A.R.T. Hosts Art by Egyptian Artist Ganzeer to Accompany Run of WE LIVE IN CAIRO

American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University unveils its show art for the new musical We Live in Cairo. The art is created by Ganzeer, a multifaceted visual artist and experimenter pivotal to the visual identity of the Egyptian Revolution.Written by brothers Daniel Lazour and Patrick Lazour, We Live in Cairo is inspired by the young Egyptians who took to the streets in 2011 to overthrow President Hosni Mubarak. It follows six revolutionary students armed with laptops and cameras, guitars, and spray cans from the jubilation of Cairo's Tahrir Square where the Egyptian revolution unfolded through the tumultuous years that followed.

The show art design (left) features the image of a riot layered beneath the outlines of the revolutionaries' tools of resistance: a bullhorn, a camera, a can of spray paint, a cellphone, a laptop, and a guitar. It also incorporates the text of the chant commonly heard in Tahrir Square during the 18-day revolution: Aish, Horreya, Adala Egtema'eya, which translates to Bread, Freedom, Social Justice.

The artist uses the pseudonym Ganzeer, which means "bicycle chain," to signify the role he believes artists play in affecting change. He explained to The New York Times in 2014, "We are not the driving force. We are not the people pedaling, but we can connect ideas and by doing this we allow the thing to move."

Described as a "chameleon" by Carlo McCormick in The New York Times, Ganzeer is considered one of the most enigmatic artists of his generation, having been compared to everyone from Ai Weiwei to Banksy to Alan Moore to Jaime Hayon. Ganzeer operates seamlessly between art, design, and storytelling, creating what he has coined: Concept Pop, a brand of cultural insurgency that utilizes the aesthetics birthed by Pop Art in tackling the subject matter typically ascribed to Conceptual Art. His medium of choice as described by Kaelen Wilson-Goldie in Artforum is "a little bit of everything: stencils, murals, paintings, pamphlets, comics, installations, graphic design," and more.

With over 40 exhibitions to his name, Ganzeer's work has been seen in a wide variety of art galleries, impromptu spaces, alleyways, and major museums around the world, such as the Brooklyn Museum (New York), The Palace of the Arts (Cairo, Egypt), Greek State Museum (Thessaloniki, Greece), the Victoria and Albert Museum (London, England), and the Edith Russ Haus (Oldenburg, Germany). His current projects include the short story collection Times New Human and the graphic novel The Solar Grid (2016 Global Thinker Award from Foreign Policy). He has been an artist-in-residence in Germany, Poland, Jordan, Holland, and Finland, and has lived extensively in Cairo, New York, Los Angeles, and now Denver.

We Live in Cairo plays at the Loeb Drama Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts from May 14 through June 23, 2019. The run includes one week of added performances due to popular demand. Obie Award winner Taibi Magar directs.

Production Support of We Live in Cairo is provided by Serena and Bill Lese. Additional Production Support is provided by Janet and Irv Plotkin. Education and engagement support is provided by Marcia Head.

Tickets start at $25 and are available now online at AmericanRepertoryTheater.org, by phone at 617.547.8300, and in person at the Loeb Drama Center Ticket Services Offices (64 Brattle Street, Cambridge). Discounts are available to A.R.T. Subscribers, Members, groups, students, seniors, Blue Star families, EBT card holders, and others.

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