RUSTAM AND SOHRAB IN CZECH REP.
Rustam and Suhrab by Behrouz Gharibpour

PRESS TV, Iran
May 23 2007

A puppet opera rendition of Ferdowsi’s tragedy Rustam and Sohrab by
an Iranian playwright is to be staged in the Czech Republic.

Directed by Behrouz Gharibpour, the innovative play will be performed
at the closing ceremony of the 11th World Festival of Puppet Art
in Prague.

Rustam and Sohrab is based on a story from the Shahnameh, or Epic of
Kings, which was composed in the 10th century by the great Iranian
poet Ferdowsi.

Gharibpour describes the performance style of his drama as a
combination of marionettes and shadow puppets.

He also announced his repertoire of puppet operas – Rustam and Sohrab,
Macbeth and Leili and Majnoun – will be performed in the near future
with the support of the Roudaki Art and Culture Foundation as well
as the Dramatic Arts General Office.

One hundred puppets and 15 puppeteers will be used in the performance
of Rustam and Sohrab. The work’s composer, Armenian-Iranian Loris
Tjeknavorian, will conduct the music.

Gharibpour, a veteran of Iranian theater, has also been appointed as
the head of the jury of the international festival in Prague. This
is the third time he is chosen for the jury of the world-renowned
puppet festival.

The 10-day long World Festival of Puppet Art will commence May 26
with 40 performing groups from different countries.