Hakaya
is an Arab collective movement connecting different organizations, individuals, and groups around the Arab world and the Mediterranean who share a commitment to reclaiming the centrality of stories to the healthy growth of individuals and societies. Hakaya has been celebrating for over 13 years the art of “storytelling” within theatre, performing arts, promotion of reading and writing, formation of identity, and inter-cultural dialogue. The vision that brings us together is one of storytelling as a tool that develops an individual’s “inner world” and constitutes the threads that weave the social and cultural fabric within a community: a tool that does not link the mind with the text, but the mind with life.
Hakaya program/movement started its journey in 2005 and the collaboration continued uniterrupted up till this day regardless of the availability of funds or the possibility of face to face encounters. The dialogue continued over the years to deepen the understanding of what each partner/member can do in their own location, and how that contributes to the collective momentum.
Between August 2007 and February 2008 partial funding from the Anna Lindh Foundation allowed the Arab Education Forum to launch Hakaya through several activities including a website, workshops, a Mujawara with renowned Egyptian storytellers, and the Hakaya Festival at Al Balad Theatre in Amman. To mark the conclusion of this phase, the second Hakaya meeting was organized in cooperation with I-Act in Alexandria in February 2008. In 2008-2009 the Arab Education Forum and Al Balad Theatre continued using their own means to maintain and expand Hakaya based on the road map prepared by the collective of partners. The website was constantly updated, and the Al Balad Theatre managed to organize the second Hakaya Festival in 2009 with support from the Greater Amman Municipality. In 2009 the AEF and its collective of partners were awarded a 3-year grant starting 1 January 2010 to continue developing and expanding the partnership within the region and Europe.
Since 2013 until this day Al Balad theatre and the Arab Education Forum (Jordan and Palestine), in partnership with El Warsha theatre group (Egypt( continue to expand and deepen the vision and practice of Hakaya program/movement with support from the Tamasi collective, SIDA, The Greater Amman Municipality, and Rosa Luxembourg Stiftung, amongst others. The collective and individual work continues through Mujawaras, trainings, performances, and the annual Hakaya Festival to expand and deepen the impact and move closer towards reclaiming the centrality of stories to learning, art, and life.