While most people are still waiting to see how the sociopolitical upheavals in Egypt will affect the rest of the Middle East, at least one man isn’t afraid to dive into the fray: Actor/director/impressionist Kevin Spacey has announced plans to start a traveling theater arts academy in the Middle East. While preparing to host the Laureus sports awards in Abu Dhabi (apparently James Franco was busy), Spacey held a press conference in Dubai announcing his new endeavor, and revealing that it would be jointly funded by both the Kevin Spacey Foundation and Badr Jafar, executive director of Crescent Petroleum and Crescent Investments. Spacey himself is no stranger to international theater, as he’s been serving as the artistic director of London’s Old Vic Theater since 2003. With no specific home base, the Middle East Theater Academy will travel the lands providing a wide range of theater instruction, and offering a path for Middle Eastern works to reach Broadway and beyond. Don’t expect to see a Lebanese Fiddler On The Roof anytime soon, obviously, but maybe a Jordanian Chorus Line?
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