Last week, the 21st Kuwait Theatre Festival concluded, with great success for all the shows held over 10 days. After two years of not holding theatrical shows due to the pandemic, cultural activities are being held in Kuwait again. People were excited to attend the festival as they missed such activities for a long time. The festival was organized by the National Council for Culture, Arts, and Letters (NCCAL), and the shows were open to the public free of charge. All the shows were held at Dasma Theatre, where festivals have been held for the past 20 years.

These theatre shows are one of the rare activities in Kuwait that start exactly on time. The audience somehow knows this fact, so they arrive early to find a seat. All the shows started at 8:00 pm sharp, and anyone who arrived at 8:01 could not find a place to sit.  All the seats of the theatre were completely occupied during all the shows. In many shows, people were standing in the small space along the sides of the seating area. During the first show, guards didn’t even allow people to enter the theatre after it got full and the show started.

Dasma Theatre is a public theatre managed by NCCAL, which is not used for commercial or private shows. Its capacity is less than 1,000 people, which doesn’t allow all theatre lovers to attend shows at this venue. Kuwait is a pioneer of arts in the region, and actors from other GCC countries also participate in Kuwaiti shows. We should have bigger theatres in Kuwait to allow all fans to enjoy the show while seated comfortably, instead of standing on the side or having to leave without watching.

Apart from Dasma Theatre, Kaifan, Shamiya, and Abdulhussain Abdulredha theaters are public venues that hold events free of charge.

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