After three years preparation and a ten million dollars budge, the Kennedy center for the performing Arts, kicked started its Arabesque Festival; Arts of the Arab World. The opening was a grandiose and a colorful affair. Many members of the  Moroccan American Community were present at the opening Gala.
The Kennedy center went out of its way to include the Moroccan American community, as well as other communities from the 22 countries featured in the festival, by including the “Washington Moroccan Club”, “friends of Morocco” among other community organizations that were active in helping to make the festival a success. MoroccoBoard was on hand to cover the events.

The opening show included a 120-member children choir from Syria, Bachir Attar & the Master Musicians of Jajouka from Morocco, Qatar symphony orchestra and Marcel Khalifé and Al Mayadine Ensemble.
Morocco contribution to the festival comprises the following performers: Khalid Benghrib Dance Co. (Morocco), Chabab Al Andalous Rabat Orchestra with Mohammed Bajeddoub and Bahae Ronda,  Bachir Attar & the Master Musicians of Jajouka (Morocco), Bnet Houariyat , and hip hop band the Hoba Hoba Spirit .
“ in the following three weeks, we will have more Morocco related events than what we would have, normally, in a single year” said Tim Rush, president of friends-of-Morocco who was garbed in his Moroccan gandoura with a black bow tie.

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Speaking Of Moroccan culture in the US, Washington Moroccan Club Members took advantage of Moroccan Culture Minister, Ms. Touria Jebran, Presence in Washington, DC for a couple of days, and organized a lunch meeting with her, where ideas and future projects relating to Morocco's Cultural activities in the states were broached.
The one piece of information related by the minister that was of particular interest, was that the Morocco Cultural House Project "Maison Du Maroc" was finalized in Spain and similar projects are in the pipeline in Brussels and Paris, among other cities.
She also related that in some countries, community members would make a piece of Land available for "maison du maroc" project, the MRE Ministry would take charge of executing the project and the cultural ministry would work to animate the center.
This raised a host of interesting questions relating to the Moroccan American Community. Would it be able to coordinate and work on a similar project in a major city, here, such as Washington, NYC , Chicago,..etc ?

MoroccoBoard News Service

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