magpie has long been a fan of the Sharjah Light Festival, the 14th edition of which runs 3 to 15 February. By contrast with the newer Manar Abu Dhabi and Dhai Dubai light art festivals, SLF generally takes a more [... more]
Animenia returns to Manarat Al Saadiyat with five days of cosplay, music, food, and J-pop culture – “step inside a world inspired by the hidden corners of Neo-Tokyo, where glowing signs, colourful characters, and offbeat discoveries bring anime culture to [... more]
Works by Yoshi (Aisha Al Ali), Ammar Al Banna, Ahmed Al Kuwaiti and Shaikha Al Shamsi. The theme is time as both a material and emotional presence, expressed through processes of transformation, memory, repetition, and decay – so time not [... more]
Metro Diaries invites audiences to step into a world that reflects the rhythm of daily metro rides through evocative performances that blend spoken word, dance, and live soundscapes; the experience unfolds in vignettes that capture fleeting connections, moments of solitude, [... more]
The final performance of this interesting collaboration between the Mumbai-based music and street theatre group Yalgaar Sanskrutik Manch and the Nalanda Arts Studio from Bangalore. Kavan is described as an ‘Ambedkarite Opera' – Ambedkarism being the set of anti-caste ideas associated [... more]
This workshop on subjective storytelling invites participants to experiment with a range of approaches to speaking, writing, or otherwise responding to artworks, by way of the ongoing exhibition (and newly published monograph) Araya Rasdjarmrearnsook: The Bouquet and the Wreath (ends [... more]
First of two stand-up sessions by Dubomedy's finest – graduates of Dubomedy's Fall Stand-up Workshops plus special guests perform fresh new material. Free, but (a) pre-register because spaces are limited and go fast; and (b) there's a minimum spend of [... more]
Anyone who has read Kurt Vonnegut’s powerful SF-infused semi-autobiographical anti-war satire is free to join this Dubai Bibliophiles Book Club meetup. Centring on the infamous WWII firebombing of Dresden, this darkly humorous American cult classic still feels relevant and profoundly [... more]
Second performance for this francophone Midsummer Night's Dream, directed by Stéphane Brismontier and featuring Culture Emulsion's theatre school players. It's described as "d'après l'oeuvre de William Shakespeare", so we're expecting an adaptation that hopefully omits some of the duller jokes [... more]
Second of two stand-up sessions this evening by Dubomedy's finest – graduates of Dubomedy's Fall Stand-up Workshops plus special guests perform fresh new material. Free, but (a) pre-register because spaces are limited and go fast; and (b) there's a minimum [... more]
MadCat’s standup team at their regular stop at the Easy Tiger bar in Abu Dhabi's Al Ain Palace. The door price of AED 99 includes two drinks ...
The Courtyard's popular evening of elimination improv. Ten actors converge for a night of scenes, songs and games based on audience suggestions. After each round you score the players on a scale of 1 to 5, and the one with [... more]
Madcat brings "Dubai's wildest comedy night" to the Fanzone Sports Bar on Palm Jumeirah– "insane laughs" are promised. The door price of AED 99 includes two drinks ...
Bassam Freiha Art Foundation continues its monthly lecture series led by Dr Michaela Watrelot, BFAF Curator and Director of Exhibitions. This time the focus is on one of the most transformative movements in modern art, using works of Monet, Renoir, Degas, [... more]
MadCat Comedy's regular stop in Silicon Oasis promises "insane laughs every week", with a Ramadan-friendly later-than-usual start. The door price of AED 99 includes one drink and popcorn.
Dubomedy's Friday Night Comedy format on Al Hudayriyat. "Audiences can expect big laughs, rotating killer line-ups, and a weekly comedy experience done right ..."
MadCat Comedy's regular standup night at Xandros in Signature 1 Hotel, TECOM. The cover charge of AED 80 includes one drink.
The marmite comedian is back in town with his latest touring show (a stop between dates in Europe and Australia). It's his trademark up-yours to civility – if he hasn't amended the setlist for Dubai you should expect a flurry [... more]
Joseph is Joseph Terterian, purveyor of 'popera' – classics delivered with his operatically powerful voice; Le Petit Orchestre is just what is says, a variable-sized but always compact band of strings, drums, double bass and backing vocals. They really are [... more]
An extended solo exhibition for the Syrian-French artist, curated by Art Jameel’s Lucas Morin. Self-portrait with a cat I don’t have is Bady Dalloul’s first institutional solo exhibition in the United Arab Emirates. Blending autobiographical anecdotes with stories of individuals [... more]
A group exhibition with 15 Arab artists that explores the element of air and its various states through the lens of Arabic terminology, specifically Sukoon, Hawaa, Naseem and Riyah. The exhibition, curated by Dirwaza Curatorial Lab, invites audiences to reconnect [... more]
A solo show celebrating the work of Mohamed Ahmed Ibrahim, a massively influential figure in the development of contemporary art in the UAE. He was part of the UAE's first generation of contemporary artists from the late 1980s, an avant-garde [... more]
Dubomedy's highly successful comedy gig at Hushh in Social Distrikt, later than usual because of Ramadan. "Fantastic lineups, big laughs, and great vibes ... Come hungry, leave happy."
MadCat’s standup team at their regular stop at the Easy Tiger bar in Abu Dhabi's Al Ain Palace. The door price of AED 99 includes two drinks ...
This exhibition of works from the Dubai Collection features artists whose art reimagines landscape and invites a slower, more attentive way of seeing. To 8 March. The fourth edition of Dubai Collection Nights will take place during the second week [... more]
This Ramadan Suhoor talk, hosted by NYU Abu Dhabi in partnership with the Abrahamic Family House as part of the AFH Dialogue | Ramadan Edition, will explore themes of belonging, resilience, and the power of literature to foster shared humanity [... more]
Works resulting from a year of profound transformation initiated by the artist’s journey to Nepal, "where inner awareness and self-observation became central to her practice". Radchenko’s visual language combines painting, collage, symbolism, and layered cultural references, creating compositions that are [... more]
The Courtyard's popular evening of elimination improv. Ten actors converge for a night of scenes, songs and games based on audience suggestions. After each round you score the players on a scale of 1 to 5, and the one with [... more]
The UAE National Orchestra continues its inaugural season with a concert inspired by the words of Ibn Arabi, the Arab scholar, Sufi mystic, poet, and Muslim philosopher from 12th and 13th century al-Andalus. This is the world premiere of a [... more]
More than 50 women graduates have contributed their stories and photographs to this oral history project exploring the experiences of women film graduates in India and the “unremembered” stories of women’s labour in film. Surabhi Sharma, NYUAD Associate Dean for [... more]
The self-styled "World’s Biggest Book Sale” is returning to Sound Stages, Dubai Studio City, from 26 February to 8 March, open daily 10am to midnight with something like two million titles in various genres on sale with prices from AED [... more]
Back for a new season, it’s one of the most consistently funny of the Courtyard's classic improv gigs: the speakers have to give a presentation on a slide deck they’ve never seen before, with the topic determined at random by [... more]
February's Reading Village selection is a beefy one – Kiran Desai's The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny, described by the organisers as "sprawling, layered, and unapologetically thick" and shortlisted for the 2025 Booker Prize. Meet at the excellent Batliwala & [... more]
We came late to Yash Bhardwaj's Flamingo Live comedy club, which we now regret: the man himself is a mainstay of the Dubai comedy scene (appearing this month with the Laughter factory tour), the acts are generally good, and this [... more]
MadCat Comedy's regular stop in Silicon Oasis promises "insane laughs every week", with a Ramadan-friendly later-than-usual start. The door price of AED 99 includes one drink and popcorn.
Founded by Emirati filmmaker and curator Nawaf Al Janahi in 2020, Cineolio‘s mission is focused on promoting short films and expanding their audience reach internationally. Its Cinenights screening series presents a diverse selection of short films on the big screen, [... more]
Post-iftar comedy with the MadCat crew – which in this case means Luca Capani, Roxy Yekta, Denise Alexe, Ahmed Kasid and MadCat's main man Miqdaad D. The AED 75 per person door price is redeemable on F&B at AMG Kaffeehaus. [... more]
MadCat Comedy's regular standup night at Xandros in Signature 1 Hotel, TECOM. The cover charge of AED 80 includes one drink.
A special Ramadan film screening of Zainab Shaheen's debut feature, a coming-of-age story that doubles as a love letter to the landscapes of the UAE. Suhail is a young Emirati with autism, living alone in the Fujairah mountains after his [... more]
The third Third Line solo exhibition by Spanish-Moroccan artist Anuar Khalifi comprises a new body of large-scale paintings and works on paper that represent an evolution in Khalifi’s practice, with increasingly intricate and carefully composed settings expanding the pictorial field. [... more]
Dubomedy's highly successful comedy gig at Hushh in Social Distrikt, later than usual because of Ramadan. "Fantastic lineups, big laughs, and great vibes ... Come hungry, leave happy."
This tour with Dubai Collection Curator Jumanah Abbas of the current exhibition of works from the Collection promises an accessible, close-looking introduction to the exhibition and its key themes. Led through the space with curatorial context, guests will explore how artists [... more]
Exactly what it says: an evening of scenes, stories and narrative improvisation influenced by audience suggestions and featuring the Courtyard Playhouse's most experienced improv performers plus guests. It's free, but you need to put your name on the guestlist (via [... more]
This conversation brings together Dubai Collection patrons Malini Gulrajani and Jafar Dajani in conversation with Hala Khayat to unpack the role collectors play in shaping artistic legacy. The session looks at how patronage evolves across generations, how collections reflect personal [... more]
Adina Hempel, Director of Zayed Institute of Architecture, Heritage, and Arts, and art historian Nada Shabout join Myrna Ayad to discuss the methods, ethics, and urgency of preservation – how stories are documented, how histories are recorded, and how archiving [... more]
Anyone who has read Clark’s sweeping but very accessible vision of cognitive science is free to join this Dubai Bibliophiles Book Club meetup. It’s a great choice: the key takeaway – experience itself is a kind of controlled hallucination because [... more]
Flutist and vocalist Naïssam Jalal and oud master Hazem Shaheen have been friends and collaborators for nearly 20 years, composing and performing an intimate, meditative repertoire that uses just their two instruments and brings together the classical Arabic tradition of [... more]
"Disorientation does not begin with the wandering mind, but with an excess of questioning," says the gallery in introducing this exhibition of the Syria-born Sharjah-based artist's most recent body of work. "In this context, art is not considered a linear [... more]
Without formal art schooling, Nihad Al Turk has developed a distinctive visual language that blends colours, forms, and patterns, "preserving his naïve sensibility while conveying his philosophical outlook and artistic vision". His paintings typically feature anthropomorphic shapes and figures, a [... more]
This tour with Dubai Collection Curator Jumanah Abbas of the current exhibition of works from the Collection promises an accessible, close-looking introduction to the exhibition and its key themes. Led through the space with curatorial context, guests will explore how artists [... more]
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