ArabishWay

World Language Story Time King County Library - Arabic
2019-06-29 13:00 - 13:45 UTC | King County Library System – Tukwila, 14380 Tukwila International Boulevard, Tukwila, WA, 98168, United States
World Language Story Times
Ages 2 and older with adult.
Learn the Arabic alphabet and words through stories, songs and games.

This event occurs weekly!

This event is also offered on:

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 6, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 13, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 20, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 27, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

The Palestinian Table with Nadia Tommalieh
2019-06-28 18:30 - 21:30 | the Pantry, 1417 NW 70th Street, Seattle, WA, 98117
The Palestinian Table

Laden with spices and brimming with flavor, many Palestinian dishes are centered around tradition and community. Join Nadia Tommalieh as she shows you how to bring these concepts to your table as you create a beautiful, bountiful Middle Eastern feast. You’ll make classic smooth hummus; salatet al raheb (roasted eggplant with pomegranate molasses); pita chips; sayadieh (shrimp and fish rice pilaf) with fried pine nuts, caramelized onions, and tahini sauce; salatah fallahia(Palestinian farmer’s salad with tomatoes, cucumber, peppers, and sumac); and layali lubnan(creamy semolina pudding topped with crushed pistachios and orange blossom syrup).
You can follow Nadia on Instagram: @nadiatommalieh

Arabs in Seattle Meetup
2019-06-26 17:00 - 18:30 | WA
Rotating Monthly Coffee

Hosted by Maryam

Wednesday, June 26, 2019

5:00 PM to 6:30 PM
Every 4th Wednesday of the month

Ahlan! This group is for people in Seattle who are Arab, half-Arab, or their great-great-grandmother was 12.5% from somewhere in the region. It’s also a group for you if you’re dating or married to someone from the Middle East, or you just really really love kunafa and want to hang out. Whether you were born and raised in Washington or you’re a fresh expat looking to meet new people, let’s plan some get-togethers. Welcome!
For more info/location click here: https://www.meetup.com/Arabs-in-Seattle/events/pnbrwpyzjbjc/

World Language Story Time King County Library - Arabic
2019-06-24 11:00 - 11:30 | King County Library System – Redmond, 15990 NE 85th Street Redmond WA 98052, Redmond, WA, 98032, United States
World Language Story Times
Family program, all ages welcome.
Come for an interactive Story Time in Arabic that includes Early Literacy fun with books, songs and finger plays. Speakers of all languages welcome.
This event repeats every 2nd and 4th Monday of the month.
Sponsored by the Friends of the Redmond Library.

Arabic Story Time/أوقات قراءة القصة العربية

Monday, June 24, 2019 (11:00AM-11:30AM)

Monday, July 8, 2019 (11:00AM – 11:30AM)

Monday, July 22, 2019 (11:00AM – 11:30AM)

Monday, August 12, 2019 (11:00AM – 11:30AM)
Monday, August 26, 2019 (11:00AM – 11:30AM)

World Language Story Time King County Library - Arabic
2019-06-22 13:00 - 13:45 | King County Library System – Tukwila, 14380 Tukwila International Boulevard, Tukwila, WA, 98168, United States
World Language Story Times
Ages 2 and older with adult.
Learn the Arabic alphabet and words through stories, songs and games.

This event occurs weekly!

This event is also offered on:

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, June 29, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 6, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 13, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 20, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 27, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Duo Performance by Sahba Motallebi and Rahim Al-Haj
2019-06-21 19:00 - 21:00 | Kirkland Performance Art Center, 350 Kirkland Ave, Kirkland, WA, 98033, United States
Duo Performance by Sahba Motallebi and Rahim Al-Haj
June 21 | 7 p.m. | Kirkland Performance Center
An Iranian and Iraqi master Tar and Oud players join hands in an extraordinary event to support Peace and Harmony in our corner of the world, while the rest of the globe is ablaze. Come join us and appreciate the Sahba Motallebi and Rahim Al-Haj duo on stage at Kirkland Performance Center.

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - Tel Aviv on Fire - Won Best of SIFF!
2019-06-19 18:45 - 20:30 | SIFF Cinema Uptown, 511 Queen Anne Ave N,, Seattle, WA, 98109, United States
SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) – Tel Aviv on Fire (Palestinian Director)
This movie won for people’s choice! So is playing again!
In this clever comedy from writer/director Sameh Zoabi, Salam is a hapless 30-something production assistant on his uncle’s TV show, a popular Palestinian soap opera called “Tel Aviv On Fire.” Set in 1967, just a few months before the start of the Six-Day War, the show is a huge hit with audiences on both sides of the divide. Things start looking up for Salam when an offhand remark impresses the show’s star and results in his promotion to writer. The promotion even impresses Miriam, Salam’s ex-girlfriend, whom he hopes to win back. Living in Jerusalem, he must pass through the Ramallah checkpoint every day to get to the studio. One day he’s interrogated by Israeli military commander Assi, whose wife just happens to be a huge fan of the show. Assi is full of ideas for improving the script (and impressing his wife), which works to Salam’s advantage—until Assi and the show’s producers want to take the story in distinctly different directions. With the season finale looming, it’s up to Salam to figure out a resolution that will keep everyone happy.
— Justine Barda
Director Biography
Sameh Zoabi was born in 1975 in Iskal, a Palestinian village near the city of Nazareth. He graduated from Tel Aviv University with a dual degree in Film Studies and English Literature before earning a Fulbright Fellowship to earn his MFA in Filmmaking from Columbia University in 2005. With films like Tel Aviv On Fire (2018), Zoabi seeks to invoke humor in difficult narratives, stating, “We talk about Palestine being a place that is very hard, but I always remember people laughing all the time.” In addition to filmmaking, Zoabi is an adjunct professor at NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Hunter College, and Columbia University’s MFA program, teaching courses in direction, production, and screenwriting.

Sponsored by Diageo Americas, Inc., The Fools
Showtimes and locations can be found here: https://www.siff.net/festival/tel-aviv-on-fire
Thursday, May 30, 2019, AMC Pacific Place, 7pm
Friday, May 31, 2019, SIFF Cinema Uptown, 3:30pm

World Language Story Time King County Library - Arabic
2019-06-15 13:00 - 13:45 | King County Library System – Tukwila, 14380 Tukwila International Boulevard, Tukwila, WA, 98168, United States
World Language Story Times
Ages 2 and older with adult.
Learn the Arabic alphabet and words through stories, songs and games.

This event occurs weekly!

This event is also offered on:

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, June 22, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, June 29, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 6, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 13, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 20, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 27, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Movie Showing: Free Trip to Egypt
2019-06-12 19:00 - 21:00 | Multiple Locations, WA, United States
Tarek Mounib, of Zurich, had an inspiration to invite people who are afraid/opposed/don’t understand Islam, or the people and places of the Middle East, to a FREE TRIP TO EGYPT. There they would meet the families, eat the food, walk in the neighborhoods and otherwise just get to spend time with people who have been portrayed and vilified as “the other”. And Tarek, a young man born in Canada, raised in Egypt, educated in both, would film what happened.
He’s done it! Kindness Films will show Tarek’s film Free Trip to Egypt in 500 theaters across the country on June 12, 2019. (The film will play longer in New York and LA.)

This is citizen diplomacy and peacemaking of the highest order. Through this movie we can see the change in people’s hearts and minds.
You can watch the trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OitVw2gE6aQ&t=7s

All shows are at 7:00pm on June 12

Regal Bella Bottega 11 Cinema, 8890 NE 161st Avenue, Redmond, WA 98052
Regal Thorton Place 14, 316 NE Thorton Place, Seattle, WA 98125
AMC Pacific Place, 600 Pine Street, Seattle, WA 98101-1712

Book your tickets here: https://www.fathomevents.com/events/free-trip-to-egypt

ArabishWay Story Time/Circle Time - Kirkland Public Library
2019-06-11 10:30 - 11:00 | Kirkland Public Library, 308 Kirkland Ave, Kirkland, WA, 98033, United States
Join us for ArabishWay Story Time with Laila Taji on Thursday, June 11th from 10:30am-11am.
This half hour circle time will be full of Arabic stories, Arabic songs and Arabic games!
Laila Taji is an American of Palestinian heritage. She has an MPH in public health from the University of Washington and currently lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and two girls. She loved watching her kids blossom into readers but struggled to make that happen in Arabic since most books are complex and written in formal Arabic. She wrote These Chicks to give her kids an early Arabic reading experience and to connect them with their Arabic heritage.

These Chicks (هالصيصان) is a beloved nursery rhyme, well-known in the Levant; much like Hey Diddle Diddle in the States. This board book is ideal for toddlers, the easy-to-read Arabic print is perfect for blossoming Arabic readers and the English transliteration and translation aids non-Arab speakers or not-so confident Arabic readers.

World Language Story Time King County Library - Arabic
2019-06-10 11:00 - 11:30 | King County Library System – Redmond, 15990 NE 85th Street Redmond WA 98052, Redmond, WA, 98032, United States
World Language Story Times
Family program, all ages welcome.
Come for an interactive Story Time in Arabic that includes Early Literacy fun with books, songs and finger plays. Speakers of all languages welcome.
This event repeats every 2nd and 4th Monday of the month.
Sponsored by the Friends of the Redmond Library.

Arabic Story Time/أوقات قراءة القصة العربية

Monday, June 10, 2019 (11:00AM – 11:30AM)
Monday, June 24, 2019 (11:00AM-11:30AM)

Monday, July 8, 2019 (11:00AM – 11:30AM)

Monday, July 22, 2019 (11:00AM – 11:30AM)

Monday, August 12, 2019 (11:00AM – 11:30AM)
Monday, August 26, 2019 (11:00AM – 11:30AM)

World Language Story Time King County Library - Arabic
2019-06-08 13:00 - 13:45 | King County Library System – Tukwila, 14380 Tukwila International Boulevard, Tukwila, WA, 98168, United States
World Language Story Times
Ages 2 and older with adult.
Learn the Arabic alphabet and words through stories, songs and games.

This event occurs weekly!

This event is also offered on:

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, June 15, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, June 22, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, June 29, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 6, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 13, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 20, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 27, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Mideast Focus Film Series 2019 - Wajib
2019-06-07 19:00 - 21:00 | St Marks Cathedral, 1245 Tenth Avenue East, Seattle, WA, 98102-4398, United States
WAJIB
Palestinian architect Shadi, living in Rome, returns home to Nazareth to help his father deliver his sister’s wedding invitations. As they two men try to bridge the gap between their different lives, they rediscover the importance of finding “home” and community.
The Mideast Focus Ministry will offer its sixth series of films to promote understanding of the situation in Palestine. Our theme this year is “Finding Home”. We will consider various aspects of being a refugee, in Palestine, as well as many other places in this 21st century world. We hope to understand more about the experiences of refugees who seek to make a safe home for their families.

Poetry in Translation
2019-06-05 18:30 - 20:30 | Northwest Film Forum, 1515 12th Ave, 2, Seattle, WA, 98122, United States
** Curated in partnership with Claudia Castro Luna, Washington State Poet Laureate! **
The Poetry in Translation reading series showcases the literary traditions of Seattle’s immigrant and Native communities by sharing these groups’ poetry and song in their original languages and in their equivalent English translation. This quarterly series aims to inspire and broaden the city’s literary scene. It is a celebration of the poetries, literary traditions and cultural contributions these communities make toward Seattle’s quality of life.
This episode will feature multilingual readings by poets alongside video poem screenings.

Participating poets:

Lena Khalaf Tuffaha

Lena Khalaf Tuffaha is a poet, essayist, and translator. Her first book, Water & Salt (Red Hen Press) won the 2018 Washington State Book Award for Poetry. Her first chapbook, Arab in Newsland, won the 2016 Two Sylvias Press Prize. Her forthcoming chapbook, Letters from the Interior, will be published this fall. In 2017-18, she served as inaugural Poet-In-Residence at Open Books

and

Hanan Diriye

Hanan Diriye is a filmmaker, organizer, and poet.

Tickets available here: https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/4218899

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - What Walaa Wants
2019-06-05 16:00 - 18:00 | SIFF Cinema Uptown, 511 Queen Anne Ave N,, Seattle, WA, 98109, United States
SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) – What Walaa Wants (About Palestine)
Growing up in Balata, a refugee camp in the West Bank, Walaa dreams of being a police officer with the Palestinian National Authority, the entity governing the Palestinian territories. This documentary follows her progress over five years, from ages 15 to 21, as she pursues that goal. She’s got her work cut out for her; rebellious and headstrong, she is often at odds with those around her. She doesn’t adapt easily to the discipline of basic training or the tough love of her commanding officer. At home, a complicated relationship with her mother poses its own challenges (she was 7 when her mother was sent to prison, convicted of helping a would-be suicide bomber). And the outside world in which she lives her daily life is one of uncertainty, repression, and violence. But despite these obstacles, Walaa is tenacious; she is charting her own path and struggling to follow it. With remarkable access to her subject at home, at school, and at work, in interactions with family, friends, and colleagues, filmmaker Christy Garland tells the story of a young woman determined to take charge of her life.
— Justine Barda

Showtimes and locations can be found here: https://www.siff.net/festival/what-walaa-wants
Friday, May 17, 2019 – AMC Pacific Place, 1:30pm
Tuesday, June 4, 2019 – AMC Pacific Place, 9:30pm
Wednesday, June 5, 2019 – SIFF Cinema Uptown, 4pm

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - What Walaa Wants
2019-06-04 21:30 - 23:30 | AMC Pacific Place, 600 Pine St suite 400, Seattle, WA, 98101, United States

Seattle Arts and Lectures: Solmaz Sharif
2019-06-03 19:30 - 21:00 | Broadway Performance Hall, 1625 Broadway, Seattle, WA, 98122, United States
This is a reading by Solmaz Sharif.
Sharif is the author of the poetry collection LOOK, a finalist for the National Book Award and the PEN Open Book Award and the winner of the 2017 American Book Award for Poetry.
Sharif’s LOOK, asks us to see the ongoing costs of war as the unbearable loss of human lives and the insidious abuses against our everyday speech. In this virtuosic array of poems, lists, shards, and sequences, Sharif assembles her family’s and her own fragmented narratives in the aftermath of warfare. Those repercussions echo into the present day, in the grief for those killed in America’s invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, and in the discrimination endured at the checkpoints of daily encounter.

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - For Sama
2019-06-03 16:00 - 18:00 | SIFF Cinema Uptown, 511 Queen Anne Ave N,, Seattle, WA, 98109, United States
SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) – For Sama (Syrian Director, about Syria)
Winner of both the Audience Award and Grand Jury Award for Documentary at the 2019 SXSW Film Festival, For Sama stands as both a harrowing witness to the Syrian tragedy as it unfolded in Aleppo and a touching love letter from a mother to her young child. While the bombs are falling across her city, director Waad al-Kateab films her first-person diaristic letter to her recently born daughter Sama, uncertain she will survive long enough for Sama to know her mother outside of the videos she shoots. Unsparing in its details and unflinching in what it captures, al-Kateab’s work reveals the brutal impact of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad’s civil war, relaying its impact in palpably humanistic terms. Both in the home they share and at the hospital where Waad’s husband labors as a direct responder to those affected by the daily violence, al-Kateab’s camera captures the human cost of life under perpetual conflict more directly and powerfully than perhaps any other film since Five Broken Cameras. To quote Jordan Mintzer of The Hollywood Reporter, “The result is a series of deeply powerful images showing the human casualties of a war that most of us witnessed from our TV sets or computer screens.”

Director Biography
Waad Al-Kateab is a documentary filmmaker who became a citizen journalist in 2011, after protests broke out across Syria against the Assad regime. In 2016, she began documenting the Syrian conflict in a series of films titled “Inside Aleppo.” These news reports received almost half-a-billion views online, and won 24 awards, including the 2016 International Emmy for breaking news coverage. She and her family were eventually evacuated from Aleppo in 2016. For Sama is her first feature film. Edward Watts is an Emmy award-winning, BAFTA-nominated filmmaker who has directed over 20 narrative and documentary films that illuminate the resilience of the human spirit despite harrowing circumstances.

Showtimes and locations can be found here: https://www.siff.net/festival/for-sama
Sunday, June 2, 2019 – AMC Pacific Place, 6:30pm

Monday, June 3, 2019 – SIFF Cinema Uptown, 4pm

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - For Sama
2019-06-02 18:30 - 20:30 | AMC Pacific Place, 600 Pine St suite 400, Seattle, WA, 98101, United States
SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) – For Sama (Syrian Director, about Syria)
Winner of both the Audience Award and Grand Jury Award for Documentary at the 2019 SXSW Film Festival, For Sama stands as both a harrowing witness to the Syrian tragedy as it unfolded in Aleppo and a touching love letter from a mother to her young child. While the bombs are falling across her city, director Waad al-Kateab films her first-person diaristic letter to her recently born daughter Sama, uncertain she will survive long enough for Sama to know her mother outside of the videos she shoots. Unsparing in its details and unflinching in what it captures, al-Kateab’s work reveals the brutal impact of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad’s civil war, relaying its impact in palpably humanistic terms. Both in the home they share and at the hospital where Waad’s husband labors as a direct responder to those affected by the daily violence, al-Kateab’s camera captures the human cost of life under perpetual conflict more directly and powerfully than perhaps any other film since Five Broken Cameras. To quote Jordan Mintzer of The Hollywood Reporter, “The result is a series of deeply powerful images showing the human casualties of a war that most of us witnessed from our TV sets or computer screens.”

Director Biography
Waad Al-Kateab is a documentary filmmaker who became a citizen journalist in 2011, after protests broke out across Syria against the Assad regime. In 2016, she began?documenting the Syrian conflict in a series of films titled “Inside Aleppo.” These news reports received almost half-a-billion views online, and won 24 awards, including the 2016 International Emmy for breaking news coverage. She and her family were eventually evacuated from Aleppo in 2016. For Sama is her first feature film. Edward Watts is an Emmy award-winning, BAFTA-nominated filmmaker who has directed over 20 narrative and documentary films that illuminate the resilience of the human spirit despite harrowing circumstances.

Showtimes and locations can be found here: https://www.siff.net/festival/for-sama
Sunday, June 2, 2019 – AMC Pacific Place, 6:30pm

Monday, June 3, 2019 – SIFF Cinema Uptown, 4pm

meet James Beard Award nominee, Gab Taraboulsy at mBar
2019-06-01 20:00 - 23:00 | mBar, 400 Fairview Ave N, 14th Floor, Seattle, WA, 98109, United States
mbar is hosting an exclusive event! On June 1, 8pm, renowned director Gab Taraboulsy will be at mbar for a relaxed Q & A over drinks and snacks.
Gab’s latest full feature documentary, FUNKE, is screening at SIFF and was most recently reviewed in Forbes magazine. During this special event, Mbar will be silently screening FUNKE, and Gab’s previous project, MANOUSHE.
This beautiful cinematography and the Seattle skyline will set the tone for a casual and memorable experience.
Only 50 tickets will be released and can purchased for $50 each here.
#food #pasta #JamesBeard #arab #arabic #filmdirector
https://www.sevenrooms.com/events/mbarseattle

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - Funke
2019-06-01 15:00 - 17:00 | SIFF Cinema Uptown, 511 Queen Anne Ave N,, Seattle, WA, 98109, United States
SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) – Funke (Arab director)
n 2015, Evan Funke was one of the brightest stars on the American culinary scene. Bucato, his first critically lauded restaurant, served capacity crowds night after night. But when allegations of fraud and financial malfeasance forced its closure, Funke became persona non grata in the Los Angeles restaurant world. Director Gab Taraboulsy’s engrossing documentary portrait of the chef follows Funke as he embarks upon his comeback. Still healing from the emotional pain of his past failure, Funke struggles to balance his artistic aspirations with the rank commercial difficulties of opening his new trattoria, Felix, on the most competitive street for restaurants in America. His journey toward redemption sees him voyaging through the pasta schools of Bologna (to reconnect with his mentor, Alessandra Spisni), the culinary archaeological streets of Bari, and the obsessive laboratories of Tokyo as he reconnects with the best artisan pasta makers in the world. Throughout this journey, Taraboulsy delivers keen insight into the chef’s philosophy and intricate techniques as he handcrafts fresh, heirloom pastas that even the most avid Italian foodies may never have seen or tasted. Passionate and thoughtful, Funke is an ode to the art of pasta and a forthright look at the stark realities of the restaurant business.
— Dan Doody
Director Biography
Deeply passionate about the culinary world, Gab Taraboulsy has been unearthing stories, as a writer, director, and producer, in kitchens and restaurants all over the world. His documentary series “The Grill Iron” (2014) garnered a James Beard Nomination, and “Heritage” (2016) won a Webby Award for Best Documentary Series. Returning to Los Angeles’s competitive food scene, Funke (2018) is Taraboulsy’s documentary feature debut.
Sponsored by KIXI 880 AM, Princi, Punch Drunk
Showtimes and locations can be found here: https://www.siff.net/festival/funke
Monday, May 27, 2019 – Lincoln Square, 6:00pm
Friday, May 31, 2019 – AMC Pacific Place, 6:30pm
Saturday, June 1, 2o19 – SIFF Cinema Uptown, 3:00pm

World Language Story Time King County Library - Arabic
2019-06-01 13:00 - 13:45 | King County Library System – Tukwila, 14380 Tukwila International Boulevard, Tukwila, WA, 98168, United States
World Language Story Times
Ages 2 and older with adult.
Learn the Arabic alphabet and words through stories, songs and games.

This event occurs weekly!

This event is also offered on:

Arabic Story Time

Saturday, June 8, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, June 15, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, June 22, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, June 29, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 6, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 13, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 20, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Arabic Story Time
Saturday, July 27, 2019 (1:00PM – 1:45PM)

Kinan Azmeh's City Band at Town Hall
2019-05-31 19:30 - 21:30 | Town Hall, 1119 8th Ave, Seattle, WA, 98101, United States
Syrian Kinan Azmeh’s virtuosic quartet is known for deftly personalized high-energy performances that strive to balance classical music, jazz and traditional Syrian music.

Kinan Azmeh left his home city of Damascus to pursue a deeper understanding of his own musical voice—and today he has risen to international prominence as a clarinetist and composer. His ensemble, the Kinan Azmeh CityBand, joins us for the culminating performance of our Global Rhythms season. This virtuosic quartet is known for their deftly personalized high-energy performances featuring Azmeh’s expressive clarinet alongside Kyle Sanna’s rustic guitar, soaring over the dynamic and volatile backdrop of John Hadfield’s percussion and Josh Myers’ double bass. Join us for an unforgettable performance by this incredible group and experience Azmeh’s utterly distinctive balance of Western classical music with the Middle Eastern folk traditions of his homeland.
Kinan has appeared as soloist with the New York Philharmonic, the Seattle Symphony, the Bavarian Radio Orchestra, the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, the Qatar Philharmonic, and the Syrian Symphony Orchestra among others. Kinan is also a member of Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road Ensemble with whom he was awarded a Grammy in 2017, and he has shared the stage with Marcel Khalife, Aynur, Daniel Barenboim, and Jivan Gasparian, among others. The Kinan Azmeh CityBand quartet has toured the US, France, England, Germany, Holland, Egypt, Lebanon, and Turkey.
Presented by Town Hall Seattle as part of the Arts & Culture series.
Single tickets ($20/$15 for members) on sale now www.townhallseattle.org

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - Funke
2019-05-31 18:30 - 20:30 | AMC Pacific Place, 600 Pine St suite 400, Seattle, WA, 98101, United States

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - Tel Aviv on Fire
2019-05-31 15:30 - 17:30 | SIFF Cinema Uptown, 511 Queen Anne Ave N,, Seattle, WA, 98109, United States
SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) – Tel Aviv on Fire (Palestinian Director)
In this clever comedy from writer/director Sameh Zoabi, Salam is a hapless 30-something production assistant on his uncle’s TV show, a popular Palestinian soap opera called “Tel Aviv On Fire.” Set in 1967, just a few months before the start of the Six-Day War, the show is a huge hit with audiences on both sides of the divide. Things start looking up for Salam when an offhand remark impresses the show’s star and results in his promotion to writer. The promotion even impresses Miriam, Salam’s ex-girlfriend, whom he hopes to win back. Living in Jerusalem, he must pass through the Ramallah checkpoint every day to get to the studio. One day he’s interrogated by Israeli military commander Assi, whose wife just happens to be a huge fan of the show. Assi is full of ideas for improving the script (and impressing his wife), which works to Salam’s advantage—until Assi and the show’s producers want to take the story in distinctly different directions. With the season finale looming, it’s up to Salam to figure out a resolution that will keep everyone happy.
— Justine Barda
Director Biography
Sameh Zoabi was born in 1975 in Iskal, a Palestinian village near the city of Nazareth. He graduated from Tel Aviv University with a dual degree in Film Studies and English Literature before earning a Fulbright Fellowship to earn his MFA in Filmmaking from Columbia University in 2005. With films like Tel Aviv On Fire (2018), Zoabi seeks to invoke humor in difficult narratives, stating, “We talk about Palestine being a place that is very hard, but I always remember people laughing all the time.” In addition to filmmaking, Zoabi is an adjunct professor at NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Hunter College, and Columbia University’s MFA program, teaching courses in direction, production, and screenwriting.

Sponsored by Diageo Americas, Inc., The Fools
Showtimes and locations can be found here: https://www.siff.net/festival/tel-aviv-on-fire
Thursday, May 30, 2019, AMC Pacific Place, 7pm
Friday, May 31, 2019, SIFF Cinema Uptown, 3:30pm

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - Tel Aviv on Fire
2019-05-30 19:00 - 21:00 | AMC Pacific Place, 600 Pine St suite 400, Seattle, WA, 98101, United States

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - EXT. Night
2019-05-28 16:30 - 18:30 | AMC Pacific Place, 600 Pine St suite 400, Seattle, WA, 98101, United States
SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) – EXT. Night (Egyptian director, About Egypt)
The latest film from SIFF favorite Ahmad Abdalla (Microphone, Rags and Tatters, Decor) is an exploration of life in contemporary Cairo as seen through the eyes of three characters who come together for one 24-hour period. Moe is a film director, and the film opens on the set of his current project, which is in turmoil. His personal life is no better; his girlfriend has recently left him, and his novelist friend has been sentenced to prison for using “profound language” in his work. Heading across town to edit, he is picked up by taxi driver Mustafa, but due to Cairo’s notorious traffic, their progress is slow. They take a detour to Mustafa’s nephew’s place where they encounter Hala, a sex worker and one of Mustafa’s earlier fares. Together the three embark on a meandering journey around town which lasts the rest of the night, and takes the middle-class Moe into neighborhoods and circumstances that he might not otherwise experience, given Cairo’s social segregation. Class, gender, and religion all contribute to the shifting dynamics among the three characters, in this portrait of Egyptian society in the aftermath of the failed revolution.
Director Biography
Egyptian filmmaker Ahmad Abdalla studied music in Cairo before shifting his career to film editing in 2003. He directed his first feature film Heliopolis in 2009, one of the first independent Egyptian films to be released theatrically in Egypt, and his award-winning film Microphone (2010) was selected among the best 100 Arabic films in history by the Dubai Film Festival. After writing and directing Rags and Tatters (2013) and Decor (2014), both of which showed at SIFF, EXT. Night (2018) is Abdalla’s fifth feature film.
Sponsored by KING 5
Showtimes and locations can be found here: https://www.siff.net/festival/ext-night
Saturday, May 25, 2019, Lincoln Square, 8:30pm
Monday, May 27, 2019, SIFF Cinema Uptown, 8:00pm
Tuesday, May 28, 2019, AMC Pacific Place, 4:30pm

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - EXT. Night
2019-05-27 20:00 - 22:00 | SIFF Cinema Uptown, 511 Queen Anne Ave N,, Seattle, WA, 98109, United States

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - Funke
2019-05-27 18:00 - 20:00 | Cinemark Lincoln Square, 700 Bellevue Way NE, Bellevue, WA, United States

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - EXT. Night
2019-05-25 20:30 - 22:30 | Cinemark Lincoln Square, 700 Bellevue Way NE, Bellevue, WA, United States
SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) – EXT. Night (Egyptian director, About Egypt)
The latest film from SIFF favorite Ahmad Abdalla (Microphone, Rags and Tatters, Decor) is an exploration of life in contemporary Cairo as seen through the eyes of three characters who come together for one 24-hour period. Moe is a film director, and the film opens on the set of his current project, which is in turmoil. His personal life is no better; his girlfriend has recently left him, and his novelist friend has been sentenced to prison for using “profound language” in his work. Heading across town to edit, he is picked up by taxi driver Mustafa, but due to Cairo’s notorious traffic, their progress is slow. They take a detour to Mustafa’s nephew’s place where they encounter Hala, a sex worker and one of Mustafa’s earlier fares. Together the three embark on a meandering journey around town which lasts the rest of the night, and takes the middle-class Moe into neighborhoods and circumstances that he might not otherwise experience, given Cairo’s social segregation. Class, gender, and religion all contribute to the shifting dynamics among the three characters, in this portrait of Egyptian society in the aftermath of the failed revolution.
Director Biography
Egyptian filmmaker Ahmad Abdalla studied music in Cairo before shifting his career to film editing in 2003. He directed his first feature film Heliopolis in 2009, one of the first independent Egyptian films to be released theatrically in Egypt, and his award-winning film Microphone (2010) was selected among the best 100 Arabic films in history by the Dubai Film Festival. After writing and directing Rags and Tatters (2013) and Decor (2014), both of which showed at SIFF, EXT. Night (2018) is Abdalla’s fifth feature film.
Sponsored by KING 5
The latest film from SIFF favorite Ahmad Abdalla (Microphone, Rags and Tatters, Decor) is an exploration of life in contemporary Cairo as seen through the eyes of three characters who come together for one 24-hour period. Moe is a film director, and the film opens on the set of his current project, which is in turmoil. His personal life is no better; his girlfriend has recently left him, and his novelist friend has been sentenced to prison for using “profound language” in his work. Heading across town to edit, he is picked up by taxi driver Mustafa, but due to Cairo’s notorious traffic, their progress is slow. They take a detour to Mustafa’s nephew’s place where they encounter Hala, a sex worker and one of Mustafa’s earlier fares. Together the three embark on a meandering journey around town which lasts the rest of the night, and takes the middle-class Moe into neighborhoods and circumstances that he might not otherwise experience, given Cairo’s social segregation. Class, gender, and religion all contribute to the shifting dynamics among the three characters, in this portrait of Egyptian society in the aftermath of the failed revolution.
Showtimes and locations can be found here: https://www.siff.net/festival/ext-night
Saturday, May 25, 2019, Lincoln Square, 8:30pm
Monday, May 27, 2019, SIFF Cinema Uptown, 8:00pm
Tuesday, May 28, 2019, AMC Pacific Place, 4:30pm
