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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Jordan Elgrably 323.650.7010
“TO BAGHDAD WITH LOVE” UNITES AMERICANS AND MIDDLE EASTERNERS IN A GALA CELEBRATION OF THE REGION JULY 13
[Los Angeles, June 24, 2003] Such diverse talents as comedian/actor SANDRA BERNHARD, world music artist HASSAN HAKMOUN, Palestinian diva WOROUD and Beirut’s own ELIE CHOEURI, along with other guest performers, unite under the Levantine Cultural Center banner to send a “love letter” to Iraq and surrounding countries. Bernhard, whose provocative satire seduced Broadway in “I’m Still Here Damnit,” will perform a comedy sketch with celebrity emcee SOUMAYA AKAABOUNE about a Jewish woman in a Moroccan bathhouse. Hassan Hakmoun, known for the driving rhythms of his bass-like sintir and world music collaborations with such artists as Peter Gabriel and Don Cherry, offers up a feast of Moroccan and African sounds, while the BOUCHAIB ABDELHADI Ensemble performs radiant rhythms of the Maghreb. The YUVAL RON ENSEMBLE adds Bedouin, Israeli, Turkish and other regional grooves.
“Many Americans of all origins are very concerned about what has been happening in Iraq,” says Jordan Elgrably, the Center’s director. “This gala event is part of a larger effort to reconceive the way we relate to the region.” Says board member Jawad Ali, “Our work as artists and organizers is to galvanize diverse communities to widen our relationship to culture, politics, art and to our complex identities. The ‘Levantine’ proposal is a pan-cultural conversation—beyond borders, passports and dogma.”
Woroud is a young virtuoso vocalist from a small town near Jenin, Palestine who sings in the mawal style (Fairuz, Om Khoulthum); Elie Choueri is one Lebanon’s best-loved singers, in the style of a Cheb Mami; Bouchaib Abdelhadi is a multi-instrumentalist (oud, Moroccan violin, percussion) and vocalist of Middle Eastern and North African traditions such as al-Âla (Andalusian) and chaabi (“popular” including rai). Hassan Hakmoun is an international star who musically crosses back and forth into jazz/cerebral pop/world music genres. Yuval Ron is an Israeli-born composer and oudist who has worked with such greats as Omar Faruk Tekbilek and Yair Dalal. Soumaya Akaaboune has performed in many international films as well as on Broadway and in an HBO comedy special with Sandra Bernhard, who has been a challenging and critically-acclaimed performer for 25 years.
Sunday, July 13, 7 pm, Veterans Memorial Auditorium, 4117 Overland Ave. at Culver Blvd. Tix $50, $35, $25, $20. Call the Levantine Box Office, 323.650.7010. Visit www.levantinecenter.org for details. For photos, interviews and ticket give-aways, contact Jordan Elgrably, 310.415.1971.