The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

It seems that the Cairo 360 weekend guide has become quite the attraction lately with very similar ‘weekend/event guides’ popping up all over Cairo websites, ehm ehm… So listen up because this weekend’s an important one.

Thursday sees musical comedy act, High on Body Fat, start the evening off at Cairo Jazz Club’s Giggin’ It before the debut performances of two bands; The Yeehas take to the stage with country covers before Election shoot out some funk and hip-hop tunes.

Fist pumping is on the cards at O Bar with Pop the Tempo, while on the other side of the Nile, Opium welcomes DJ Feedo for Pose.

Sufi welcomes Mohamed Kamal and Shereen Abdo for an interesting evening of African and Sufi music, while El Dammah Theater hosts the final show by Nubian group, NubaNoor, before they head off to the UK to take part in the WOMAD Festival. If you’re in the mood for authentic Cairene music instead, then head to After Eight to catch local favourites, Salalem.

Elsewhere, Egyptian composer, Omar Khairat, will perform in the Main Hall of Cairo Opera House, while out in the Open Air Theatre, Konouz Ensemble will be joined by Mahmoud Darwish for an evening of classical Arabic music.

There are some guests speaking at El Sawy Cultural Wheel, with writer Alaa El Aswany hosting an open discussion about the state of Egyptian politics and Dr. Nadia El Araby hosting a ‘Fine Arts & Children with Disabilities’ seminar. Another interesting event taking place at El Sawy is the Stand Up Comedy night which is being held as part of the Ice Cream Festival.

Live music is aplenty at El Sawy Culturewheel with Egypt’s oldest rock band, Andromeda, and the musical voice of Tahrir Square, Ramy Essam, both performing.

Since this Friday is more mellow than usual, it’s a good time to check out ‘The Pick 5’ exhibition at Townhouse Gallery or settle down at Sufi with a hot drink and a snack for the screening of Oscar-winning film, ‘The Pianist’.

Saturday offers you one last chance to enjoy Cairo’s nightlife before Ramadan and  shaabi rap band, No Comment, perform at After Eight while Cairo Jazz Club hosts Aswani folkloric musician, Basheer.

Contemporary Egyptian music continues to flourish as Fairouz Karawaya performs in the Open Air Theatre of Cairo Opera House, while Eftekasat bring their fusion of jazz, oriental and funk to El Genaina Theatre.

Theatre lovers should check out the performance of Halet Halet El Tawareq – an adaptation of Brian Friel’s The Freedom of the City – at El Sawy Culturewheel.