Kurdish Students Use Street Theater Festival to Perform Plays on History and Rights
Pirmam hosted its first student street theater festival, featuring performances on girls’ education and Kurdish history, with awards presented to participating groups.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - In Erbil’s Pirmam district, streets turned into open-air stages as students gathered in large numbers for the first street theater festival dedicated to schools, delivering educational and national messages through the art of performance.
With the participation of several school art groups, the festival was organized as part of the artistic activities of the Pirmam Directorate of Education on Monday, serving as an initiative to showcase the talents of youth and students.
Performances were staged in public streets and among crowds, drawing a significant audience that gathered around the young actors.
The plays addressed various themes. One focused on girls’ right to education. Saya Hussein, supervisor of one of the theater groups, told Kurdistan24: “Our performance was titled ‘A Window Facing the Darkness.’ It discusses old traditions that prevented girls from studying or led to them being buried alive. Through this play, we wanted to deliver our message.”
Other performances centered on the history of Kurdish struggle and the national cause. Rayan Maqsoud, a student and participating actor, noted that through portraying the roles of a Peshmerga fighter and a journalist, they presented a special message in support of western Kurdistan. He expressed his happiness that they were able to perform before the audience without fear or stress.
Artists and theater specialists attending the festival praised the students’ level of performance. One expert guest remarked: “This is the first time at the level of Kurdistan that a street theater festival dedicated to education has been organized. Here we see very beautiful talents in directing, acting, and music. Therefore, we suggest that this activity become annual.”
At the close of the festival, the supervisory committee and education officials distributed certificates of appreciation and awards to participating groups and outstanding students, encouraging them to continue their artistic work.