Part of the Dubai Programme for Youth Theatre 2017

Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 20 December 2017:  Dubai Culture & Arts Authority (Dubai Culture), the Emirate’s dedicated entity for culture, arts and heritage, has announced the winner of the ‘Best Script Award’ in the Dubai programme for Youth Theatre, which celebrated its 11th successful edition in 2017. 

Dubai Culture confirmed that it received a total of 29 scripts submitted by both amateur and professional playwrights under this year’s competition theme — ‘Year of Giving 2017’. The winning script, ‘Hadiqat Al Khair’ by Abdullah Saleh Al Rumaithi, was chosen because of its excellent understanding and fulfilment of the competition’s criteria and theme. The winner was honoured by Dubai Culture’s Acting Director General Saeed Al Nabouda and a number of the Authority’s advisors.

The story of the winning script revolves around a garden owned by Abu Manal, a good man who lives there with his daughter, tends to his animals, and benefits from his home-grown fruits and vegetables. Due to a financial crisis, Abu Manal is forced to sell a large part of his garden; however, his daughter and her pets refuse to sell it and take on the buyer. They reach an agreement by which Abu Manal sells the garden’s products to alleviate the financial pressure on his family, and in the end, the garden returns to what it once was.

Fatma Al Jallaf, Manager of the Theatre Section at Dubai Culture, commented: 'This competition plays an important role in increasing the number of authors in the UAE’s theatre sector by offering them opportunities to put their work into action. The annual launch of this award is an open invitation to those who are passionate about writing theatrical texts and also helps us to discover and encourage theatre talent in our region. This year’s ‘Year of Giving 2017’ theme attracted an unprecedented number of entries as it caught the imagination of professional authors, university and school students, and the general public.'

Dubai Culture celebrated ten successful years of the Dubai Festival for Youth Theatre, which has become a leading platform for nurturing the most promising theatre talent in the UAE and the Gulf region, including directors, playwrights, actors, technical professionals and experts in costumes, lighting and make-up.

Dubai Culture aims to enhance Dubai’s cultural scene and draw attention to the Emirate’s rich heritage with a variety of initiatives that take place throughout the year. The Authority’s mandate is to build bridges of constructive dialogue between different civilisations and cultures through enriching initiatives that benefit the Emirate’s citizens, residents and visitors.