Hakawatiyyah - The Storyteller Artistic Team

UK Tour Artistic Director: Naz Koser is the Artistic Director and Founder of Ulfah Arts. During the last five years she has directed and produced a number of shows with British Muslim women. She is passionate about her faith and the Arts hence the creation of Ulfah, (Arabic for harmony). Born in the UK, Naz considers herself more British than Pakistani (having only been there once) and is considered to be a pioneering British Muslim contributing to British culture the essence of her Islamic faith. She founded Ulfah Arts after a personal tragedy born out of religious extremism and has worked with commitment and devotion to develop it in to an internationally recognised arts organisation. She is a strong supporter of public sector arts and was recently selected as one of the Cultural Ambassadors for City of Birmingham. Naz advises a range of government departments and NDPBs on policy and is currently a member of National Muslim Women Advisory Group (NMWAG) and is a fellow of the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA). When not directing or running the operations of Ulfah Arts as Artistic Director, Naz makes work under the artist name of Sufi Punk where she’s interested in the shared attitude that can create two different extremes and uses a variety of forms in communicating her findings of common ground. Hakawatiyaah – The Storyteller is the first time she has worked with western classical musicians in this way.

Storyteller and Original Writer for UK Tour performance in 2010: Alia Al Zougbi is a BAFTA Scotland nominated and award-winning actress, storyteller, dancer and workshop facilitator. She has performed at various stages in the UK, Dubai, the USA, Lebanon, Kosovo and Belgium. In the UK, she has been repeatedly invited to perform stories and facilitate workshops at such prestigious institutions as The British Museum, The V&A, the National Gallery and the Barbican. Her theatre credits in the UK include Go to Gaza, Drink the Sea (Theatre Tours International), Amada (The Arches), Yarn (Grid Iron), The Lady Survives (Metaplay) and The Open Couple (OneOfEach). She has also performed in It’s Nothing Personal, a one-woman show co-written with Yamina Bakiri, which was received with acclaim in London and has now been invited to be performed in Belgium and Bahrain. Alia’s film & TV credits include the title roles in the feature film Trouble Sleeping (Makar Productions/Theatre Workshop) and the docu-drama Hijack (BBC4).

Original Musical underscores to stories and pianist for UK Tour performance in 2010: Rosalind Parker graduated as an Honorary Exhibition Scholar with a double first in Theology from Cambridge, she currently holds the Cambridge Inter-Faith Programme Research Scholarship, with whom she explores the role which the arts can play in fostering inter-religious dialogue, working closely with Ulfah Arts. Rosalind is the co-founder and Director of Rough Magicke Productions Ltd. (www.roughmagicke.co.uk ) formed with the principle aim of exploiting the musical element of theatre to engage the audience more directly with the visual narrative; with whom Rosalind has directed, accompanied and toured six musicals around the UK. Elected President of the Cambridge University Opera Society (www.cuos.org.uk/ ), Rosalind has recently developed a focus on opera, directing specially commissioned operas in London and Cambridge; Dido and Aeneas (May 07), Gianni Schicci (May 08) Sancta Susanna (Dec-Jan 09) Morder Hoffnung der Frauen (Dec-Jan 09) Eugene Onegin (Feb 09) Noye’s Fludde (Nov 09), Le Vin Herbe, (Jan 10). From this Rosalind has approached by the Council to direct education-outreach Musical ventures, and become the Director of Ardente Opera Company (www.ardenteopera.com). Exploring the musical aspect of story-telling and narrative has become increasingly important to Rosalind. Her choral training has been especially formative, most recently as a choral scholar at Clare College, Cambridge, with whom she has recorded numerous CD’s for Naxos, worked under Edward Gardiner and Sir Ivor Bolton, performed in the major London concert halls, as well as Munich, Salzburg and Innsbruck Opera Festivals (07-09). Having composed original music for The Crucible (Jan 08) Shakespeare’s Water Music (May 08), and worked as Musical Consultant developing sound-scapes for The Medea (Oct 07), Little Red Things (Ed Fringe 07, 08) Rosalind is currently

Original Compositions for the story of Mary as written by Alia Al Zougbi: DAFINA ZEQIRI (1984) – Composer. She was born in 1984 in Prishtina (Kosovo). She finished the music high school “Prenk Jakova” in Prishtina. In 2007 she finished her studies in composition branch in the class of well-know Albanian composer Mendi Mengjiqi (student of Krysztof Penderecki) at the Music Branch in the Faculty of Arts in Prishtina. Actually she is attending her master studies in the class of Macedonian composer Jana Andreevska at the Faculty of Music Art in Skopje (F.Y.R.O. Macedonia). Zeqiri won several prices in International Composers Competitions in Switzerland, Albania and Italy. She won “Theodore Front Prize” in USA with her work “Atmospheres” for Choir and Orchestra. Till now she composed more than 30 works for different ensembles and some orchestral works. Some of her works were interpreted by various international musicians such as: Peter Sheppard Skaerved, Steffen Schleiermacher, Jean Jacques Balet, Anne Moreau, Anna Klett, Hege Waldeland, Athelas Sinfonietta Copenhagen, Victor Manuel Morales, Evangelina Reyes, Lorenc Radovani, Marisa Hatibi, Arian Paço, Gëzim Belegu, Mialtin Zhezha, Annina Woehrle, Beat Kermanschah, String Ensemble of Music High School and Academy of Skopje, etc. Zeqiri was named assistant at the Faculty of Arts in Prishtina and she also in leading the non government organization Women in Music “NEO MUSICA” – that is in a membership with FOUNDATION ADKINS CHITI (member of UNESCO’s International Music Council and the European Music Council).

Original Compositions for the story of Fatima as written by Alia Al Zougbi, also Guitarist for UK Tour performance in 2010: Armend Xhaferi was born in Prishtina, where he also finished his primary and secondary education. He is the most famous Albanian jazz guitarist. He studied in the music and dramtic Arts University in Graz, Austria, where he also did his post-graduate studies on jazz guitar. He performed many times as soloist, but also as member of different jazz ensembles in Kosovo, Germany, Austria, etc. He recroded several CD’s with “mmarimango Trio”, Nenad Vasilic Band” Laurie Antolniolli, Armend Xhaferi Band” etc. He also wrote the music piece from the movice “nje rruge tjeter”. He now works as a Lecturer in the Facutly of Arts in Prishtina.

Flutist for UK Tour performance in 2010: Holly Jones Flautist, workaholic and lover of fine cakes, Holly studied classical flute at the Birmingham Consevertoire, where she developed her interest in jazz and improvisation. Since her first year at music college Holly has been the flautist for Svengali, a midlands-based 'jazz funk-fusion' band, who have taken in gigs at Ronnie Scotts with the likes of Guy Barker en route. Since coming to Birmingham, Holly has performed and recorded with a number of fine bands and appeared on albums ranging from breakbeat through to indie-pop. In 2001 she formed a Jazz/Funk quintet with whom she recorded her arrangements of music from the Acid Jazz genre; In 2005 Holly headlined at the Fuerteventura Jazz Festival with The Players Sextet, alongside top Midland 'ex-pats' Sam Pearce, Roger Perks and Steve Sherriff. From 2004-2007 she was a member of Salavador6, a nu-funk outfit, recording original material. Is currently a member of the "TG collective", a Spanish gypsy-jazz ensemble,who have performed in Ireland, France and across the UK. (In 2007,Holly smashed all current records on file for 'most jaffa cakes eaten in a single rehearsal'.) Has recently joined a Tabla band (which performs a fusion of eastern music with a funky edge, as well as traditional Punjabi songs.) and a funky soul out-fit (playing covers and original material.) Holly also teaches flute and directs a youth funk group for which she composes and arranges music

Tenor for UK Tour performance in 2010: Riad Ymeri was born in Prishtina. He graduated in the Faculty of Arts – Department of Music, in Prishtina, in the class of Merita Juniku, mezzosoprano. Riad Ymeri is soloist in the Philharmonics Choir – Opera of Kosovo and vocal ensemble “Oketi Plus”. Up to day, he performed in several international festivals, like: DAM and ReMusica festivals in Prishtina, Histria Festival in Pula, “Macedonian Music Days” in Skopje etc. He had several other performances with other soloists in Tirana, Brussels, Zagreb etc. He won the second prize in the international contest of classical music “Ars Kosova 2006” in Prishtina. He attended master courses with Enxo Tei and Vito Maria Brunetti. In 2007 he worked together with La MaMA theatre from New York for the “Diana” musical staged in Prishtina. Last year, he worked with Kosovo National Theatre for the show “Cifti Martin” of the director Bekim Lumi. He performed few times with Big Band of RTK during several special TV shows. In 2009, he took part in the concert “3 tenors” with the national television Kohavison.

Ulfah Collective for UK Tour performance in 2010 : Ulfah Collective known as the first practicing Muslim female Choir in UK. The Ulfah Collective is a group of women from different backgrounds brought together by Ulfah Arts. The Ulfah Collective is made up of practicing Muslim women. With an age range of 13 to 42 and a core team of five which expands to fourteen members for larger performances, they are from Pakistani, Somali, Bangladeshi, Arab and Jamaican backgrounds. The varying backgrounds and cultures bring together different interpretations of Islam that are catered for, by women only audiences and performances with just the hand drum. They write their own lyrics and vocal compositions. Their performances have included Wembley Arena (London) to an audience of 12,000 alongside Robin Gibb from the Bee Gees and Ruby Wax. Their songs are universal and include traditional Islamic songs as well as songs of other faith traditions such as gospel.