Theatre Gemmayze, built 125 years ago in the heart of Beirut, is one of the oldest theatres in the Middle East. The massive explosion on the 4th of August that ripped through the Lebanese capital’s historic Gemmayze district shattered the theatre and the campus of the Sacre-Coeur School where it is located.

The school before the explosions

Theatre Gemmayze was a hub for educational, cultural and academic activities. It had become a haven for artists and a refuge for spectators of all backgrounds. While it has geared many of its activities to serve underprivileged children which is part of its mission, the theatre has hosted a long list of plays, concerts, performances and weekly educational workshops as artists from around the world flocked to it. The theatre was used regularly for fundraising activities with proceeds going towards the education of children in need. The blast devastated the school campus and the theatre sustained damage to both the external and internal walls and the backstage area. Doors, windows, the ceiling, stage, lighting, sound and electrical supply were all destroyed. The century-old cedar wood doors and windows, remnants of its golden era, were shattered. The outside sandstone walls have gaping holes, which urgently need repair before the onset of winter and the rainy season. We need your urgent help to rebuild Theatre Gemmayze and preserve the stone, wood and glass. We also need help to continue to provide thousands of Lebanese young people with culture and art and maintain this opening to the world that nurtures cultural exchange and ensures that Lebanon regains its place as a hub of openness, creativity and tolerance.

Your donations will be used for the reconstruction of the theatre while maintaining its original architectural details, refurbishing its interiors with needed equipment in order  to pursue our community-based art therapy activities in the months to come. 

Thank you for helping us give a space to hope to people whose lives have been devastated by this tragedy.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ABOUT US:

Alphabetical Order of Lebanon is an independent charity incorporated in England & Wales with a board of trustees comprising members of the Lebanese diaspora and Lebanese resident nationals. The operations of our organisation are carried out by an all-volunteer staff led by an executive director based in Lebanon.

alphabeticalorder.org

OUR MISSION:

Our purpose is to bring about social change in Lebanon, through education, increased free will and improved social, physical and economic well-being for its people.

OUR WORK:

Our teams of volunteers in Lebanon and overseas currently work to repair disaster struck homes, schools and community facilities and to provide school grants for children from lower-income families.