Sunday 11 October 2026 · Selva Comedy Cafe, Lisbon
ESTROUBIA — 3al Reyi2 عالرايق
Doors 20:30 · Show 21:00
Arabic · Lebanese Arabic
A concluded BurtuQal stand-up night that brought sharp perspectives and live comedy to Selva Comedy Cafe.
BurtuQal Culture
BurtuQal is a cultural platform shaped by the many voices of Southwest Asia and North Africa and their diasporas. We create space for artists, traditions, and communities whose histories cross languages, borders, and identities, Arab and non-Arab alike. Through music, movement, learning, food, and gathering, we support cultural expression on its own terms and build connections without reducing the region to a single story.
Past event
ESTROUBIA — 3al Reyi2 عالرايق
The journey of the orange
A name that travelled before us
The orange carried its Arabic name across the Mediterranean until it arrived in Portugal, and left again as burtuqal, the word still used from Beirut to Tunis. We work in that same direction of travel: culture that moves, is translated, and returns changed.
Encounters, not showcases
Every BurtuQal night is built around a real meeting: a Tunisian voice at Capitólio, Arabic standup in a Lisbon theatre, a music night where the room sings back. We produce the whole thing: artists, venue, translation, and the audience that makes it matter.
Read our story →Learn with us
Three ways to learn with us
Small live groups, taught by artists and teachers from the region, in language, movement and craft.
- Explore Arabic
Levantine Arabic
Speak from the first lesson, online and in a small group.
- Explore Dabke
Palestinian Dabke
Learn the steps shoulder to shoulder, in a Lisbon studio.
- Explore Ceramics
Ceramics
Shape clay by hand and take your own piece home.
Recently concluded
Recent events
Work with us
Bring something to the stage with us
Artists, venues, translators, volunteers and audiences all shape what BurtuQal can programme next. If you have an idea, or want to help the next night happen, we would like to hear from you.