“Jordanian arts need investing in”

Suhair Fahad Amman – Osama Al Rantissi Suhair Fahed has been bracing Jordanian TV screens for over 20 years. Her Western beauty mixed with her famous Bedouin TV works and she became a star. Her Bedouin works were highly popular during the 1980s and became less popular during the 1980s. Her most popular roles were in “Fire’s perfume,” “Balqis,” “Half moon,” and “Coal and sands.” In 1983, Suhair’s acting career took off when she was still at school. Her first work was a play titled “Safety route,” and another with director Khaled Al Tareefi titled “Dam Dam Tak” and “Toot Tat Teet” and several others. Arabstoday chatted with the star, after the Jordanian star’s suffering has reached a point where the Jordanian Artists Union held a silent march which carried a coffin in the name of the Jordanian artist who has been absent from the Jordanian local scene because of the weak productions market, and absent from the Arab scene for several reasons. We spoke to Suhair about all this and more.
Arabstoday: After these years of television and theater attendance ... Are you satisfied with the experience of Suhair Fahed?
Suhair Fahed: My experience in television and theatre was supposed to lead me to much bigger things in the world, but we hit a wall that forces us to stop and to go round in circles; so I can’t say that I’m satisfied but I can’t ignore the years I’ve spent in this field either in its good and bad parts.
AT: Jordanian artists have been living a tough time for years now, to the extent where the Artists Union held a march to console the Jordanian artist. So how does the Jordanian artist currently live? And is there anyone working to improve it?
SH: Yes, the union consoled the Jordanian artists but does that mean he’s dead? I think the answer lies with the special producers; because before we were monopolized to one or two sides we were working non-stop. There was a time where Jordanian work topped the marketing lists of cities, villages and Bedouins, therefore it’s a money issue and although the union is doing all it can to improve the situation. The Ministry of Culture is also trying but that alone isn’t enough as investment is needed, and talent is needed for investment to take place.
AT: Do you remember the last time Jordanian TV asked about you? I mean for work.
SF: I worked on a drama called “Half moon” but the staff were artistic not administrative. As for television, as TV, I think it has a lot to do to restructure, but it may not be able to do so because it is governed by the situation, in addition that employees working in TV do not know what the current artist situation is like so their mistakes are greater than their achievements.
AT: How do you evaluate the artistic Jordanian movement compared to the Arab artistic movement?
SF: I can’t evaluate the overall movement, as at the time being the Jordanian movement is an executive producer for other channels that have their own conditions regarding scripts and direction and many times acting as well, therefore there is no Jordanian movement that I can evaluate as much as there is a Jordanian execution.
AT: Are you in favour of what Syrian actors do by dubbing their voices for Turkish dramas?
SF: Dubbing is a type of art and Syrians have been able to get people in the Arab world to watch those shows, of course with the support of the stations that buy those shows, but I personally think that Turkish drama presents a discourse that is not intellectual but aesthetic.
AT: What did the death of the artist Mahmoud Saymeh mean to you?
SF: It overwhelmed me and it got me wondering: will I ever be able to get over this ordeal?
AT: Which Arab artist draws your attention through their work? And are you happy with the way they cram so many shows during Ramadan?
SF: There’s no particular artist whose work I follow but I am fond of many artists. As for cramming many shows in Ramadan, well that’s become a trend and I’m not in favour of it as viewers should be able to watch what they want; what have viewers got to do with companies’ want to make profits. Viewers end up getting confused about what to watch and feel as if they are running after a train to catch it and that’s not normal.
AT: What’s your latest news in television and theatre?
SF: In TV I was a guest star on the TV drama “My soul mate,” as for theatre I am now working on a play titled “Kabset mansaf dot com.”
AT: If you could turn back the time, would keep things the way they are or would you have chosen a different career path?
SF: If I went back in time I would have still been Suhair Fahed but with a different understanding, as I love this job, but experience has its important role as well.