Cabaret Crusades Trilogy

Wael Shawky in his Cabaret Crusades skillfully juxtaposes historical narrative with the childish world of puppetry—seriousness with naivety, fear with humor, horror with entertainment—to focus on events crucial to the development of an Arab identity. While prior to the Crusades different groups coexisted more or less peacefully, the trauma of the European invasions shaped today's familiar dichotomies—East and West, Christianity and Islam, Shi’ism and Sunni’ism. At first sight a history lesson for children, the project ultimately raises important questions about the historicity of identity and consequently the role of history itself.

• Wael ShawkyDirector

Release date

December 1, 2013

Status

Released

Original language

English

Runtime

2h 52m

Genres

History