Tips from the culture desk: From Cairo Bats to ‘Miss or Mrs?’

As well as these four Cairo events to consider attending, there are a couple of ongoing exhibitions you could visit, including Randa Shaath's photography exhibition at Gypsum, Cimatheque's archival selection at Kafein, and Ahmed Nosseir's paintings and drawings at Nile Sunset Annex.

Cairo Bats Act 1: The Roof – opening Tuesday

Cairo Bats has been working together for two years and currently consists of artists Mai Al Shazly, Yvonne Buchheim, Magdalena Kallenberger, Hagar Masoud, Nadia Mounier and Omneia Naguib. They meet to stage photographs (see above) of their performatively playful interactions in semi-public spaces, in this case Cairo’s rooftops, with found objects and clothing items as props. For the first exhibition in its new twice-yearly series of Cairo-based collaborative art projects, the Contemporary Image Collective shows the first public exhibition of Cairo Bats’ photographs

Opening 7 pm, March 15, then open daily from 12am – 9pm, closed Fridays, until April 9. 5th floor, 22 Abdel Khalek Tharwat, downtown Cairo.

BuSSy’s Mademoiselle ou Madame? - Wednesday

This new performance created by gender-centered storytelling and documentation group BuSSy Monologues collects stories of and reflections on social issues faced by women. “Miss or Mrs?” is a common question asked of women, but men get asked their marital status far less. BuSSy’s previous performance, 500s – which focused on adolescents' stories – was halted at state-run Hanager Theater on Cairo’s Opera House grounds last year during the fourth edition of the independently run Hakawy International Arts Festival for Children. While technical issues were cited as the reason, BuSSy’s artistic director Sondos Shabayek told Mada Masr at the time that it was because a scene in the show discussed masturbation. BuSSy has a history of struggling with state theaters and censorship since their establishment in 2005, but their work is also well-crafted and entertaining.

7 pm and 9 pm pm, 16 March, Institut Français d'Egypte, Rue Madrasset Al Huquq el Frinseya, Mounira, Cairo. Tickets free, available just before the two performances. See Facebook event here.

Ibero-American Film Week - starts Wednesday

Zawya shows 16 recent films from 16 countries, including Spain, Portugal and South America. The program includes such offerings as Guatamala’s first Oscar submission, Jayro Bustamante’s Ixcanul (2015), in which a family of Mayan coffee farmers living on the side of an active volcano have their lives changed by an unexpected pregnancy; from Mexico, Diego Quemada-Diez’s gritty thriller, La jaula de oro, about four teens (played largely by non-professionals) taking a dangerous journey by train from Central America to the US; and Juan Carlos Maneglia and Tana Schémbori’s Cajas, a Paraguyan crime caper about a kid carrying seven mysterious boxes.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=5sKkw9_7lqQ

Zawya, behind Cinema Odeon, 4 Abdel Hamid Said, off Talaat Harb st. downtown Cairo. See the Facebook event for a full schedule here. Tickets LE25, online here or if you’re with Vodafone by calling 2121, or at the cinema.

‫Friday TokTok 14 release and book signing

Egypt’s first quarterly comics journal, Tok Tok, is back with its 14th issue, including artists Mohamed Shennawy, Mohamed Salah, Hagrasy, Tawfiq, Migo (with writer Mohamed Ismail Amin), Mada Masr’s own Andeel, and more.

7 pm, March 18, Institut Français d'Egypte, Rue Madrasset Al Huquq el Frinseya, Mounira, Cairo.