We firmly
believe that art is the only real reflection of
nations and its people. The World Performing Arts
Festival began as a dream of The Rafi Peer Theatre
Workshop, to bring together artists from all over
the world to celebrate their art in the historic
city of Lahore. We wanted to expose the people
of Pakistan to the rich and diverse cultures of
the many different countries of the world and
at the same time promote culture and artistic
exchange between the artistic communities of the
world. For over three decades, the Rafi Peer Theatre,
as an independent body, has followed this dream,
making endless efforts against all kind of difficulties
and obstacles to turn this dream into reality.
Over the years, consistent efforts
and hard work has gone into making this Festival
possible. This Festival has brought a lot of
richness to the city of Lahore and at the same
time it has enriched all visiting artists who
have been a part of this festival.
Today the World Performing Arts
Festival is the largest Festival of its kind
in South East Asia. Enjoying overwhelming support
from diverse audiences, it is also one of the
leading events of Cultural and Artistic exchange
between the East and the West.
This year the festival will
feature more than 1000 performers hailing from
40 countries. Diverse musical genres such as
World Music, African, Rock, Pop, Folk, Jazz,
Sufi Soul, and Fusion would be presented in
this festival. Theatre traditions from varied
cultural origins would be on display. Performances
in both classical and modern Dance styles would
be conducted. Puppeteers from all over the world
will entertain and educate the audience with
their skill and creativity. An intensive Cinematic
experience will be delivered to the audience
through Feature Films, Short Films and Documentaries,
from different countries.
We
actively encourage and facilitate artistic collaborations
between artists from different countries. Artists
who have previously participated in the festival
have tremendously enjoyed holding joint performances
with Pakistani artists.
