Memorial honors Monther Helmi, pioneer of Iraqi theater

BAGHDAD — The Al-Mada Foundation for Culture and Arts held a memorial Friday for late actor Monther Helmi, a veteran of Iraq’s theater scene whose legacy spans decades of performance at home and in exile. The event took place at the foundation’s headquarters on Mutanabbi Street and drew critics, directors, and artists who praised Helmi’s unique talent and lamented the lack of formal recognition he received in his lifetime.

“The late Monther Helmi was a first-rate stage actor, with a spirit of irony and comedy, and a very intelligent ability to reinterpret the art of acting,” said theater critic and session director Saad Aziz. “He was different in his performance style.”

Helmi, born in 1936 in Baghdad’s Rahmaniyah neighborhood, began acting in the 1950s and continued his work abroad until his death in exile in 2011. Though he never graduated from a formal arts institute, Helmi became a founding member of Al-Masrah Al-Youm and collaborated with several major theater troupes, including the National Acting Troupe and the People’s Theater Group.

His stage credits include Al-Mood wa al-Qadiyah, Al-Ghareeb, Dairat al-Fahm al-Baghdadiyah, Al-Su’al, and Rouh Elianora.

“He was one of the important actors who gave the performer a central role on stage,” said filmmaker Hikmat Dawood, who recalled working with Helmi at the Artists Syndicate’s theater committee. “He was a cultured, conscious, and committed actor.”

Dawood described Helmi as a refined artist who could bring both folk and historical figures to life. He noted that their last meeting took place in Damascus, part of Helmi’s extended career abroad that also included time in Bulgaria, Yemen, Syria, Beirut, and Germany.

Attendees at Friday’s event expressed regret that Helmi’s contributions had not been more thoroughly documented or publicly honored. “He was a model of professionalism and refinement,” Dawood said.