Reviewed by Jordan Elgrably

Natacha Atlas: live at the Skirball July 29, 2010In a mellifluous voice that was at once deep, soft, beautiful and strong, former Transglobal Underground vocalist Natacha Atlas brought her east-west repertoire back to Los Angeles on July 29. The cross-over artist performed in a free open-air concert at the Skirball Center that was supported by the L.A. County Arts Commission and the city's Department of Cultural Affairs. A star in parts of Europe and the Middle East, Natacha Atlas has a smaller following Stateside but certainly merits a broader audience, both among those who love world music and fusion, and others with a passion for female vocalists.

Dave Eggers' "Zeitoun": your purchase in part benefits Levantine Cultural CenterZeitoun (McSweeney's Books, 2009), so named for the surname of the main character, is a harrowing, nonfictional tale of biblical proportions—the crux of which takes place in New Orleans immediately following Hurricane Katrina.

Abdulrahman Zeitoun and his wife Kathy are practicing Muslims who own a busy painting company and numerous properties throughout New Orleans. Zeitoun is well-known and heavily utilized, especially at the first warnings of any storm, for in addition to the usual painting jobs his company is regularly called on for the preparatory securing of homes and offices. When Katrina arrives, he feels he cannot abandon the city during its time of crisis. He evacuates Kathy and their four children but is compelled to stay behind. Like a mini version of the flood story, his world is all but drowned. Rather than seeking the protection of an ark, however, this protagonist takes to a second-hand canoe.

Contact: Jordan Elgrably, Nile El Wardani, Elie Karam
Levantine Cultural Center
310.657.5511 or 310.402.8866

[Los Angeles, May 20, 2010] Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's top aide, Special Representative to Muslim Communities Farah Pandith, will speak in a public forum on cultural diplomacy organized by the Levantine Cultural Center on Thursday, May 27, 2010, at 7 pm at the Mark Taper Auditorium in downtown Los Angeles.

The "clash of civilization" dialectic and the "war on terror" discourse require Americans to broaden our international outreach, to improve understanding of the Arab/Muslim world. In fact, the alchemy of change requires that we empathize with narratives that may differ from our own; and sometimes these narratives are strikingly similar. Cultural diplomacy efforts use the arts to address communities in conflict-or groups that appear to have opposing interests whether because of different religious traditions, political beliefs or ethnic identification.

This past August, according to a CNN report, Nicholas George, a senior at Pomona College, was detained at the Philadelphia International Airport after the Transportation Security Administration found Arabic flashcards in his belongings. In February, George filed suit in federal court against the TSA, the Philadelphia Police Department, and the FBI for civil rights violations. This is not the first time a person has been profiled at an airport for carrying items written in Arabic and it will not be the last.

Arabic classes, Spring 2010Register Today To Learn Conversational Levantine or "Shami" Arabic Using Diverse Audiovisual Supplements Including Music and Film. Levantine conversational Arabic classes run in 10-week sessions, three hours per session.


Levantine 1—Beginners: Class meets Mondays, May 10-July 12, 2010, 7:00-10:00 pm (teacher: Tarek Souhaid)
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Levantine 2—Beginner-Intermediate: Class meets Wednesdays, May 12-July 19, 2010, 7:00-10:00 pm (teacher: Tarek Souhaid)
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