Ahmed El Attar's 'Salma, mon amour' at Avignon Festival tackles Gaza and Generation Z

Egyptian director Ahmed El Attar presents 'Salma, mon amour' at the 2026 Festival d'Avignon, a play centered on an ultra-wealthy Cairo family whose TikTok-addicted daughter, Salma, becomes an activist for justice after the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack and the subsequent Gaza genocide. The work explores the generational divide and the moral choices facing today's youth, whom El Attar calls the 'sacrificed generation.' The play is not about October 7 or the genocide itself but about the future and how young people, immersed in screens and media, navigate a world of destruction, conflict, rising far-right movements, and ecological collapse. El Attar emphasizes that art should offer a different perspective than news reports or documentaries. The set features a forest of black bars, symbolizing the labyrinthine constraints of life. The play includes warnings about fake weapons and gunshots, which El Attar critiques as excessive Western caution. 'Salma, mon amour' runs during the 2026 Avignon Festival, with performances starting July 8.