Master of siah-bazi Sadi Afshar dies at 79

TEHRAN,April 20(MNA) -- Sadi Afshar, the master of siah-bazi, a type of Iranian folk dramatic performing art, died at his home in Tehran on Friday at the age of 79. He was suffering from a lung infection and osteoporosis, the Persian media outlets reported. Siah-bazi is a type of Iranian folk play featuring a blackfaced harlequin who stirs the audience to laughter with amusing improvisations. Afshar staged many performances in Iran and other countries during his lifelong career in this genre of Iranian dramatic art. He was so dedicated to his work that once during an interview he had expressed his wish to die on stage.