The Baalbeck International Festival is the oldest and most known cultural event in the Middle East and the eastern Mediterranean. Since 1955, hundreds of thousands of people from around the world have flocked to the city of Baalbeck in the Beqaa Valley of Lebanon to attend the annual festival. Classical music, dance, theater, opera, and jazz as well as modern world music are performed each July and August in the ancient Roman Acropolis, one of the largest and well preserved Roman temples ever built.

History

The festivals date back to the mid 20th century with the first organizing activities being held in 1955. After one year president Camille Chamoun named it the Baalbeck International Festival, which become a governmental institution whose goal was to promote tourism and Lebanese culture. The festival took the months of July and August as its period of festivities in the ruins of the Roman temples. In 1966, it established a drama school for the promotion of works done by Lebanese authors. After the Lebanese Civil War and the cessation of activities, the festival reopened for incoming spectators. Cultural events such as classical music, opera, jazz, modern world music, Lebanese Nights, rock and pop music as well as ballet and theater regained their past location with over 40000 yearly spectators watching in the unique historic setting of Baalbek.

Festival Highlights

Ballet

• Australian Ballet
• Ballet Rambert
• The Royal Ballet
• Stuttgart Ballet
• Béjart Ballet Lausanne (Maurice Béjart)

Dance

• Caracalla Dance Theatre
• Paul Taylor Dance Company
• The Dance Theater of Alwin Nikolais
• The Alvin Ailey Dance Theater
• Lord of the dance

Orchestra

• Miles Davis
• Chamber Orchestra of Moscow
• Chamber Orchestra of Stuttgart
• English Chamber Orchestra
• Lebanese National Symphony Orchestra
• The New York Philharmonic Orchestra
• Santa Cecilia Academy Rome Orchestra
• The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra

Singers

• Placido Domingo
• Ella Fitzgerald
• Fairuz
• Johnny Hallyday
• Sabah
• Nina Simone
• Sting
• Umm Kulthoum
• Warda Al-Jazairia

Theatre

• La Comédie Française
• Théâtre National de Belgique
• Fairuz, the Rahbani Brothers and the Lebanese popular troupe (from 1957 until 1973)

References

External links

• Baalbek International Festival Website