Arab Poets Flock to Emirati Capital Abu Dhabi

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Arab Poets Flock to Emirati Capital Abu Dhabi

At Al Raha Beach Theatre, and from the 31st of January and until the 2nd of February, the Emirati capital, Abu Dhabi, will be hosting 300 poets from 29 countries for direct interviews with members of the jury. The interviews will run over three days to finally yield a selection of the best poets who will take part in the most viewed TV programme of classical Arabic poetry. After achieving significant success in the previous five seasons, the Prince of Poets, in its 6th season, is eagerly awaited by the lovers of eloquent poetry in the Arab world.

The Cultural Programs and Heritage Festivals Committee - Abu Dhabi announced that the participants in the direct interviews had been nominated from among thousands of poets who applied to take part in the competition.

After the process of sorting and evaluation, the best poets were selected, according to strict standards that were previously announced. During the direct interviews, the members of the jury will choose the poets who will take part in the different live episodes of the TV programme, the Committee said.

During the mentioned period, poets, who are residents of the United Arab Emirates, can directly access Al Raha Beach Theatre to be interviewed by the jury members, according to the terms and conditions that were previously announced.

The Committee noted that the countdown for the launch of the Prince of Poets programme had already started since the end of the process of sorting and evaluation in last December.

The poems that were submitted for participation do reflect the high level of competition that will be witnessed during the current season. These poets have come from different parts of the world, with their eyes set on the title. They are flocking to Abu Dhabi, the capital of culture, enlightenment, poetry and creativity, to take part in the biggest competition of classical Arabic poetry in the world, the Committee added.

Director of the Poetry Academy at the Cultural Programs and Heritage Festivals Committee - Abu Dhabi, Mr. Sultan Al Amimi noted that the members of the jury, who are known for their credibility and extensive experience in poetry reading and analysis as well as literary criticism, will take on the heavy responsibility of evaluating the poets.

The interviews will bring to light some fine and excellent talents of gifted poets who may not obtain the approval of the jury. Their participation in the direct interviews is an honour in itself as it comes after a strict selection from among thousands of candidates. Before this competition, these exceptional voices, who have come to represent Arab nations from the East and the West, were invisible on the scene of Arabic poetry. The Prince of Poets comes to give them voice and visibility in the whole region and beyond, Amimi added.

The 300 poets who were selected for direct interviews with the jury members come from different Arab and foreign countries, namely: The UAE, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Palestine, Jordan, Algeria, Sudan, Yemen, Morocco, Tunisia, Lebanon, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Mauritania, Eritrea, Saudi Arabia, Canada, Iran, Libya, Mali, India, Senegal, Belgium, Guinea, Niger, Chad, and Kazakhstan.

Considered as one of the most influential TV programmes in the Arab region, the Prince of Poets is inspired by the entrenched Arab heritage. It aims at restoring great works of poetry and literature. The programme also seeks to revive the Arab cultural heritage while stimulating creative production on the contemporary poetry scene in the Arab region.

The previous season of the Prince of Poets was broadcast over 10 weeks (May- June - July 2013). The Prince of Poets is organised every two years alternately with the Millions Poet which had brought the curtain down on its last season in May, 2014.

In June 2013, Egyptian poet Alaa Janib won the title of the Prince of Poets in its 5th season, receiving a Burda (a cloak) symbolising Arab heritage and a ring denoting a prince. The winner of the 4th season was the Yemeni poet Abdul Aziz Al Zarai. Other winners are Syrian Hassan Baiti (3rd season), Mauritanian Sidi Mohamed Ould Bamba (2nd season), and Emirati Abdul Kareem Maatoug (1st season).

Launched in 2007 as an annual mega cultural event in the Arab region, the Prince of Poets usually comes to a close with the announcement of the winner of the title. Over 5 seasons, the Prince of Poets has succeeded in revealing up to 145 talented poets, aged between 18 and 48 years old.

The Prince of Poets TV programme has recently received Al Owais Award for Creativity (2014) for the category of the Best Local Cultural TV Programme. In 2009, the Prince of Poets was awarded two prestigious prizes in the field of television production, both at the Arab and international levels. The programme was picked as the Best Creative Programme at the British A.I.B Festival. And with the participation of hundreds of Arab TV productions, the Prince of Poets has also received the Golden Award as the Best TV Programme at the Gulf Radio and TV Production Festival in Bahrain.

Prizes:

In addition to the Burda, the gown which represents the Arab historical heritage and the ring which stands for the title of the Emirate, the cash value of the top prize received by the winner of the Prince of Poets title is AED 1 million. The holder of the second position gets AED 500,000, the third AED 300,000, the fourth AED 200,000 and the fifth AED 100,000. The Organising Committee of the Competition also sponsors the publishing of printed and audio poetry collections authored by winning poets.

Winners of the Previous Seasons of the Prince of Poets:

First Season:

1 - Prince of Poets: Karim Matoug - UAE.

2 - Mohamed Ould Taleb - Mauritania.

3 - Jassim Al Sahih- Saudi Arabia.

4 Rawdha Al Haj - Sudan.

5 - Tamim Al Barghouti - Palestine.

Second Season:

1 - Prince of Poets: Sidi Ould Bamba - Mauritania.

2 Mohammed Ibrahim Yacoub - Saudi Arabia.

3 Ahmed Bakhit - Egypt.

4 Muhannad Sari - Jordan.