Women’s Plays Festival begins amid normalization

ANKARA

The Women’s Plays Festival, led by the Ankara Art Theater (AST), met with theater lovers at the capital city’s Bilkent AST Stage amid the COVID-19 normalization phase.

Organized by Atölye Kültür Sanat under the artistic direction of AST, one of the most established private theaters in Turkey, the festival will continue until March 11.

The earnings from those seats will be donated to foundations that support women’s causes, such as “We Will Stop Femicide Platform” and “Mor Çatı,” two powerful women’s non-governmental organizations operating nationwide.

AST Coordinator and Festival General Director Hasan Aldemir said that the festival was postponed earlier due to the pandemic, but they decided to hold the festival with the government’s latest decision of normalization.

Noting that the festival aims to support the arts and women’s struggle, Aldemir noted that they chose plays that address women’s issues.

Aldemir stated that seven plays will be staged four times in the capital Ankara, the Aegean district of Bandırma and the western province of Çanakkale and five times in the Aegean district of Ayvalık.

At the festival, where hygiene measures were applied, theatergoers were taken to the hall with a HES code query and fever screenings. The number of seats was reduced due to social distancing rules.

CHP Deputy Leader Muharrem Erkek, CHP Ankara lawmaker Gamze Taşçıer and Tepe Real Estate Investment General Manager Deniz Bozan also attended the festival.

Among the plays that will be performed at the festival is “Frida,” a play that tells the story of the painter Frida Kahlo who was known for her works on identity, gender, class and race.