Actors honored in theater celebration
Veteran Iranian director Hamid Samandarian lighted some candles on the stage before the beginning of the ceremony, which was part of the week-long Theater Forum festival currently underway in Tehran.
“Lighting the candles symbolically means that we are in darkness, and I don’t know yet how much I should strive to remove this darkness, which is not caused by artists,” Samandarian said.
“The theater is our home, and we should never get angry if we face low-level performances, because the weakness results from the ruling conditions, and it’s clear that artists are not responsible for the problem,” he added.
“I would like our voice to be heard by the officials so that they might consider paying attention to all fields of art, and particularly the theater. We, Eastern people, are extremely talented in the various arts, and our country should provide us with suitable opportunities,” he noted.
The ceremony continued with a ballet-like performance from a troupe directed by Farzaneh Kaboli, and afterwards the presentation of awards began.
The best first actor award was given to Reza Behbudi for his roles in “Calmness from Another Kind” and “Walking on the Clouds with Closed Eyes”.
Masumeh Qasemipur was awarded the best first actress prize for her role in “Without Good-Bye”.
Pantea Bahram was presented with the best second actress prize for her role in “Afghan Oedipus”, and “Death of the Seller” earned the best second actor prize for Payam Dehkordi.
Nahid Moslemi won the best third actress award for her role in “The Moon on the Water” while Mohammadreza Jowzi received the same award for men for his role in “Oleanna”.
The festival jury gave the best teen actor award to Sheida Khaliq for her role in “Arus Khanom Production”, and Hamid Mozaffari received the special jury award for his role in “The Mysterious Song”.
The 4th Annual Festival of Theater Forum will end on May 4.