Istanbul will host numerous events this week, including exhibitions, concerts and theater performances.
The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB) City Theaters will bring audiences a diverse selection of plays from April 1-4. Performances include "Iphigenia" at Harbiye Muhsin Ertuğrul Stage, "Invincible" at Kağıthane Sadabad Stage, "Gideon’s Knot" at Müze Gazhane Meydan Stage and "Oscar" at Müze Gazhane Professor Dr. Sevda Şener Stage. Other productions include "To Live or To Die" at Ümraniye Stage, "Hayat Der Gülümserim" at Üsküdar Musahipzade Celal Stage and "Kahvaltıya Kalsana" ("Stay for Breakfast") at Üsküdar Kerem Yılmazer Stage. On April 4, "İkinci Perdenin Başı" ("The Beginning of the Second Act") will be staged at FSM Cultural and Arts Center’s Rasim Öztekin Stage.
At the Atatürk Cultural Center (AKM), theater and opera enthusiasts can see "Güne Bakan Cam Kırıkları" on March 30 and April 1, the opera "Edusa: An Anatolian Story" on April 2 and 4 and the dance performance Anatolian Fire on April 5.
Zorlu PSM will host several theater productions: "Ben Çoktan Gidersiniz Sanmıştım," "The Miser" and "Don Quixote" today; "Seni Uzaktan Sevmek" ("Loving You From Afar") and Method on March 31; "Death of a Salesman" on March 31 and April 5; "Güneşin Oğlu" ("Son of the Sun") on April 1; "Palamut Zamanı" ("Acorn Time") on April 4 and Aesop’s "Fables" on April 5. Other stage events include Rich Cuisine on March 30, Aydınlıkevler on March 31, and Güldür Güldür Show on April 1-2 at Maximum Uniq.
Concerts
Music lovers have a rich schedule this week. At AKM, today’s concert honors "İmgesel Sanat Yolculuğunda 50 Yıl ‘Suat Arıkan" ("50 Years in the Journey of Imaginary Art: Suat Arıkan"), followed by "Bir Safa Bahşedelim" on March 31, "Gravures by Eldar Mansurov" on April 1, "Türk Telekom Prime Coffee Concerts: Morning in Baku" on April 4 and "Anıl Şallıel 166 Days" also on April 4.
International artists include French musician Melanie Pain performing at Blind Istanbul on April 3 and German violinist Iskandar Widjaja at the Naval Museum on April 5. Zorlu PSM’s lineup features Turkish pop and rock stars such as Nilüfer and Duygu Soylu on April 1, Sibel Can on April 2, Greek composer Mikis Theodorakis and Seyyal Taner on April 3, The Away Days, Maya Perest and Adamlar on April 4 and Ferhat Göçer on April 5. Other concerts include Sevcan Orhan at Hayalmest Bostancı on April 1, Funda Arar and Kubat at Bostancı Show Center on April 3, Emre Altuğ at Dada Salon Kabarett on April 4 and Bülent Ortaçgil at Paribu Art with Women’s Voices Have Sung Songs on April 4.
Exhibitions
Visual art enthusiasts can visit "50 Years in Art with Sound and Color" at AKM, a retrospective celebrating Suat Arıkan’s 50-year career featuring works in watercolor, acrylic, oil, gouache and pastel on paper, canvas, film, cardboard and wood. Şaka Gibi, a group exhibition prepared by students, alumni and faculty of Marmara University’s Fine Arts Faculty, opens April 1 at Camhane Art Center in Beyoğlu.
"Sessiz Ayakkabılar" ("Silent Shoes"), highlighting interrupted lives in Gaza through ceramics and painting, is on display at Kalyon Kultur Zone in Nevçarşı Shopping Center until April 30. The Sakıp Sabancı Museum Painting Collection, enriched over decades, is also open for visitors.
Seventeenth- and 18th-century Azerbaijani palace rugs from Amir Oskouei’s collection are on view at the Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum’s "Sacred Geometry in Weaving Art: From Sufism to Form" exhibition until March 25. Meanwhile, "Memory of Color, Spirit of the Brush: A Passionate Life in Colors – Ibrahim Çallı" is on display at Istanbul Art Museum in Haliç Shipyard until April 5 and the "Panorama: Dreams and Places" exhibition at Istanbul Modern, focusing on contemporary photography and lens-based art, runs through Oct. 18.