Sunday 6th April
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Najat El Hachmi in conversation with Mathias Enard
Najat El Hachmi
(26) 12:00-13:00, Palacio de Carlos V (sala de conferencias), 5€
The Catalan writer and winner of the ‘Premi de les Lletres Catalanes Ramon Llull 2008’ (‘Ramon Llull Award for Catalan Literature 2008’) Najat El Hachmi talks about her award-winning L’últim patriarca. Her work addresses the settling of scores between new generations, the children of immigrants adapting to new environments, and previous generations reminising about their homeland and customs. She talks with Mathias Enard, writer and Ramon Llull Award judge.
Sponsored by Casa Árabe.
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The Assertion of Arab Female Identity in the face of Barbarity
Radwa Ashour in conversation with José Miguel Puerta
(27) 12:00-13:00, Carmen de los Mártires Palace and Gardens, 5€
José Miguel Puerta talks about her main intellectual focus in life: the assertion of the female Arab Self through humanist values of culture and tolerance. In the face of a series of disasters experienced both by herself and several generations of Arabs, Radwa Ashour looks back to Al-Andalus in her splendid The Granada Trilogy, to give the marginalised a central place in History. Granada is, in her own words, not a paradigm of loss but, “a garden of meanings hidden in the depths of the earth”, an invitation to overcome the burdens of History and build a new Al-Andalus. Radwa Ashour is an Egyptian writer who has published 7 novels, 3 collections of short stories and 4 criticism books. She was awarded the 2007 Constantine Cavafy Literature Award.
Simultaneous translation into Spanish.
Sponsored by Casa Árabe.
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Menna Elfyn in conversation with Peter Florence
Menna Elfyn
(28) 13:30-14:30 h, Palacio de Carlos V (sala de conferencias)
Poet and playwright Menna Elfyn is one of the most internationally renowned Welsh writers and stands out for transforming the identity of her country into a universal poetic journey. She has published collections of poetry (Eucalyptus; 1995 and Cusan Dyn Dall −Blind Man’s Kiss−; 2001), plays and librettos. Her decision to write in Welsh allows readers to discover a literature that delves into the reality of a culture all its own. She will talk to Peter Florence, Director of the Hay Festival, about her work and the feminist movement in Europe.
Simultaneous translation into Spanish.
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Spanish Cuisine and the Legacy of Al-Andalus
Sam Clark, Claudia Roden and Alicia Rios in conversation with Michael Jacobs
(29) 13:30-14:30, Carmen de los Mártires Palace and Gardens, 7€
Spanish gastronomy is currently at the height of its popularity abroad, following years of neglect. One of its most distinctive characteristics is the lingering influence of seven centuries of Islamic rule in Spain. In discussion with travel writer, Hispanist and food critic Michael Jacobs the participants will discuss these influences. Food artist and organiser of the culinary festival Eat London Alicia Ríos joins Sam Clark, the British chef, and founding owner of the famous London restaurant Moro, and Claudia Roden, the Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and Jewish food expert currently working on a book about Spanish cuisine. The event will be followed by a tasting of Al-Andalus-inspired tapas prepared by Andalusian chef Juan Matías del Moral. Simultaneous translation into Spanish.
With the support of El Corte Inglés.
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Catherine of Aragon, Granada and England
David Starkey
(30) 17:00-18:00, Carmen de los Mártires Palace and Gardens, 5€
David Starkey revisits the life of Catherine of Aragon, first wife of Henry VIII and a key figure in defining the relations between the Spanish and the English Courts. Catherine witnessed the Reconquest of Granada and took its symbol (the pomegranate) as her personal emblem. Starkey is one of the best known historians in Britain, specialising in the Tudor dynasty era. He has worked on many TV productions and wriiten many highly acclaimed books, including Henry VIII: A European Court in England (1991), Elizabeth: Apprenticeship (2000) and The Six Wives: The Queens of Henry VIII (2003).
Simultaneous translation into Spanish.
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Poetry Reading
Menna Elfyn, Raja Alem, Mourid Barguti, Luis García Montero, Daniel Rodríguez Moya, Fernando Valverde and Luis Antonio de Villena
(31) 18:30h-19:30, Carmen de los Mártires Palace and Gardens, 5€
Raja Alem, considered one of the most highly-regarded writers and poets in Saudi Arabia; Murid Barghouti, author of I Saw Ramallah; Luis García Montero, whose works include Vista cansada and Infancia; Daniel Rodríguez Moya and Fernando Valverde, poets and directors of the ‘Festival Internacional de Poesía de Granada’, and the poet, writer, journalist and master of ceremonies Luis Antonio de Villena writer of Países de Luna and La Prosa del Mundo will each read a selection of their works.
Simultaneous translation into Spanish.
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Race, Religion and Freedom in the History of England and the United States
Simon Schama introduced by Peter Florence
(32) 20:00- 21:00, Carmen de los Martires 5€
Simon Schama, professor of history and art history at Columbia University, is an acclaimed historian who combines academic rigour with a more personal approach to historical research. After teaching at Cambridge, Oxford and Harvard, Schama moved to New York. Since 1995 he has been art critic for The New Yorker and has presented several successful art and history programmes for the BBC. Awarded a CBE, he has been won numerous prizes such as the NCR Book Award in 1990. His works include Landscape and Memory, Dead Certainties, Rembrandt's Eyes (an international bestseller) and Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution.
Simultaneous translation into Spanish.
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Anouar Brahem in concert
Anouar Brahem
(33) 22:00, Auditorium Manuel de Falla, 20€
Anouar Brahem was born in Tunisia in 1957. After learning how to play the oud (equivalent to the lute in Arab countries) and getting to know traditional musical repertoire, he became interested in jazz and the musical traditions of India and Iran. His music is characterized by a dialogue between traditional rhythms and a more experimental approach. His compositions have been used by a number of choreographers (Maurice Béjart in Thalassa Mare Nostrum) and film directors (Costa Gavras in Hanna K). Having lived in Paris for several years, he has acted as a bridge between Tunisian musical heritage and French jazz. He will be accompanied by accordionist Jean-Louis Matinier and pianist François Couturier.