Raphael Cormack

Visiting Scholar (Academic Year 2019-2020)

Raphael Cormack has a PhD in Arabic literature from the University of Edinburgh. His thesis looked at 20th Century Egyptian translations and adaptations of Sophocles’ play Oedipus Rex. His primary research interests include Arabic theatre, literature and popular culture as well as the reception of Ancient Greek literature in the modern Arab world.

He is also an active translator from Arabic to English and has edited two collections of modern Arabic short stories, The Book of Khartoum (Comma Press, 2016 [with Max Shmookler]) and The Book of Cairo (Comma Press, 2019).

At Columbia he will be researching Cairo’s early 20th century entertainment scene, with a particular focus on female actresses, dancers, singers and film makers. His book on the subject is forthcoming in 2020 with Saqi Books.