For war-weary Syrians, Damascus Opera brings welcome respite

After years of war forced it into near silence, Damascus’ once-thriving Opera House is slowly coming back to life, bringing respite and a little culture to residents of Syria’s capital.

Recent weeks have seen a sharp increase in the number of performances at the Opera House, as residents look to revive some of the capital’s cultural life despite a civil war that has killed more than 200,000 people.

For Darin, a young woman from a Damascus suburb hit by heavy fighting, the performances have been a welcome break.

“When the concert begins, when the first note of the piece is played, I’m taken to another world where I can forget about the noise of war,” she told AFP as she wandered the halls of the Opera House in central Damascus.

“We’re hungry for art. We need to escape… and to give ourselves a boost of positive energy to keep on living.”

Original article by Rim Haddad

Continue reading at Arabian Business:

For war-weary Syrians, Damascus Opera brings welcome respite