Main Page «
Front Page «
Metro «
Business «
International «
Sports «
National «
Editorial «
Op-Ed «
Home «
Letters «

Archive «
Launch Supplement «
Special Supplements «

A two-week national theatre festival will begin at the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy in the city on March 5.
   Eminent educationist Professor Zillur Rahman Sidiquee will inaugurate the festival at 7:00pm on the day while noted actress Ferdousi Mazumder will be present as special guest.
   A total of 46 theatre groups from across the country will stage plays at the Jatiya Natyashala and Experimental Theatre Hall during the festival, which will end on March 23.
   A briefing was held on Saturday. Convenor of the festival, Keramat Mawla, president of the Bangladesh Group Theatre Federation, M Hamid, secretary of the federation Jhuna Chowdhury, noted actor Liaquat Ali Lucky, Hafizur Rahman Suruj, Prabir Sarkar, Akhtaruzzaman of the organisation were present on the occasion and informed the media about the festival.
   The speakers said that we are giving priority to stage the new plays, so that the audience can enjoy and get idea about the new productions of the theatre groups both in and outside Dhaka. ‘We will also prefer the plays, which are based on the story of country’s war of independence,’ they added.
   They further informed the reporters that the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy is not taking any charge for the auditoriums. ‘This co-operation will help us a lot. On the other hand, we also involve the government organisations in the arrangement of this sort of national programme,’ they added.
   ‘We hope to arrange the festival in every two years. We have also plans to arrange a drama festival with the plays from south Asian countries, they added.
   Among the noted plays –––‘Samayer Prayajan’ by Theatre Art Unit; ‘Raja-Rani’ by Kanthashilan; Mandar by Prachyanat; Chilekothar Sepai by Udichi of Dhaka; ‘Ekhono Mirzafar’ by Bahurupi Natya Sangstha of Mymensingh; ‘Mahabidya’ by Chattala Theatre of Chittagong; Chena Gayer Kichchha by Anushilan Natyadal of Rajshahi; ‘Dhibar Gadha’ by Natyalok of Sirajganj; ‘Neel Mayurer Jouban’ by Shabdabali Group Theatre of Barisal and others will be staged.
   Everyday the play will begin at 7:00pm.

A total of 45 music students of the Omni School of Music received certificates on piano, violin, guitar and drums. The organisation handed over the certificates at a function held at its premises on Friday.
   Ambassador and head of delegation of European Commission to Bangladesh, Dr Stefan Frowen was present as chief guest while founder member of the band group Feedback, Fuad Naser Babu and chairman of the Omni School of Music Neo G Mendes were also present and spoke at the function.
   13 students received certificates on piano while 8 on violin, 14 on guitar and 10 on drums. Later, the winners perform at the function.

Marking Independence Day, a debate competition comprising the students of the sixteen colleges began at the Bashundhara Garden City, said a release. Chairman of the ATN Bangla, Mahfuzur Rahman inaugurated the event on Saturday.
   Saiful Bari and Nawazish Ali Khan of the channel and chairman of the Debate for Democracy also spoke.
   Sixteen schools comprising Viqurunnisa Noon College, Residential Model College, Holly Cross College, BAF Shaheen College, Rajuk Uttara Model College, Dhaka Commerce College, Birshreshtha Munshi Abdur Rouf Rifles’ College and other institutions are participating at the competition.
   The subject of the debate in the preliminary segment features Palashir astamita surja ajo udita hoyni, Narira ajo swadhinata payni, bartaman prajanmer bhabisyat alokita and others.
   Two competitions were held on Saturday and Birshreshtha Munshi Abdur Rouf Rifles’ College and Holly Cross College have been selected to compete at the next round of the competition.
   Professor Ainun Nishat, Dr ASM Atiqur Rahman and Shamim Hamid were present as jury in the opening day.
   The event, planned and produced by Hasan Ahmed Chowdhury and Tashik Ahmed respectively, will be aired on ATN Bangla twice a week, said the organiser.

Rock group Muse have been named best British band at this year’s NME Awards.
   The Arctic Monkeys scooped two awards on the night, including best album for Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not and best music DVD.
   US group My Chemical Romance won best international band, while Jamie T picked up best solo act at the ceremony at the Hammersmith Palais in London.
   The award for best new band went to The Klaxons and Kasabian took home the gong for best live act.
   There were also wins for The Killers and The View in the best video and best single categories.
   The Reading and Leeds Festivals won best live event and cult BBC Three comedy The Mighty Boosh took best TV show.

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation said Friday it has found a Norman Rockwell painting, “Russian Schoolroom,” which was stolen in 1973, in the home of film director Steven Spielberg. But the entertainment industry mogul is not a suspect.
   The painting was stolen from a Norman Rockwell exhibit in Clayton, Missouri, and did not surface until 1988, when it was sold at auction in New Orleans, Louisiana, the FBI said.
   In 2004, FBI agents determined that the painting had been advertised for sale at a Norman Rockwell exhibit in New York in 1989.
   While they followed leads, Spielberg’s staff saw an FBI theft notice and realized that the painting, which in the meantime had found its way into the film director’s collection, had been stolen.
   Spielberg’s staff immediately brought the painting’s current location to the FBI’s attention, officials said.