The calendar of activities kicked off on February 29 with the Qatar Rail Theatre Festival, a three-day event featuring productions by local students based on their perceptions of the landmark project.
Later this week, Qatar Rail will open Metro Art, an exhibition that uses art to bring the Doha Metro to life.
The theatre festival is an initiative organised by Qatar Rail with the Ministry of Transport and Communications and the Ministry of Education and Higher Education.
Held at Qatar National Theatre, it features two plays by local students.
The first, titled “Our Memories of the Future”, sees the students imagine using a time machine to travel into the future, visiting Qatar in 2030 and experiencing the impact the integrated railway system has had on Qatar’s community.
The play is performed by students from Naseeba Bint Kaab Independent Primary School for Girls.
The second production performed by students from Abou Obaidah Preparatory Independent School for boys, titled “The New Guest (Qatar Rail)”, features a grandfather telling his grandson how a family visitor would arrive not by air, sea or road, but “from the underground”.
Both productions have been created and performed by the students.
Qatar Rail chief executive officer Dr Saad al-Muhannadi said, “We are delighted to launch this month-long arts celebration and what better way than with a theatrical performance done by local youth. Later this week, we are going to launch Metro Art, an exhibition that features talented Qatari artists besides many other engaging performances.”
The two plays are a result of the work carried out by a committee responsible for including Qatar Rail projects within academic curricula and school activities.
The committee comprises subject-matter experts from Qatar Rail and the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and was established with the goal of raising awareness of the young generation with regard to the upcoming railway networks in Qatar.
These messages became part of the academic curriculum at the primary and preparatory levels starting from the 2015-2016 academic year. A decision has also been taken to include these topics in school activities during the academic year as well as summer, and the two plays represent the first step in that regard.
