An Evening of French Art Songs & Their Poems*

11 September 2024

Marking the opening of the Cairo Opera Company Artistic Season 2024-2025, the Cairo Opera House hosts three concerts titled “French Art songs and Their Poems”. The first and second concerts are held at the Small Hall on Friday, 13 September 2024 at 8:30 p.m., and on Saturday, 14 September 2024 at 2 p.m. The third concert is held at the Alexandria Opera House “Sayed Darwish Theatre” on Friday, 20 September 2024 at 8:30 p.m.
Accompanied on piano by Greig Martin and directed by Hisham El Tally, the concert’s program features selections of notable French Art songs and their poems, such as “Demain dès l'aube” (Tomorrow at Dawn) by Victor Hugo, “La Laitière et le Pot au Lait"  (The Maid and the Milk Jar), ”Le rat des villes et le rat des champs” (The City Mouse and the Country Mouse), “Le Renard et les Raisins” (The Fox and the Grapes), ”Le Corbeau et le Renard” (The Crow and the Fox) by Jean de La Fontaine, ”Sous le pont Mirabeau” (Under the Mirabeau Bridge) by Guillaume Apollinaire,”Chevaux de bois” (Wooden Horses) by Paul Verlaine, “Les Matelots” (The Sailors) by Théophile Gautier, and “Le Carnavaldes animaux”(The Carnival of the Animals) by Camille Saint-Saëns. These songs are performed by Cairo Opera Company stars including Dalia Farouk, Reda El Wakil, Mona Rafla, Jacqueline Rafik, Ramez Lebbad, Nourseta El Marghany, Laila Ibrahim, Mostafa Medhat, Khaled Samir, and Salma El-Gebaly, with Amr Medhat performing “Sunset” by J. V. Almas at Alexandria Opera House. The poems and songs are presented in both French and Arabic.
The Cairo Opera Company was officially founded in 1964 and has a vast repertoire that includes more than 32 opera productions. Members of the Company performed notable roles at the most prestigious venues worldwide. Through years of dedication and diligence, the Cairo Opera Company succeeded in amassing a fan base of opera enthusiasts and music lovers.