Beiteddine Festival 2023: What to see at the popular Lebanese cultural event

The spectacle is held on the grounds of a 200-year-old palace

Lebanese singer Mayssa Karaa will perform at Beiteddine Festival. Photo: Mayssa Karaa

One of Lebanon's most enduring cultural festivals returns on July 20.

Held on the grounds of the two-century-old palace in the Chouf Mountains that it is named after, the annual Beiteddine Festival has been hosting eclectic events since launching in 1984.

Past performers have included everyone from pop stars Mariah Carey and Phil Collins to Lebanese music titans Fairouz and Majida El Roumi.

This year, the draw of the bill is Lebanese-Armenian pianist Guy Manoukian. His shows on July 22 and 23 are sold out, but here's who else is playing this year's Beiteddine Festival.

July 20: Farrah El Dibany

The opening concert will have Lebanese mezzo-soprano El Dibany perform popular arias and classic Arabic songs by artists such as Asmahan, Fairouz and Dalida.

A seasoned singer, having performed regularly at the Paris Opera as well as the Bolshoi Theatre, El Dibany also performed as part of the closing ceremony of the World Cup Qatar 2022.

She will be accompanied by an orchestra conducted by Lubnan Baalbaki of the Lebanese Philharmonic Orchestra.

Show starts at 8.30pm; tickets from $20

July 25: Donna Khalife and Arthur Satyan

Two fine jazz musicians will team up for a special concert.

Lebanese vocalist and double bassist Khalife has been performing for more than two decades with shows at home and abroad as band leader or side woman.

The festival could be the ideal place for her to showcase new works from her coming third album.

Armenian pianist and composer Satyan is the present dean of the jazz department at the Lebanese National Higher Conservatory of Music.

Having performed with jazz stars Larry Coryell and Sonny Fortune, he is renowned for his authentic approach recalling artists such as Charlie Parker and Thelonious Monk.

Show starts at 8.30pm; tickets from $20

July 27: Mayssa Karaa

Berklee Abu Dhabi artistic director Karaa returns to her native Lebanon for a concert alongside colleagues from the UAE conservatory.

The singer will showcase her eclectic body of work, veering from Arabic folk and pop to rock and electronica. Last month she released Netla'a Bi Beirut (We'll meet in Beirut), a song in which she yearns for the city of her birth.

She will be accompanied by an ensemble led by Jordanian composer and violinist Yaurb Smarait, and Lebanese oud player Charbel Rouhana will make a guest appearance.

Show starts at 8.30pm; tickets from $20

August 2, 3 and 5: Chicago the Musical

An Arabic version of the much-loved musical Chicago will be performed.

Created by US theatre stalwarts John Kander and Fred Ebb, it features choreography by Bob Fosse.

A glamorous tale of love and deceit, Chicago went on to become a mainstay of New York’s Broadway and London’s West End.

A lot of its appeal comes down to its catchy tunes, such as Razzle Dazzle, Cell Block Tango and All That Jazz.

Show starts at 8.30pm; tickets from $25

More information is available at beiteddine.org