(MENAFN- Jordan Times) The 2012 Jerash Festival for Culture and Arts, which will begin on July 4, will feature music and dance performances by prominent artists from Jordan, the Arab region and beyond, organisers said on Monday.
Jordanian singers, including Diana Karazoun and Yousef Arafat, will participate in the festival, which includes a diverse line-up of cultural and art activities, Aqel Biltaji, head of the Jerash Festival Higher Committee, said at a press conference.
Arab artists including Lebanese singers Melhem Zein, Wael Jassar and Fares Karam, Shereen Abdul Wahhab and Tamer Hosni from Egypt, and Iraqi singer Hatem Al Iraqi will also perform at the festival, which will run through July 14.
The festival will also include poetry recitals, seminars, plastic arts exhibitions, performances and workshops in Jerash and at the Royal Cultural Centre in the capital, according to the festival's executive director, Mohammad Abu Summaqa.
As part of the festival, Ramadan Nights will be held at the Royal Cultural Centre from July 23 until July 29.
A total of 115 troupes will take part in the festival and Ramadan Nights, Abu Summaqa said at the press conference.
Biltaji said several entities such as the Jordanian Artists Association and the Jordanian Writers Association, in addition to a committee representing the local community in Jerash, were consulted in preparing for the festival to ensure that citizens benefit from it.
Holding the festival, he added, is a way of indicating that Jordan remains a safe destination for tourism in the Middle East in light of the ongoing turmoil in the region.
According to Abu Summaqa, an outdoor market will be organised in Jerash to display locally made products and handicrafts, which will help local communities sell their products and benefit from the festival.
The director noted that due to the Kingdom's current economic difficulties, only about JD1 million was allocated for the festival and the Ramadan Nights.
In January, the Ministry of Culture said JD1.7 million had been allocated for the event.
In 2011, the government revived the Jerash Festival, which was first launched in 1981, after a four-year suspension.
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