For Emirati playwright Saleh Karama Al Ameri, life is a symphony.
“My job is to listen and observe, then to interpret and let my imagination run with the stories,” he says. “I am not society’s conductor, but I want to be the one that listens well and forces others to hear this piece of music.”
Al Ameri has been listening for 15 years, and his views on society have become immortalised in 17 Arabic-language plays examining subjects ranging from human nature and the power of appearances, to the danger of adhering to the status quo and the value of human life.
“I am interested in human nature and I like to think philosophically; that’s how I write,” he says. “The pieces of the plays are all different, but the cornerstone is the human, so the plays are universal.”
Non-Arabic speakers will get a chance to enjoy one of his stories when his sociopolitical drama, Alms for the Poor, has its first staging in English from tonight until Saturday at the National Theatre in Abu Dhabi.
The 2013 drama, produced by Abu Dhabi-based theatre company Beyond the Veil, was written during a particularly prolific time for Al Ameri – it was one of five plays reflecting the societal changes happening in the region in the aftermath of the Arab Spring.
The idea for Alms for the Poor, Al Ameri explains, first presented itself in a cafe in Morocco in 2007.
“I was sitting in a beautiful, old cafe in Al Jadida, having some tea, when I saw a beggar come by,” he says, “I gave him a bit of money, and he said to me that it was too much. I told him it’s OK, take it, and then I saw him sit at one of the cafe’s tables and try to order a coffee. The waiter refused to serve him and kicked him out, and that just stayed in my head and grew.”
Alms for the Poor is the seventh of Al Ameri's plays to be translated into English. Three of them were directed by Zakaia Cvitanovich, founder of the Beyond the Veil theatre company
Al Ameri says that Cvitanovich is the perfect director to stage his plays in English.
"Zakaia understands me, I always trust my work in her hands," he says, after watching the dress rehearsal for Alms for the Poor last week. "Zakaia has an incredible imagination – it's different. A playwright is always worried. The play is like my child, and I was worried how it will be interpreted, but Zakaia gets me." His worry now is whether the audience will, in turn, understand what he is trying to say.
“When I write, I don’t do it to make my philosophy or message clear and out there. It’s hidden. It needs to be unearthed.”
Westerners, says Al Ameri, seem to appreciate his plays more than Arabs. “I feel like I am only recently becoming appreciated and respected in the Arab world,” he says. “But westerners and Europeans have been interested in my plays for much longer. I don’t know why.”
It’s a pity, he says, because when his plays are read and performed in the Arabic language, they have far more substance.
“The Arabic language is majestic, magical,” he says. “My messages are stronger in Arabic and my first love is theatre in Arabic.”
Al Ameri’s love affair with the theatre began at an early age. He cofounded the Etihad Theatre in Abu Dhabi in 1977 and has done everything from cleaning to working backstage on lighting and sets to acting in plays and directing them.
“It was my life,” he says. “I wasn’t ashamed of doing anything for the theatre. I even sold tickets and gave out pamphlets when we had a performance”.
This month, Al Ameri's plays have been published – in Arabic – in an anthology of his work, The Plays of Saleh Karama, edited by Dr Jawad Al-Assadi. "Jawad is my mentor, my teacher," he says. "He is a director as well, and has taught me so much. He has chosen 13 or 14 of my plays and published them in a book through the publishing house Dar Kanaan." Only 1,000 copies of the anthologies have been printed, and Al Ameri will distribute 200 of those to friends and family. He hopes to promote it at the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair next year.
A proud father of eight, Al Ameri is perplexed that none of his children caught the theatre bug. Then again, he understands such passion comes at a price.
“I cannot force this younger generation into a life in the theatre,” he says. “It’s a different world – you need to be ready to sell your soul to be a part of it, you need to be OK with making no money and living poor as I have. But this is what I have always wanted. I am convinced of the importance of it, and I love it.”
• Alms for the Poor will be performed at the National Theatre, 17th Street, Abu Dhabi, from tonight until Saturday. Tickets cost Dh50 for adults and Dh25 for students. For more information email beyondtheveilad@gmail.com
artslife@thenational.ae
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Kalra's feat
- Becomes fifth batsman to score century in U19 final
- Becomes second Indian to score century in U19 final after Unmukt Chand in 2012
- Scored 122 in youth Test on tour of England
- Bought by Delhi Daredevils for base price of two million Indian rupees (Dh115,000) in 2018 IPL auction
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
Korean Film Festival 2019 line-up
Innocent Witness, June 26 at 7pm
On Your Wedding Day, June 27 at 7pm
The Great Battle, June 27 at 9pm
The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion, June 28 at 4pm
Romang, June 28 at 6pm
Mal Mo E: The Secret Mission, June 28 at 8pm
Underdog, June 29 at 2pm
Nearby Sky, June 29 at 4pm
A Resistance, June 29 at 6pm
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
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Top financial tips for graduates
Araminta Robertson, of the Financially Mint blog, shares her financial advice for university leavers:
1. Build digital or technical skills: After graduation, people can find it extremely hard to find jobs. From programming to digital marketing, your early twenties are for building skills. Future employers will want people with tech skills.
2. Side hustle: At 16, I lived in a village and started teaching online, as well as doing work as a virtual assistant and marketer. There are six skills you can use online: translation; teaching; programming; digital marketing; design and writing. If you master two, you’ll always be able to make money.
3. Networking: Knowing how to make connections is extremely useful. Use LinkedIn to find people who have the job you want, connect and ask to meet for coffee. Ask how they did it and if they know anyone who can help you. I secured quite a few clients this way.
4. Pay yourself first: The minute you receive any income, put about 15 per cent aside into a savings account you won’t touch, to go towards your emergency fund or to start investing. I do 20 per cent. It helped me start saving immediately.
The specs
Price, base / as tested Dh135,000
Engine 1.6L turbo
Gearbox Six speed automatic with manual and sports mode
Power 165hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque 240Nm @ 1,400rpm 0-100kph: 9.2 seconds
Top speed 420 kph (governed)
Fuel economy, combined 35.2L / 100km (est)
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
The years Ramadan fell in May
more from Janine di Giovanni
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup – Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six
Power: 650hp at 6,750rpm
Torque: 800Nm from 2,500-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Fuel consumption: 11.12L/100km
Price: From Dh796,600
On sale: now
