On November 27, there was a presentation of the album “Kurdish Theater in Georgia“ produced with the support of the Open Society Foundation.
The trilingual album (Kurdish, Georgian, English) was prepared by the Kurdish-Georgian Socio-Cultural Platform with the aim of showcasing Kurdish theatrical art, introducing Kurdish / Yezidi cultural identity to a wider audience, and promoting the participation of the Kurdish community in public life.
The album is interesting for any community or ethnic group living in Georgia because it tells us not only about the theater and its past life, but also about the daily life, customs, and traditions of the Kurdish / Yezidi community. It includes old theater posters, programs, reviews, photographs from theater’s life, photographs with Yezidi symbols, and other material.
The group of authors of the album obtained the publication materials in the Georgian National Museum, in the archives, in the personal archives of the Kurdish theater actors living in different countries and their relatives. Among them, important materials were found in the personal archives of the famous Kurdish journalist, public figure, orientalist Kerim Ankosi.
The publication will be distributed in public, educational, university libraries, in minority communities, and will also be sent to Kurdish / Yezidi communities living abroad. The project is also planned to be published in the cities of Georgia where the Kurdish community lives relatively compactly – in Telavi and Batumi.
At the presentation, artist Katie Matabeli presented dolls dressed in Kurdish national costumes. The event also featured an exhibition of photographs and commemorative cards depicting Kurdish theatrical life, featuring a sketch depicting a typical Yezidi family including their traditions and present-day life.
“Protecting the identity of ethnic minorities remains one of the challenges in the country, therefore, our project addresses his issue and we hope that it will make a significant contribution to making active participation the Kurdish / Yezidi community in public life and bringing it closer to the general public,” – Keti Khutsishvili, Open Society Foundation.
