Tickets for Bahrain Summer Festival's exciting line-up of performances are now on sale at Virgin Megastore in Bahrain City Centre, a leading shopping destination in the kingdom, a report said.

Entitled "A Journey of Joy", the popular annual event will take place during the leisure tourism season as part of Culture Ministry's Manama Capital of Arab Tourism 2013 programme, reported the Gulf Daily News, our sister publication.

The festival will run from August 18 to September 9, and will feature a dazzling line-up of cultural, artistic and musical shows.

Among the performers are stars such as Magida El Roumi, Mohammed Assaf and Fareeda Mohammed Ali, as well as family-friendly shows featuring Barney the Dinosaur and Scooby Doo, and special shows from talented performers from Thailand, Germany, and India.

Tickets for all these shows, except for Ms El Roumi and Mr Assaf, will be available for purchase by public.

The ministry will announce when tickets will go on sale for those two shows in due course.

In her show scheduled for August 18 at the 1,001 seat Bahrain National Theatre, Lebanese living legend Ms El Roumi will perform unforgettable hits from her illustrious career which spans over four decades.

The Bahrain International Exhibition and Conference Centre (BIECC) will serve as the backdrop for the Bahraini debut of Mohammed Assaf on September 1.

The Arab Idol winner will sing a mix of Arabic classics and modern hits, as well as traditional songs from his home country Palestine.

Maqam specialist Fareeda Mohammed Ali, one of the Arab World's pre-eminent female vocalists, is scheduled to perform on September 5 at the Cultural Hall next to Bahrain National Museum.

Only a limited number of seats are available for the performance in which she will perform a selection of her best-known works.

The festival's beloved mascot Nakhool, will be joined this year by the newest member of the festival family, Nakhoola, as he entertains and educates children and parents for the duration of the festival at Nakhool City, located at BIECC. – TradeArabia News Service