Music, theatre, film and dance share one day at Karachi’s World Culture Festival

The fourth day of Karachi’s World Culture Festival packed a whole season’s worth of art into a single Sunday. It opened with a quiet morning masterclass, moved through a one-woman play from Uruguay, a Pakistani film screening and an open-mic session, and closed with dancers from six countries sharing one stage — and the audience at the Arts Council of Pakistan, Karachi, stayed with it all the way.

A morning spent on strings
The day began with “VIOLA & CELLO”, a musical masterclass led by ALIF DUO: South Korean cellist Suelki Lee and French viola player Antonin Le Faure, both now based in the UAE. They walked participants through the technical side of the violin, viola and cello, and through the principles of Western classical harmony. It was the kind of session that rewards the people in the room twice over — first as listeners, then as students.

The festival’s first play: “Chicha” from Uruguay
The first stage play of this year’s festival arrived the same day. “Chicha”, by Uruguay’s Grieta Teatro, is a solo physical-theatre piece performed by Betina Andarina. In about 45 minutes it used music, body movement and memory to work through human emotions, silence and stories from the past — funny in places, quietly affecting in others, and a reminder of how much one performer can carry without a word of scenery.

“Wakhri”, an open mic, and a flute that stole the afternoon
In the evening, the Pakistani feature film “Wakhri”, directed by Iram Parveen Bilal and starring Faryal Mehmood, played to a large audience. Afterwards the director joined a Q&A by video link while producer Abid Merchant answered questions in person. Earlier, the open-mic session in the Jaun Elia lawn had drawn young musicians, most of them singing Atif Aslam songs. The performance people kept talking about, though, came from a young man named Karim, who is learning guitar at the council’s music department but impressed everyone with his flute playing.

Dancers from six countries close the day
The day ended with “Beats Galore”, a dance showcase featuring Valerie Green from the USA, Josh Middleton and Rebecca Solomon from the UK, Away Runakuna from Ecuador, Cia Livre de Dança da Rocinha from Brazil, Sherene Joseph from Singapore, and Tina Zubovic with SOVAPA students from Croatia. The auditorium stayed packed, and the applause kept coming. The “Crossfade” musical programme, with artists from Japan, France, Pakistan and Serbia, filled out a day that showed what this festival is for. Running from 29 October to 22 November, it brings together more than 1,000 international artists from over 150 countries alongside more than 500 Pakistani artists, across theatre, music, dance and visual arts. Entry is free, with registration required.