Miffed Egyptian opera house managers have banned Iraqi singer Kathem Al Saher from singing on their stages in both Cairo and Alexandria, complaining that the star has skipped their music festivals, according to news agencies.
The head of the Egyptian national cultural center, which runs the opera houses, told the AFP that “the house’s board of directors decided to put ban on the Iraqi singer Kathem Al Saher from singing on the stages of the opera house.”
Samir Farag attributed the ban to what he called the unjustified regrets sent by Saher for his failure to participate in the Arab music festival organized by the opera house every November.
“Saher sent his regrets for not being able to participate in this year’s festival due to his engagement in concerts in the US. This is, of course, untrue - particularly in view of the terrorist attacks in Washington and New York last September. We also discovered that he had held a concert on a princess' birthday,” added Farag.
He called Saher’s behavior an "incorrect evaluation of the status of an Egyptian national corporation and the most important Arab and African arts institution."
Saher, who is currently in Canada, is keen on pleasing his Egyptian audience. He performed two concerts, one for the song festival organized by the ministry of tourism, where the minister, Mamdouh Al Biltagi, knighted him in appreciation of his support for the festival. The second appearance was at the closing ceremony of the TV nights festival performed annually at the Roman stage in Marina, sources close to Saher in Amman told the Arabic daily Al Hayat.
They noted that Saher performed a free concert for the Arab music festival, and was honored by former Arab League secretary general Esmat Abdel Magid.
The paper said that Saher would meet with a number of officials at the opera house, but did not specify the agenda - Albawaba.com
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