ARABFEST, the time of love. The 12th annual Festival of Arab Culture will be held in the spirit of love and we have invited our friends, close ones, and festival partners to open it. This event is therefore for invitees only and they can find more information about the opening in their email inboxes. 

Charif Bahbouh, teacher, publisher, writer, poet, our festival role model and co-founder. He endorsed the efforts of Arabfest from the very beginning and he always was our support. He died in December 2020 after a serious illness. It is no coincidence that the documentary dedicated to him opens the festival program this year when the main theme is love. The testimonies of loved ones and colleagues were filmed by Iraqi director Ahmed Alsabaiei.

We will present the film in the Czech language with Arabic subtitles. The film will be followed by a discussion. We are also planning some small Arabic treats and an exhibition of selected books by the Dar Ibn Rushd publishing house for you.

Booking this event via our website is not mandatory. Nevertheless, we recommend that you make your reservation to make sure you will find your seat at the cinema. Thank you. 

You will probably fall in love with Arabic food at this event. And we are talking just about breakfast. Look forward to salty, sweet, meat, and vegetarian. A detailed menu is available on our Facebook and Instagram.

Sommelier Tomas Rezabek will introduce you to the world of excellent Lebanese wines and guide you through the tasting in the magical setting of "Na břehu Rhôny". Small themed snacks will be provided. The tasting will be led in Czech.

How to introduce yourself and start the first conversation in Arabic? With the Department of Middle Eastern Studies graduate Daniel Krejčí, you will quickly learn the basic phrases and grammar of this wonderful Semitic language.

The thrash metal girl band Slave to Sirens from Beirut is known as enfant terrible in their homeland while being considered a sensation by Western audiences at the same time. The majority of Lebanese society has a problem not only with their music style but also with the sexual orientation of some of the musicians. Unresolved relationships are creating a tense atmosphere within the band, just as the whole country is struggling with economic problems.

 An American-Lebanese documentary of director Rita Baghadi.

Tickets can be purchased on GoOut.

"If you really want to know a people, start by looking inside their bedrooms". For more than a decade, author and activist Shereen El Feki has been doing just that, exploring  connections between sexuality and politics and economics, religion and culture, across the Middle East and North Africa. Join Shereen and Nina as they discuss Shereen's book, "Sex and the Citadel: Intimate Life in a Changing Arab World" and open a window on this largely hidden aspect of Arab societies…

This event will be held in English. Watch the online debate on our Youtube Channel.

Would you like to experience Arabic passion with Czech and Hungarian actresses? Then do not miss the adaptation of a fifteenth-century Arabic erotic manual by Muḥammad Ibn Muḥammad Al-Nafzawi which is unsual and fascinating in many ways. Intimate intercultural performance talking about universal human “things” in language of visual metaphors.

Actresses: Réka Deák and Veronika Zárubová
Language: Mostly English, parts of Arabic, French, Hungarian and Czech

Join us for this special conversation event and practise your French, Arabic or Czech language skills. Intermediate or still a beginner? Everyone is welcome. The event is being held in close cooperation with the Alliance Française de Plzeň.

Come discover and taste the Arab world on Saturday afternoon! The admission fee is voluntary. The Grand Saturday programme & ORIENTAL STREET FOOD MARKET is part of the 12th year of the Festival of Arabic Culture in Pilsen. We would like to thank all our partners for their support! You can find a detailed programme via link HERE. You can also find more information on our Facebook event.

Great Saturday program & ORIENTAL STREET FOOD MARKET is part of the 12th annual Festival of Arab Culture in Pilsen - ARABFEST 2022 with the support of the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen, the city of Pilsen, 700 Years of the City of Pilsen Foundation and other partners. Thank you!

An evening full of love and oriental songs to listen to. This is what the closing of the Pilsen ARABFEST program will look like as you will be introduced to a singer of Tunisian origin, performing under the pseudonym KAT Bent L'Amor. This North African star, who has lived in the Czech Republic for over three years, is trying to present the culture of North Africa and her native region and is winning the hearts of an ever-widening audience with her distinctive style.

As a guest artist, KAT invited the excellent musician Marwan Alsolaiman, whom many know as a founding member of the Syrian band Ziriab.

Buy tickets via GoOut here.

Love is a cocktail of emotions. Come and dance out all the joys and heartaches to afterparty in Anděl directed by DJ Shepherd from Lebanon. House seasoned with Arabic vibe is just the right thing for Saturday's party.

An unforgettable evening with observation of the night sky in Pilsen will be prepared for you in clear weather by the Pilsen branch of Astronomical Observatory in Rokycany and Pilsen. We will watch mysterious deep-sky objects such as open and globular clusters, galaxies and nebulae. 

 Note: astronomical observation is only possible  in clear sky and good visibility of observed objects and phenomena.

30 CZK, paid at the event, advance booking via kontakt@arabfest.cz only is recommended (for us to know how much of hibiscus tea to prepare:))