Biographies: Dawlat Abyad - Actor

Biographies

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An Egyptian actress, born in Assiut in 1896. Her mother was of Russian descent and her father was a translator for the Ministry of Defense in Sudan. She studied at a Catholic school in Khartoum, where her father worked. She was discovered by the artist Aziz Eid in 1917, and she played her first role in The Countess, then she acted in Beware of Emily, and The Wedding Night. In 1923 she married George Abyad, whose troupe she joined. She traveled to Syria with Amin Atallah's troupe in 1920, then joined Mounira El Mahdeya's troupe. In 1921 she performed in the operetta Sheherazade with Sayed Darwish's troupe, then joined el-Rihani's troupe and performed in Raya and Sakina. She joined Youssef Wahbi's company with her husband in 1923 and participated in the plays of Louis XI, Othello, and others. In 1935, she joined the Egyptian national theatrical company. She starred in many plays, such as King Lear, and Samson and Delilah. She established her own theater in 1944 in Hadayek al-Qubba, and two years later it became a movie theater called Honolulu Cinema. She won a number of accolades and was awarded the State Medal of Arts in 1960.