Past Performing Arts | Music

El Khat

Ohio Premiere

Three members sit in chairs in front of two large frames featuring red, black, and white patterns. Band leader Eyal El Wahab sits in the forefront.
Nov 09, 2023 8:00 PM
Performance Space

$6 access (suggested)
$12 members, students, and adults 55 and over (suggested)
$18 general public (suggested)
$36 access sponsor (suggested)

We believe the arts are for everyone.
By providing personal choice on ticket pricing, we seek to reduce barriers to the arts. Please choose the ticket price that is right for you based on your own needs. If you are able, please consider paying access sponsor pricing, which generously supports these efforts to provide access to our communities.

ACCESSIBILITY
We strive to host inclusive, accessible events that enable all individuals, including individuals with disabilities, to engage fully. If you have questions about accessibility or require an accommodation such as CART captioning or ASL interpretation to participate in this event, please email accessibility@wexarts.org or call (614) 688-3890. Requests made by two weeks in advance will generally allow us to provide seamless access, but the Wexner Center for the Arts will make every effort to meet requests made after this date.

Become a Member

Get lost in the sounds of El Khat, an international group from Tel Aviv on a mission to recover their roots.

El Khat, led by multi-instrumentalist Eyal El Wahab of Yemeni descent, makes heartfelt folk music with love for a culture that has been brutally disenfranchised. Named after the addictive leaf that has been chewed socially in the Arab peninsula for over 600 years, El Khat’s sound creates a similar euphoria with an orchestra of percussion, strings, and the band’s own custom-built instruments. Drawing influence from a collection of Yemeni folk and pop records of the 1960s, El Wahab creates deep dives into Yemen’s sonic past from a contemporary perspective. Made with skill and subtle humanity, El Khat’s music is otherworldly yet grounded in today’s realities of war and displacement. (program approx. 60–75 mins.)

IMAGE CAPTION 
El Khat, photo: Hila Ahwal.

Know before you go

  • This performance has cabaret-style seating.
"It’s a bit like pop music, where the soul is four chords and a melody. The difference is in the expression."
Eyal El Wahab

Learn more

Tag(s)

PERFORMING ARTS PROGRAMS MADE POSSIBLE BY
Doris Duke Foundation

WEXNER CENTER PROGRAMS MADE POSSIBLE BY
Ohio Department of Development
Greater Columbus Arts Council
The Wexner Family
Institute of Museum and Library Services
Ohio Arts Council
CampusParc
Ohio State’s Global Arts + Humanities Discovery Theme
The Columbus Foundation
Nationwide Foundation
Vorys, Sater, Seymour, and Pease

ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY
Mike and Paige Crane
Axium Packaging
Nancy Kramer
Ohio State Energy Partners
Ohio History Fund/Ohio History Connection
Larry and Donna James
Bruce and Joy Soll
Jones Day
Alex and Renée Shumate

Close

Past Performing Arts

El Khat

Nov 09, 2023 8:00 PM EST
Performance Space

$6 access (suggested)
$12 members, students, and adults 55 and over (suggested)
$18 general public (suggested)
$36 access sponsor (suggested)

We believe the arts are for everyone.
By providing personal choice on ticket pricing, we seek to reduce barriers to the arts. Please choose the ticket price that is right for you based on your own needs. If you are able, please consider paying access sponsor pricing, which generously supports these efforts to provide access to our communities.

ACCESSIBILITY
We strive to host inclusive, accessible events that enable all individuals, including individuals with disabilities, to engage fully. If you have questions about accessibility or require an accommodation such as CART captioning or ASL interpretation to participate in this event, please email accessibility@wexarts.org or call (614) 688-3890. Requests made by two weeks in advance will generally allow us to provide seamless access, but the Wexner Center for the Arts will make every effort to meet requests made after this date.

Become a Member