar Ghobash

The final weekend of the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature kicks off at Alserkal Avenue, a vibrant cultural district in the Al Quoz industrial area of Dubai, and home to a community of over 70home-grown and entrepreneur-led businesses, on Friday (12-13 February) rounding off this year’s literary festivities with a celebration of creativity, hope, and triumph over adversity.

Highlights of the final weekend include His ExcellencyOmar Ghobash with his thoughts on the positive paths ahead of us, a virtual solo session by LemnSissaywho joins in conversation with a moderator live on stage to give a searing account of his autobiography My Name is Why, and the inspiring festival finale celebrating poetry, with Dana Dajani, LemnSissay, Afra Atiq, Danabelle Gutierrez and Zeina Hashem Beck.

The weekend gets off to a joyous start with a session of ‘Laughter Yoga’ by Ranga. Trailblazers in Hafsa Lodi and HouriyaAltaheri discuss Fashion, Football and Feminism. FadiZaghmout is in conversation discussing the balancing act between a writer’s freedom and what is socially unacceptable.

Julia Johnson launches her latest children’s book Where is Everyone? bringing reassurance to all as a host of creatures wonder why the humans have vanished from the desert.

International travel may be on hold for the time being, but you can still get a glimpse of foreign shores with Literature Live Around the World – an extravaganza showcasing 12 literary festivals from across the globe. Produced by Norway’s Bergen International Literary Festival, Alserkal will be livestreaming the event on Friday from 15:00, with Dubai featured live at 19:00.

Also on Friday 12 February, visitors can harness their creative flair with workshops on creative writing with Nasser Iraq, and historical fiction with Rehan Khan, or unleash their inner voices with Farah Chamma’s self-expression through spoken word. On Saturday 13 February Heather Grace will show how writing for self-discovery can be used to enhance mental wellness, and Faraz Ali will offer attendees the tools to rediscover the Art of Letter Writing. The adult winners of the Montegrappa Letter Writing Prize are announced. Visitors can also learn the skills of a Wikipedia editor and help bring Arabic literature to a wider audience by joining the workshop offered by the Emirates Literature Foundation’s KatebMaktubproject.

There are also 10 Shakespeare plays of 10minutes each performed throughout the weekend by

Short + Sweet Theatre at The Junction, along with screenings of Metropolis, and Between Heaven & Earth at Cinema Akil.

Creative techniques are on offer at Thejamjar, including the delightful Book Worms workshop where participants can create a detailed illustration of their favourite bookshelf.

The events at Alserkal Avenue follow on from last week’s Festival big weekend, which featured appearances from big names such as Malala, ElifShafak and Amin Maalouf, and the opening events at Jameel Arts Centre (29-30 January), which saw visitors of all ages enjoying the literary themed events, many with an art and design focus.

The Festival is fully compliant with all Covid-19 prevention regulations and guidelines from the Dubai Health Authorities, including social distancing measures across all three venues and mandatory masks. See full details on the Emirates LitFest website.

You can also tune in to the Foundation’s two podcasts; the Best of the Emirates LitFest, and the Boundless Book Club.