Haythem Noor

Haythem Noor was born in Cairo, Egypt and raised in Italy. He moved to the U.S. in 1995. Haythem was exposed to acting at a very young age from watching Egyptian black and white movies with his mother. "I kept watching movies for the same actor for a number of years. Later on I learned that this actor is my mother's brother, legend Kamal Elshinnawi" he says. When Haythem's half brother Amr Youssri began his acting career in Egypt as well, Haythem's goal as an actor began to cluster.

Haythem's debut performance came at the University of Alexandria at the age of 17. "I've always known that I belong to film and theater industry, but did not know how to go about it" Noor states. After training with the Atlantic Theater Company and Esper Studio, he has landed various acting gigs and his career continues to grow.

Haythem holds a B.A in Economics from CCNY and is about to graduate the 2 year program from Esper studio. He came to realize the importance of training next to talent. "The best thing I've ever done for myself and my craft was to study under this brilliant William Esper" he adds. Noor has recently appeared on Law & Order - SVU, Law & Order, Without a Trace, Third Watch, theater, various independent films and more.

Haythem started as the Palestinian Shepherd (Ismail) in Misha Schulman's play Desert Sunrise, where he was described by The New York Times as "haunting and caustic".

This is Haythem's fourth appearance with the New York Arab-American Comedy Festival.