Riad Ismat

Riad Ismat رياض عصمت
Minister of Culture
Incumbent
Assumed office 14 April 2011
President	Bashar al-Assad
Prime Minister	Adel Safar
Preceded by	self
Minister of Culture
In office 3 October 2010 – 29 March 2011
President	Bashar al-Assad
Prime Minister	Muhammad Naji al-Otari
Preceded by	Riyad Naasan Agha
Succeeded by	self
Personal details
Born	July 11, 1947 (1947-07-11) (age 64)[citation needed] Damascus, Syria[citation needed]
Alma mater	Damascus University, University College, Cardiff, World University[citation needed]

Mohammad Riyad Hussein 'Riad' Ismat (Arabic: رياض عصمت‎) (born 11 July 1947)^{[citation needed]} is the Syrian Minister of Culture, serving since 2010. He is also a writer, critic and director.

Early life, education and career

In 2003, Ismat became Director General of Syrian State Radio & Television; then, held the post of Syrian Vice-Minister of Culture. In 2005 he was appointed Ambassador to Pakistan and, in 2010, Syrian Ambassador to Qatar. In October 2010, Ismat was appointed Syrian Minister of Culture.^[1]

Theatre

Ismat has directed more than 15 theatrical productions, including interpretations of Shakespeare, Tennessee Williams and Frank Wedekind, as well as producing his own personal vision of The Arabian Nights. He founded the first mime troupe in Damascus and taught mime and acting at the Syrian Academy of Dramatic Arts. His breakthrough as a playwright came with The Game of Love & Revolution; among his best known dramatic works are: Was Dinner Good my Sister, Mourning Becomes Antigone, Sinbad, Shahryar's Nights, Abla & Antar, Mata Hari and In Search of Zenobia. Ismat also directed a television trilogy for Syrian TV.

Publications

Ismat has published 33 books, including short stories and several books on Arab and World drama. He has also written a book on the Nobel Prize laureate Naguib Mahfouz and a book on cinema. As a television script writer, he has written the scripts for 7 TV serials.

See also

• Cabinet of Syria

References

1. ^ "Syria's Assad replaces two ministers". France 24. 03 October 2010. http://www.france24.com/en/20101003-syrias-assad-replaces-two-ministers. Retrieved 14 December 2010. 

• Minister of Culture Mohammad Riyad Hussein Ismat, SANA
• Biography of the new Syrian government 2011 - the names and lives of government ministers, Syria FM, 17 April 2011

External links

• Ministry of Culture official government website
• Riad Ismat at the Internet Movie Database
• Works by or about Riad Ismat in libraries (WorldCat catalog)

Persondata
Name	Ismat, Riad
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	11 July 1947
Place of birth	Damascus, Syria
Date of death
Place of death