The Saban Theatre on Wilshire Boulevard will host a concert on Sunday and hopes the community comes together in peace through music. (photo by Tabor Brewster)

A concert featuring Egyptian singer Ahmed Saad will continue as planned at the Saban Theatre on Sunday, May 5, after the musician’s publicist and the theater said they received online harassment and calls to boycott the show.

Saad’s publicist Lanti Eltork said a woman – who Eltork had met once before at a previous concert – began leaving hateful messages online after Eltork announced she was putting together an event in the Saban Theatre, which is owned by Beverly Hills Temple of the Arts, a Jewish synagogue.

“She’s threatening and talking bad about me and other people doing events in the Saban Theatre,” Eltork said.

According to Eltork, the woman falsely alleged that concerts held in the Saban Theatre help fund the Israeli war in Gaza. Eltork said the woman created flyers calling for the boycott of the show and told people not to attend. Eltork said that because of this, Saad’s concert began selling tickets at a lower rate than average.

“It should be sold out,” Eltork said. “I [usually] don’t have any problem with people coming to my events. But this event, because it’s in the Saban Theatre … she’s interfering with my business and the Saban Theatre’s business.”

The historic art-deco Saban Theatre, formerly known as the Fox Wilshire Theater, first opened in 1930 and hosted film screenings and live performances. In 2008, Israeli-American media proprietor Haim Saban and his wife, psychologist Cheryl Saban, donated $5 million to restore the building, and it was subsequently named after them. The Sabans do not own the theater, as it is owned and operated by the Beverly Hills Temple of the Arts, which hosts frequent music and entertainment events.

Beverly Hills Temple of the Arts Rabbi David Baron said the theater was wrongfully targeted by hate.

“We found [the calls to boycott] extremely offensive,” Baron said. “We united with the promoter and said we’re going to encourage all of our Jewish friends who wouldn’t normally maybe go to an Egyptian concert to buy tickets and attend as a show of solidarity against hatred and against exclusion.”

Baron said there has since been an uptick in ticket sales for the concert.

While the theater is home to an important temple for the Jewish community, Baron said it is also a welcoming and inclusive place for people from all different backgrounds to come together and celebrate peace through the arts. Other religious institutions hold services at the theater, including Churchome, a Christian group.

“We encourage every ethnicity not to boycott, but to build bridges of mutual respect and cooperation,” Baron said. “That’s the only path forward, peace through music.”

He said the concert on Sunday is an opportunity for people on all sides of the Israel-Palestine conflict to unite.

“Music is the great uniter of people,” Baron said. “Everyone has a passion for their music. We feel if people will indulge that passion and not hatred and divisiveness, that we can get to a place of peaceful cooperation … We stand shoulder to shoulder with the Egyptian community here in Los Angeles who are going to turn out. And hopefully, many of our Jewish friends and neighbors will also turn out in a show of solidarity to support that community.”

The theater notified the Beverly Hills Police Department of the online comments. Baron said he is unsure of whether there will be protestors outside the concert on Sunday.

“The Beverly Hills Police Department has been made aware and will respond accordingly,” BHPD Lt. Andrew Myers said.

The Saban Theatre is located at 8440 Wilshire Blvd.

For information and tickets, visit californianights.ticketspice.com/ahmed-saad-los-angeles.