Worlds of Words — Celebrating intercultural bilingualism at the Expo 2020 Dubai

DUBAI: A young man in love with a mermaid, a wealthy merchant who is greedy for more, and a mean stepmother who gets what she deserves, featured among the stories told at Expo 2020 Dubai’s UK Pavilion during ‘Worlds of Words’ on World Arabic Language Day.

The event, organised by the British Council, showcased intercultural bilingual performances by acclaimed storytellers from the UK, Lebanon, and Italy, who collaborated with a traditional Naham singer.

Aida Salamanca, British Council Country Director for the United Arab Emirates said the performances highlighted the importance of Arabic in human history: “It’s the language of the time. We have basically seen the development of humankind very connected to the Arabic language. We wanted to celebrate the legacy [and the] connection of cultures. We want everyone to feel proud of the legacy of the Arabic language.”

Connecting the three folkloric tales was the music and songs of Jumma Al Haddad, who, with his percussion instrument, played traditional tunes dating back to the days of pearl-diving in the UAE during the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries. 

Michael Harvey, an internationally award-winning storyteller from Wales, narrated the tale of the mermaid whose voice enchanted a young man who attempted — in vain — to win her heart.

Paola Balbi, an artistic director from Italy, told the story of a merchant, whose greed caused him to lose everything, a tale popular in Lebanon, Syria, and Palestine.

Sara Kasir from Lebanon narrated the traditional Bedouin story of the stepmother, whose misplaced love for material things ended with her opening a box of supposed treasures that contained a magical stick that beat and chased her.

Balbi said because the performers hailed from different countries, they had to work remotely via Zoom for two months. “We came here and for three days [and] we worked 10 hours a day to rehearse.”

Salamanca said the moral lessons of the stories share universal values: “Those are the same values, shared values [that] are not specific to any language or culture. This is what we wanted to highlight.”

Source: Expo 2020 Website