One of Egypt's best-loved thespians is taking on a new role behind the scenes, reports Kamal Sultan The choice of Riad El-Kholi as director of the Theatre Art House (TAH), the top job in Egyptian theatre, has raised a few eyebrows. Is he going to be able to fill the boots once worn by the greats of Egyptian theatres, the likes of Salah El-Saqqa, Ahmed Zaki, Sami Khashaba, Mahmoud El-Heddini, Osama Abou Taleb, Ashraf Zaki and Tawfiq Abdel-Hakim? The answer is not yet known, but what we do know is that El-Kholi is already shaking things up quite a bit. Born in Menoufia in October 1950, El-Kholi studied acting and direction at the Higher Institute for Theatre Arts. After graduating in 1976 he pursued a career in acting until, in 2001, he was appointed director of the Comedy Theatre. He resigned from that post in 2007 to become director of the National Theatre, but had no time to stage any shows during his tenure as the theatre in question has been under renovation for the past two years. Some of El-Kholi's memorable stage appearances were in Weghat Nazar (Point Of View) and Mama Amrika with Mohamed Sobhi. He also played key roles in Min Yeshtri Ragel? (Who Buys A Man?) and Elnas Elli Fil Talet (The People On The Third Floor ). He is currently appearing in Moulid Sidi Al-Moreb (The Festival of Master Dreadful). In cinema, his CV is rather short. He acted in Al-Sada Al-Regal (Honourable Gentlemen), Gamal Abdel-Nasser, Tammat Aqwalu (Statement Taken) and a few other films. He has not made a film since Toyur a Al-Zalam (Birds of Darkness) with Adel Imam in 1995. Since then he has focused mainly on television, where he starred in Al-Farar Min Al-Hobb (Escaping Love), Dumu Al-Qamar (Tears Of The Moon), and Gesr Al-Khatar (Bridge Of Danger). El-Kholi is very selective about what he does. He always plays interesting roles, regardless of how short they might be. You may recall his brief but impressive appearances in Qadiyat Rayy Amm (Public Opinion Issue) with prominent actress Yussra, or his role as Gamal Abdel-Nasser in Umm Kalthoum. I ran into El-Kholi backstage in Moulid Sidi El-Moreb. When I asked him about his new job, he mentioned that it was Ashraf Zaki who proposed his name for the post. "And yet there are some people who are trying to drive a wedge between us, through comparing my style of management with his," he said. "Zaki is a brave man and a fighter, while I prefer to start on firm ground. I like to base my dreams on reality. El-Kholi intends to run the TAH in a decentralised manner, with every theatre director given a free hand in running his theatre, and with assessments left until the end of the season. "Some of my artist colleagues come to me with plays to produce at the TAH, and I tell them to go to the theatre directors." He argues that decentralisation is the best way to motivate directors. "I believe that theatre directors have great ideas. We're already planning big shows with big stars," he says. In the near future Raghda is to star in Belqeis Malekat Sabaa (Beiqeis, Queen of Sheba), written by Mahfouz Abdel-Rahman and directed by Ahmad Abdel-Halim. Samiha Ayyub will star in Kan Fi Wahda Sitt (There Once Was a Woman). Yousri El-Guindi has written two plays that are currently in production, and Nour El-Sherif is being asked to appear in Hafla Tanakkuria (Costume Party) directed by Hesham Gomaah. "My plan is to increase theatre venues, either by modernising old theatres or renting new ones," El-Kholi says. Asked about the worst problem facing theatre today, El-Kholi says that stars are reluctant to act on stage because television drama is much more lucrative. "It is becoming very hard to get the big stars to act for the stage. I was hoping to get Mohamed Sobhi to cooperate with us, but unfortunately, we couldn't reach a deal." Theatres are finding it increasingly hard to compete with the dazzling capabilities of satellite stations or the immense technological flair of film, he says. "This problem is not confined to the state-run theatre. The private theatre is suffering as well. There are only two private theatres still open, those of Adel Imam and Samir Ghanem, and they don't work every day of the week." Egypt used to have more than 12 private theatre groups in operation. Now most of these are gone, but El-Kholi is thinking of ways to reverse the trend. "I think that the solution is for theatre to keep up with the technological advancement one sees in cinema and on satellite television. I believe that the theatregoers are still there. We held a celebration for modern theatre on the closing night of the Cairo Film Festival, and a lot of people showed up, people like Samiha Ayyub, Ezzat El-Alayli, Mohamed Riyad, Layla Taher and Gamal Abdel-Nasser." El-Kholi says he agreed with the Cairo governor about reorganising Ataba Square so as to allow for easy access for the Talia Theatre, the Puppet Theatre and the National Theatre. This will be completed by next May, the date set for the reopening of the National Theatre. Once an actor, always an actor; El-Kholi intends to continue acting while performing his duties as TAH director. "I will not allow my administrative work to affect my art. I am at heart an actor and I will try to manage my time and do both things. But I may stop accepting theatre parts for a while, so as not to be accused of abusing my position."
