Wael Shawky’s practice spans film, performance, drawing, and sculpture. In his latest theatrical film, Drama 1882 (2024), which debuted at the Egyptian Pavilion at the 60th Venice Biennale (2024), Shawky examines the 1882 Urabi Revolution and Egypt’s resistance to British colonialism. This eight-part musical, reimagines the chain of events leading up to the revolution, examining primary sources to dispute the traditional Western settler narrative, suggesting that seemingly insignificant events, such as a café altercation involving a donkey keeper, could have been orchestrated by Britain as a pretext for their attack. Drama 1882 merges real and imagined histories into a musical critique that underscores the necessity to reevaluate history.
Outdoor amphitheatre: Monday–Thursday, 4:00–10:00 PM; Friday–Sunday, 4:00 PM–12:00 AM; not available Wednesday 4–Saturday 8 December 2024
Indoor theatre: daily until Monday 13 January 2025, 10:00 AM–4:00 PM, unless there is other programming; not available Saturday 8–Sunday 9 December 2024
Language: Arabic, English | 45 minutes