Umm Kulthum & The Golden Era

Saudi theatre producer Mona Khashoggi is bringing this acclaimed musical biography back to Dubai Opera after sell-out seasons in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Bahrain. For thousands of Arabs, Umm Kulthum’s death in 1975 was particularly personal and shocking: “my family grieved as though we’d lost a family member,” Khashoggi wrote. The show tells the life story of Umm Kulthum, the most famous songstress of Egypt and the Arab world, from the 1920s to the 1970s – culminating in a grand concert at the Olympia in Paris.

The role of Umm Kulthum will be performed by Syrian opera singer Lubana Al-Quntar, and with a live orchestra we’re promised iconic songs from different eras of Umm Kulthum’s canon – including classics such as Ghanili, Alf Laylah, Serat el Hob and Hob Eyh.

There are further performances at 2pm and 8pm on 13 October.