{"id":4407,"date":"2006-02-14T16:35:56","date_gmt":"2006-02-14T14:35:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/?p=4407"},"modified":"2025-12-21T09:11:34","modified_gmt":"2025-12-21T09:11:34","slug":"the-freedom-theatre-opens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/2006\/02\/the-freedom-theatre-opens\/","title":{"rendered":"Opening of The Freedom Theatre"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-start=\"436\" data-end=\"498\"><strong data-start=\"436\" data-end=\"458\">Jenin Refugee Camp<\/strong><br data-start=\"458\" data-end=\"461\" \/><strong data-start=\"461\" data-end=\"498\">Sunday, February 19, 2006 | 15:00<\/strong><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"500\" data-end=\"897\">The Freedom Theatre was founded in Jenin Refugee Camp in February 2006, inspired by the groundbreaking cultural and educational work initiated by Arna Mer-Khamis during the first Intifada.<br data-start=\"688\" data-end=\"691\" \/>The theatre was established by residents of the camp in collaboration with Palestinian artists and activists from Haifa and the Galilee, alongside international activists from Sweden and the United Kingdom.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"899\" data-end=\"1135\">Registered as a non-governmental organization, The Freedom Theatre was conceived as a <strong data-start=\"985\" data-end=\"1020\">community-based cultural center<\/strong>, rooted in the belief that artistic expression is a vital form of resistance, healing, and collective imagination.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"1137\" data-end=\"1162\">Vision and Facilities<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"1164\" data-end=\"1248\">The Freedom Theatre aims to establish a permanent cultural center that will include:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"1250\" data-end=\"1348\">\n<li data-start=\"1250\" data-end=\"1274\">\n<p data-start=\"1252\" data-end=\"1274\">A large theatre hall<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1275\" data-end=\"1308\">\n<p data-start=\"1277\" data-end=\"1308\">Rehearsal and training spaces<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1309\" data-end=\"1327\">\n<p data-start=\"1311\" data-end=\"1327\">A music studio<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1328\" data-end=\"1348\">\n<p data-start=\"1330\" data-end=\"1348\">A public library<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-start=\"1350\" data-end=\"1505\">The theatre will serve as the home of a local theatre ensemble and host Palestinian and international productions for children, youth, and adult audiences.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"1507\" data-end=\"1534\">Programs and Activities<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"1536\" data-end=\"1638\">The Freedom Theatre is committed to developing long-term cultural and educational programs, including:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"1640\" data-end=\"1839\">\n<li data-start=\"1640\" data-end=\"1695\">\n<p data-start=\"1642\" data-end=\"1695\">Drama and movement workshops for children and youth<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1696\" data-end=\"1724\">\n<p data-start=\"1698\" data-end=\"1724\">Music education programs<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1725\" data-end=\"1782\">\n<p data-start=\"1727\" data-end=\"1782\">Training for youth counselors working within the camp<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1783\" data-end=\"1839\">\n<p data-start=\"1785\" data-end=\"1839\">Psychodrama and movement-based therapeutic practices<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-start=\"1841\" data-end=\"2119\">At the time of its opening, The Freedom Theatre was operating from a <strong data-start=\"1910\" data-end=\"1928\">temporary hall<\/strong>, renovated by volunteers from the Jenin refugee camp. The space included a theatre stage equipped with lighting and sound systems, enabling full-scale performances despite limited resources.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"2121\" data-end=\"2152\">Upcoming Productions (2006)<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"2154\" data-end=\"2281\">In the months following its opening, The Freedom Theatre hosted and planned to host several significant productions, including:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"2283\" data-end=\"2492\">\n<li data-start=\"2283\" data-end=\"2339\">\n<p data-start=\"2285\" data-end=\"2339\"><strong data-start=\"2285\" data-end=\"2305\">The Pessoptimist<\/strong>, featuring actor Mohammed Bakri<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"2340\" data-end=\"2427\">\n<p data-start=\"2342\" data-end=\"2427\"><strong data-start=\"2342\" data-end=\"2363\">Juha and Bahalool<\/strong>, a children\u2019s production by the G\u2019beina Theatre Group (Haifa)<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"2428\" data-end=\"2492\">\n<p data-start=\"2430\" data-end=\"2492\"><strong data-start=\"2430\" data-end=\"2449\">Shams and Nahas<\/strong>, featuring Hanna Shamas and Aiman Nahhas<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-start=\"2494\" data-end=\"2589\">Alongside performances, three children\u2019s theatre groups began their activities, in addition to:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"2591\" data-end=\"2712\">\n<li data-start=\"2591\" data-end=\"2642\">\n<p data-start=\"2593\" data-end=\"2642\">A youth drama workshop led by <strong data-start=\"2623\" data-end=\"2640\">Mahmod Kaniri<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"2643\" data-end=\"2712\">\n<p data-start=\"2645\" data-end=\"2712\">A youth facilitation training program led by <strong data-start=\"2690\" data-end=\"2712\">Juliano Mer-Khamis<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 data-start=\"2714\" data-end=\"2749\">Founders and Advisory Committee<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"2751\" data-end=\"2894\">The Freedom Theatre was founded by <strong data-start=\"2786\" data-end=\"2808\">Juliano Mer-Khamis<\/strong>, <strong data-start=\"2810\" data-end=\"2829\">Zakaria Zubeidi<\/strong>, and <strong data-start=\"2835\" data-end=\"2855\">Jonatan Stanczak<\/strong>, with assistance from <strong data-start=\"2878\" data-end=\"2893\">Jacob Gough<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2896\" data-end=\"3042\">The theatre was supported by an international advisory committee that included prominent cultural, academic, and human rights figures, among them:<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3044\" data-end=\"3245\">Mahmoud Darwish, Judith Butler, Elias Khoury, Noam Chomsky, Avi Oz, Mohammad Bakri, Henry Ascher, Abeer Kopty, Khulood Badawi, Nazmi Iebadi, San\u2019a Badawi, Salwa Nakkara, Suzanne Osten, and Dror Feiler.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"3247\" data-end=\"3267\">Opening Ceremony<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"3269\" data-end=\"3311\">The opening ceremony featured speeches by:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"3313\" data-end=\"3574\">\n<li data-start=\"3313\" data-end=\"3386\">\n<p data-start=\"3315\" data-end=\"3386\"><strong data-start=\"3315\" data-end=\"3342\">Abd el-Razak Abu Alheja<\/strong>, Head of the Jenin Refugee Camp Committee<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"3387\" data-end=\"3466\">\n<p data-start=\"3389\" data-end=\"3466\"><strong data-start=\"3389\" data-end=\"3419\">Nazmi Mohammad Salem Abadi<\/strong>, Head of Social Services, Jenin Refugee Camp<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"3467\" data-end=\"3517\">\n<p data-start=\"3469\" data-end=\"3517\"><strong data-start=\"3469\" data-end=\"3485\">Qadura Mousa<\/strong>, Governor of the Jenin Region<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"3518\" data-end=\"3544\">\n<p data-start=\"3520\" data-end=\"3544\"><strong data-start=\"3520\" data-end=\"3542\">Juliano Mer-Khamis<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"3545\" data-end=\"3574\">\n<p data-start=\"3547\" data-end=\"3574\"><strong data-start=\"3547\" data-end=\"3562\">Dror Feiler<\/strong>, composer<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-start=\"3576\" data-end=\"3878\">The ceremony was followed by a performance of <strong data-start=\"3622\" data-end=\"3630\">Diab<\/strong>, generously donated by its creators.<br data-start=\"3667\" data-end=\"3670\" \/><em data-start=\"3670\" data-end=\"3676\">Diab<\/em> was written by <strong data-start=\"3692\" data-end=\"3707\">Alaa Helhel<\/strong>, directed by <strong data-start=\"3721\" data-end=\"3734\">Salim Daw<\/strong>, performed by <strong data-start=\"3749\" data-end=\"3764\">Amer Hlihel<\/strong>, with music by <strong data-start=\"3780\" data-end=\"3797\">Habib Shehade<\/strong>, set and costume design by <strong data-start=\"3825\" data-end=\"3841\">Ashraf Hanna<\/strong>, and lighting by <strong data-start=\"3859\" data-end=\"3877\">Ne\u2019eme Zaknoon<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"3880\" data-end=\"3906\">Solidarity and Support<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"3908\" data-end=\"4058\">On March 19, 2006, The Freedom Theatre hosted a fundraising event in Haifa, highlighted by a performance of <strong data-start=\"4016\" data-end=\"4027\">Shukran<\/strong>, also donated by its creators.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"4060\" data-end=\"4297\">The Freedom Theatre called upon organizations, NGOs, cultural institutions, and activists to support the project through donations, equipment, and professional guidance.<br data-start=\"4229\" data-end=\"4232\" \/>All contributions, large or small, were, and remain, deeply valued.<\/p>\n<div id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-4407 gallery-columns-3 gallery-size-thumbnail'><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/2006\/02\/the-freedom-theatre-opens\/zakaria-opening\/'><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2006\/02\/Zakaria-opening-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/2006\/02\/the-freedom-theatre-opens\/jul-stage-kids\/'><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2006\/02\/Jul-stage-kids-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/2006\/02\/the-freedom-theatre-opens\/opening-event-people\/'><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2006\/02\/Opening-event-people-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Jenin Refugee CampSunday, February 19, 2006 | 15:00 The Freedom Theatre was founded in Jenin Refugee Camp in February 2006, inspired by the groundbreaking cultural and educational work initiated by Arna Mer-Khamis during the first Intifada.The theatre was established by residents of the camp in collaboration with Palestinian artists and activists from Haifa and the [&hellip;]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":57388,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4407","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4407","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4407"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4407\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57392,"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4407\/revisions\/57392"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/57388"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4407"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4407"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4407"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}