Doha, November 27 (QNA) - The Ministry of Education and Higher Education concluded today the events of the 2025 Annual School Theater Festival, held at the U Venue Al Rayyan Theatre.

The festival comes as part of the Ministry’s efforts to strengthen the presence of performing arts within the educational environment, and to affirm the role of theater in developing students’ personalities, refining their creative skills, and reinforcing national identity.

In her speech during the ceremony, Director of the Educational Guidance Department Maryam Numan Al Emadi said that this year’s festival reflects an educational vision that believes theater is a living space for learning.

She added that theater is the heartbeat of school life, a flame of knowledge, and a free space from which students’ imagination and ambitions launch toward wider horizons. She added that school theater has become a developmental pillar that blends knowledge with artistic experience, and enhances skills in thinking, expression, and initiative, supporting holistic education that balances science, art, and creativity.

For his part, artist Saad Bourshid, speaking on behalf of the Committee for Script and Performance Evaluation, highlighted the role of the Arts and Theater Section within the Educational Guidance Department since its establishment in 1975.

He emphasized the committee’s recommendations, which call for continued training of students and teachers, activating theater clubs, developing partnerships with the Theater Affairs Center, and documenting performances to benefit future editions of the festival.

The closing ceremony featured a documentary film showcasing the preliminary and final stages of the competition, which included the participation of 16 boys’ and girls’ schools before announcing the qualifying groups.

Students from the School Theater Team also performed “a play that represented the State of Qatar at the Second Arab School Theater Festival in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, winning six prominent Arab awards and receiving strong audience engagement.

Assistant Undersecretary for Educational Affairs at the Ministry Maha Zayed Al Ruwayli accompanied by Al Emadi, honored the judging committee, the cast of the play, the participating teams, the working committees, and the supervisors who contributed to the festival’s success.

The 2025 Annual School Theater Festival reaffirms the Ministry’s commitment to promoting the arts in the school environment, supporting student creativity, and strengthening educational and cultural values, aligned with Qatar National Vision 2030’s goal of building a society founded on knowledge and creativity. (QNA)