TEHRAN – The Iranian puppet show “Kadu Zari” was honored with a special award during the celebration of World Theater Day in Tehran last Sunday.

Tehran Times Art Desk

Directed by Mohammad Aalami, the play centers on a childless farmer couple who adopts a pumpkin (Kadu) as their child but they are surprised when they find out the pumpkin can speak.

The ceremony, held in Iran for the first time, was held at the Honar Hall and attended by a large number of theatrical figures.

Hamed Modarres and Fatemeh Khodabandehlu were honored as the best actor and actress, while the best stage designer award went to Sina Yeylaqbeigi.

Stage director Fariba Daliri and playwright Hadi Hassanali were honored, while costume designer Roshanak Karimi and composer Abdollah Atashani were also among the honorees of the first celebration.

In addition, veteran director and actor Maryam Kazemi was honored as one of the most influential theatrical figures of the country.

The ceremony was followed by live music performances. Children’s book writer Hushang Moradi Kermani and theatrical figures Reza Babak, Marzieh Borumand, Davud Kianian and Hossein Moheb Ahari were seen among the participants.

The secretary of the celebration, organized by the Tamashagan Dramatic Arts Institute, was the screen and stage actor Hamid Jebelli.

World Theater Day is the creation of the International Theater Institute (ITI). It is celebrated annually on March 27th by ITI Centers and the international theatrical community. Various national and international theatrical events are organized to mark this occasion.

Each year an outstanding figure in theater, or a person who is outstanding in heart and spirit from another field, is invited to share his or her reflections on theater and international harmony.

The theatrical figure Hengameh Mofid was the Iranian author of the message of the World Theater Day this year. The author of the Message of World Theater Day 2016 was the Russian stage director Anatoli Vassiliev.

Photo: A scene from “Kadu Zari”

RM/YAW
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