The Festival of Good Time was held in its fifth edition, in the Ambassadors Hall at Casino du Liban, in which a number of Arab and Lebanese stars of singing and acting were honored. The media event was presented by Carla Haddad, and the opening was with the artist Tania Kassis on the stage with the national anthem, then she presented a diverse and distinguished bouquet of the most famous and most important of her artworks, the most prominent of which was her famous patriotic song “The Path of Glory” from the words of the poet Nizar Francis, and composed by Michel Fadel.
Dr. Harach Sagbazarian, founder and president of the festival, gave a speech that began by welcoming the stars of the ceremony, stressing that “the festival today comes as an affirmation that Lebanon will not collapse, and it is the torch of art and culture in the Arab world and the Middle East.”
He continued, “I used to say that dreams alone are not sufficient for a person to achieve his goals in life, and that ambition begins with pursuit. Since I was young, I have been striving to achieve my ambitions on my own, but I never imagined that my dreams would one day become an important part of my life. It’s this business that grows more and more every year with stars who have set an ideal in art and life for me. It is a letter of thanks to those who gave their age, youth, life and fatigue, and whose work constituted a pinnacle of creativity and sophistication. We are proud of them in our Arab world, as they have become the awaited and important annual event, which we have missed recently due to the Corona pandemic… and here we are back.”
After that, the artist Hani Shaker spoke following receiving the honorary shield of the festival, saying: “Greetings to Lebanon and to the festival administration headed by Dr. Harach, who is making tremendous efforts at a time when countries must do to honor the artists of their beautiful time.”
He continued: “This shield means a lot to me because it is from the land of beloved Lebanon, which I fell in love with, and in it I spent the best days of my life with my wife and children, and there was no area in its territory that I sang in.”
For her part, the artist Safia Al-Omari, who rose to the stage in tears, said: “Lebanon was a beacon of Arab art and media, and in Egypt we considered it the great studio.”
And she continued, “I thank Dr. Harach twice, first for giving me the shield of the “acting icon”, and secondly because he was the reason for my return to Lebanon, which is always brilliant with its art, its people, and the pulse of its life-loving people despite the tragedies.”
The festival honored the captain of the artists’ union, singer Hani Shaker, and the able Egyptian actresses Safiya Al-Omari, Samira Abdel-Aziz, Fadia Abdel-Ghani, Sharifa Fadel and Nadia Lutfi, who was handed over by Dr. Harach before her departure in the military hospital in Egypt. From Syria, the comedian and dramatic actor Hossam Tahsin Bey and actress Nadine Khoury were honored.
As for Lebanon, the Beautiful Time Festival honored the artists Georgette Al-Sayegh, Marie Suleiman, Maya Yazbek, the media, Maryam Choucair Abu Joudeh, the actors Abdullah Al-Homsi (Assaad), Youssef Fakhri (Coco), Madeleine Tabar, Khaled Al-Sayed, Lilian Nimri, Wedad Jabbour and musician. Musical law Mohieddin Al-Ghali.
The LBC screen displays. The party is next Sunday following the evening news.
