Qatar won three awards at the 6th Gulf Theatre Festival for People with Disabilities. The festival was held over a week in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with wide participation from the GCC countries. The festival featured a Qatari theatrical show 'From the Chair to the Top' directed by Ibrahim Lari, with the participation of a number of actors of persons with disabilities from Qatar.
The show revolved around a conflict between the actors and the director who is alarmed by the inability of the actors' performance in delivering his ideas and message to the to the audience effectively. Actor Maryam al-Kuwari won the second place as the best actor with disability, and the third place was awarded to Ahmed Issa. Kaltham al-Mannai was awarded in best actor category.
Director of the Department of Family Affairs, Ministry of Social Development and Family Najat Daham al-Abdullah, who headed the ministry's delegation to the festival, said that the festival aims to invest in the capabilities and abilities of persons with disabilities and to reflect and highlight their concerns, issues as well as the community in general, stressing the importance of the theatre functions in integrating the actors with disabilities into the society and promoting their participation in the development.
Head of the Department for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities of the Ministry of Social Development and Family Rim al-Ajmi announced that Qatar will host the 7th edition of the festival, noting the importance of the festival for persons with disabilities to highlight their potentials. Ibrahim Lari said that the theatre festival provided a fertile environment to highlight the talents and creativity of persons with disabilities, expressing his pleasure at participating with them in this festival and praising the support of the Ministry of Social Development and the Family.
