Lebanese star Najwa Karam thrills crowds at Jerash festival

The songstress performed in a flowing white gown adorned with flowers at the Southern Theatre in Jordan

Lebanese singer Najwa Karam performs in the ancient Roman city of Jerash on the opening night of the annual Jerash Festival of Culture and Arts. All photos by AFP

Lebanese singer Najwa Karam performs in the ancient Roman city of Jerash, a popular attraction 50 kms north of Jordan's capital Amman, on the opening night of the annual Jerash Festival of Culture and Arts, late on September 23, 2021. (Photo by Khalil MAZRAAWI / AFP)

Karam performed her newest single 'Saher Ouloub' which she released in August.

Karam earned the moniker Shams el-Ghinnieh ("The Sun of Song").

The show took place at the Southern Theatre, the largest in Jerash.

The audience wave the Lebanese flag in the ancient Roman city of Jerash

The Jerash Festival was founded in 1981 by Queen Noor and features performances by Jordanian, Arab and foreign artists

The second day of Jordan's Jerash Festival culminated in a rousing concert from Lebanese singer Najwa Karam.

Taking to the stage for the 35th season of the festival, Karam wore a long flowing white gown, adorned with flowers and a gold band around her waist.

The singer, who made her debut as a judge on Arabs Got Talent this year, entertained the crowd with some of her most popular songs, including the newly released Saher Ouloub.

Fans in the audience waved the Lebanese flag as the songstress, who has been a luminary of Arabic pop music for more than three decades, performed.

Before her show, Karam shared a video on her Instagram page which showed her receiving a VIP welcome as she flew over Amman in a helicopter. Dressed in an all-white suit, the singer was greeted by fans in Jerash and presented with flowers and a white cape. In the video, she can be seen singing in the street as she stands underneath a Jordanian and a Lebanese flag.

Karam's performance on Thursday took place at the Southern Theatre. The largest in Jerash, this Roman theatre was built in the first century and can accommodate up to 4,000 spectators.

It was the second big concert of the festival. At the opening night on Wednesday, Lebanese singer Majida El Roumi fainted on stage. After taking a short break, she returned to complete her set.

The festival runs until Saturday, October 2, with the line-up featuring some of the leading names in Arabic pop.

It encompass several historic sites around Jerash, including the Temple of Artemis and Cardo Maximus, an 800-metre-long walkway flanked by around a thousand columns.

Among Jordan’s most visited attractions, Jerash has some of the world’s best-preserved Greco-Roman architecture, earning it the nickname Pompeii of the East. Though tourists flock to the Jordanian city year-round, Jerash experiences a surge in its population during the festival, attracting tens of thousands of visitors.

The festival was founded in 1981 by then Queen Noor Al Hussein and is among the biggest cultural events in the Middle East and its bill often features some of the most recognisable names in Arabic pop.