Celeste Aida
Despite threats of war on the horizon, this year's production of Verdi's Egyptian opera Aida at the Pyramids brought in the crowds for a triumphant evening, writes Nabila Erian

Ufukwe at the Townhouse
Youssef Rakha tackles a workshop, a concert and a cultural centre

Plain Talk
By Mursi Saad El-Din

Of controversy and corruption
Filmmaker Samir Seif speaks to Mohamed El-Assyouti about Maali Al-Wazir (His Excellency the Minister), the feature with which the present round of the Cairo Film Festival opens

Tales of Arabia felix
Ancient Yemen and the legendary Queen of Sheba -- the subjects of a British Museum exhibition in London. David Tresilian visited in the exhibition's final days

Briefs
Compiled by Amina Elbendary