• Daughters of Dissidents Need Not Apply: Book Launch with Nadina Ronc

    Kutubna Cultural Center Madina Avenues 17, Nadd Al Hamar, Dubai

    Nadina Ronc’s powerful memoir Daughters of Dissidents Need Not Apply chronicles her journey from fleeing war-torn Bosnia as a child to becoming an internationally recognized journalist and political analyst, touching on the long-lasting impacts of displacement and the challenges of [ ... ]

    Free
  • Bombino

    Dubai Opera

    Born in 1980 in a nomadic Tuareg encampment just outside Agadez in Niger, Bombino (born Goumour Almoctar, also known as Oumara Moctar) came of age during much political upheaval, fleeing with his family to Algeria by 1990, and teaching himself [ ... ]

    From AED 290
  • Francesca Dego

    Dubai Opera Studio Downtown Dubai, Dubai

    Celebrated both as a recitalist and as a concerto performer, the virtuoso Italian American violinist Francesca Dego will be playing Brahms' Violin Sonata No.2 and his Scherzo from the collaborative F-A-E  Sonata. And after the interval we'll get Beethoven's Violin [ ... ]

    AED500
  • The Laughter Factory

    Dukes The Palm Palm Dubai, Dubai

    The final stop for this month's rather good Laughter Factory tour, with a headliner who deserves to be massive on the comedy circuit (he's pretty big now, but catch him while you can still get a ticket at a reasonable [ ... ]

    AED 160
  • Nadine Ghandour: Rooms for Error

    Bayt AlMamzar House 2, 26 Street, Al Mamzar, Dubai

    Nadine Ghandour’s first solo exhibition in the UAE, curated by Dawn Ross, features recent works informed by her experiences in various cities, including Dubai, Sharjah, Cairo and Rotterdam. Working with drawing, writing, performance and sculpture, Ghandour creates works that depict imagined [ ... ]

    Free
  • Hold the Mushrooms

    Live@Play by Hive 24b Street, Al Quoz 4, Dubai

    The final performance for this play about a close-knit family whose dynamic is altered when the daughter introduces her boyfriend into their world: it's about relationships, value systems, and prejudices – how we are unable to express ourselves and how [ ... ]

    AED 100
  • Public Art Abu Dhabi Biennial: Bik Van der Pol’s The poem that jumps the fence

    Abu Dhabi Beach Al Hisn Street, Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

    Artist duo Bik Van der Pol (Liesbeth Bik and Jos Van der Pol) engage in collaborative projects on how art constructs public spaces for speculative thought and collective creativity. The poem that jumps the fence features weekly performances on Abu [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • Bo-ri: dir Kim Jinyu (2018)

    Manarat al Saadiyat Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

    Bo-ri, an 11-year-old girl in a seaside village, is the only family member who can hear; she becomes more and more accustomed to talking with her school friends while finding it hard to communicate with her family in sign language. [ ... ]

    Free
  • Strings & Dreams : A French Classical Music Journey

    Dubai Opera Studio Downtown Dubai, Dubai

    The Baldaquin Ensemble – featuring cellist Petr Gladysh and violists Anna Larionova-Gladysh, Sergei Belozertsev, and Daria Kuchenova – presents a concert of French romantic crowd-pleasers: Debussy Clair de Lune arr for string quartet Debussy String Quartet in G mino Fauré [ ... ]

    AED 430
  • Remote Al Ain by Rimini Protokoll

    Rimini Protokoll pushes the boundaries of conventional theatre. During this performance walk within the collective’s ‘Remote X’ series (2013–ongoing), you are invited to explore the growing presence of artificial intelligence in future cities; for this tour, designed specifically for Al [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • Performance Soiree: 421 Performance Co//ective Showcase

    421 Arts Campus Mina Zayed, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

    Performance Co//ective’s first showcase, featuring performances by the programme’s first cohort. These works, co-facilitated by Mary Chase and Carlos Paez Gonzalez, are the culmination of months of exploration in movement, writing, vocal expression, and more. Afterwards there's an opportunity to [ ... ]

    Free
  • Monday Night Comedy: This Is Impro & Ahmed

    Courtyard Playhouse Street 4B, Al Quoz 1, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    One of the Coutryard's two-act evenings of spontaneous scenes and stories based on audience suggestions. First up is the regular Monday evening mix of scenes, stories and narrative improvisation from some of the Courtyard Playhouse's most experienced improv performers plus [ ... ]

    Free but donations welcome
  • Arooj Aftab

    Zabeel Theatre Jumeirah Zabeel Saray, Palm Jumeirah West Crescent, Dubai

    The uber-cool Pakistani-American singer (and songwriter, and producer) brings her latest – and very good – album Night Reign to Dubai. It's elegantly jazzy, earning a 2024 Grammy nomination for Best Alternative Jazz Album (she didn't win: it was a [ ... ]

    From AED 245
  • Wednesday Night Impro: Maestro

    Courtyard Playhouse Street 4B, Al Quoz 1, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    The Courtyard's most peopular 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 [ ... ]

    Free but donations welcome
  • Max Richter

    Dubai Opera

    Max Richter, a leading figure in contemporary classical music and top film scores (and something of a favourite with Dubai audiences), is touring his latest studio album In a Landscape – field recordings from his travels and from around the [ ... ]

    From AED 330
  • Perfect Days: dir Wim Wenders (2023)

    Manarat al Saadiyat Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

    Writer-director Wim Wenders tells a Tokyo-set story that celebrates the hidden joys and minutiae of Japanese culture . Winner of Best Actor at Cannes 2023, Koji Yakusho stars as Hirayama, a contemplative middle-aged man who lives a life of modesty [ ... ]

    Free
  • PowerPointless Networking Night

    Courtyard Playhouse Street 4B, Al Quoz 1, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    One of the most consistently funny of the Courtyard's classic improv gigs is back after a couple of months' hiatus: the speakers have to give a presentation on a slide deck they’ve never seen before, with the topic determined at [ ... ]

    Free
  • LAST CHANCE Imprinted Narratives. Stories of a Nation Through Postal Stamps

    Etihad Museum 1 Jumeirah St, Dubai

    This exhibition, curated by researcher and architect Rashed Al Mulla, revisits key moments in the UAE's history through examples of the country's postage stamps that highlight achievements in education, science, environmental Awareness, and international collaboration.

    General admission AED 25
  • LAST CHANCE Paresh Maity: Cricket’s Greatest Canvas

    Taj Dubai Burj Khalifa St, Business Bay, Dubai

    Maity’s first solo exhibition in Dubai celebrates the intersection of art and sport via a dozen works inspired by the 2023 ICC Men’s World Cup; the large-scale acrylics are signed by winning captains, too.

    Free
  • Carmina Burana

    Emirates Palace Abu Dhabi

    Carl Orff's choral crowdpleaser gets the full production from Dubai Singers & Orchestra – some 120 singers accompanied by a 50-piece orchestra. It will be conducted by Dubai Singers' Music Director Jennie Lee-Foster, The performance will feature a trio of [ ... ]

    From AED 100
  • Public Art Abu Dhabi Biennial: Bik Van der Pol’s The poem that jumps the fence

    Abu Dhabi Beach Al Hisn Street, Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

    Artist duo Bik Van der Pol (Liesbeth Bik and Jos Van der Pol) engage in collaborative projects on how art constructs public spaces for speculative thought and collective creativity. The poem that jumps the fence features weekly performances on Abu [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • Monday Night Comedy: This Is Impro & Film Noir

    Courtyard Playhouse Street 4B, Al Quoz 1, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    One of the Coutryard's two-act evenings of spontaneous scenes and stories based on audience suggestions. First up is the regular Monday evening mix of scenes, stories and narrative improvisation from some of the Courtyard Playhouse's most experienced improv performers plus [ ... ]

    Free
  • Mariana Oushiro: The Higher We Soar

    Volery Gallery Maze Tower - 5201, Dubai International Financial Center, Dubai

    This solo exhibition by the Japanese-Brazilian artist marks the culmination of her V-Residency programme at Volery, during which Oushiro has developed a new body of work that (according the gallery) "pushes the boundaries of abstraction, inviting the viewer into a [ ... ]

    Free
  • Book Launch: Short Circuits by Vikram Divecha

    NYUAD Art Gallery Saadiyat, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

    The Abu Dhabi launch of Vikram Divecha's book has Divecha in conversation with his co-editors, Lucas Morin and Dawn Ross, alongside contributors Sabih Ahmed and Gayatri Gopinath. It's moderated by Duygu Demir, NYUAD Art Gallery Curator. Short Circuits features essays, interviews, [ ... ]

    Free
  • Wednesday Night Impro: Women’s Maestro

    Courtyard Playhouse Street 4B, Al Quoz 1, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    The Courtyard's most peopular evening of elimination improv in an all-female version for one night only, in celebration of International Women’s Day, Ten of Dubai’s virtuoso female actors converge for a night of scenes, songs and games based on audience [ ... ]

    Free
  • LAST CHANCE Zineb Sedira: A way of surviving, a way of life …

    Cultural Foundation Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum Street, Abu Dhabi

    Sedira's films represent a profound archival exploration of identity, and cultural activism. Born in 1963 to Algerian parents, her work is deeply rooted in her self-narration but also sheds light on broader, interconnected global anxieties surrounding cultural emancipation and diaspora. [ ... ]

    Free
  • Thousand Nights and One

    The Junction Unit H72, Alserkal Avenue, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    "A mesmerising tapestry of tales" promises the blurb. Written and directed by Rasika Agashe, it's a magical look at the fate of Scheherazade, the narrator of the original ‘One Thousand and One Nights’. Rasika Agashe says she has long been [ ... ]

    AED 100
  • Women and Literature

    Bait Al Naboodah Heart of Sharjah, Sharjah

    An event in celebration of International Women's Day that features a panel discussion with Emirati writer Salha Obaid, a bookmark-making workshop, and a live calligraphy performance.

    Free, but pre-register
  • Public Art Abu Dhabi Biennial: Bik Van der Pol’s The poem that jumps the fence

    Abu Dhabi Beach Al Hisn Street, Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

    Artist duo Bik Van der Pol (Liesbeth Bik and Jos Van der Pol) engage in collaborative projects on how art constructs public spaces for speculative thought and collective creativity. The poem that jumps the fence features weekly performances on Abu [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • Thousand Nights and One

    The Junction Unit H72, Alserkal Avenue, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    The second performance of this retelling of One Thousand and One Nights, written and directed by Rasika Agashe who has approached the Arabian Nights stories as the account of strong women navigating their survival through storytelling.

    AED 100
  • LAST CHANCE Hot Spots

    Sotheby’s Dubai DIFC Gate Village Building No3, Unit 01, Level B2, Dubai

    The second in The Gallery Collective, a series of sort-of gallery takeovers whereby Sotheby's Dubai is giving its DIFC exhibition space over to a series of local galleries in a two-year run starting in November. Every six to eight weeks, [ ... ]

    Free
  • The Art of Curation: Women at the Forefront of Cultural Dialogue

    Bassam Freiha Art Foundation Cultural District Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi

    A panel discussion in celebration of International Women’s Day, featuring a group of top female curators with local connections. Speakers: Suheyla Takesh Director, Barjeel Art Foundation Paz Monge Museum Curator, Guggenheim Chimere Cissé Founder, Art|Kōrero and STELLA Alliance Moderated by [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • Monday Night Comedy: This Is Impro & Film Noir

    Courtyard Playhouse Street 4B, Al Quoz 1, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    One of the Coutryard's two-act evenings of spontaneous scenes and stories based on audience suggestions. First up is the regular Monday evening mix of scenes, stories and narrative improvisation from some of the Courtyard Playhouse's most experienced improv performers plus [ ... ]

    Free
  • LAST CHANCE Mobius Design Studio: Crystal No.6

    NYUAD Arts Centre Project Space

    This exhibition celebrates the historic Dubai neighbourhood of Freej Al MurarFreej Al Murar as a living archive of artistry, community, and resilience. In this research project, Sharjah-based Mobius Design Studio – led by Hadeyeh Badri, Hala Al-Ani, and Riem Ibrahim [ ... ]

    Free
  • Dmitry Suhov: Images of the Unconscious

    Oblong Contemporary Art Gallery Al Khayat Art Avenue, Al Quoz, Dubai

    A solo exhibition for the Russian artist and sculptor, showcasing large-scale abstract paintings and double-sided sculptural steles. Curated by Oblong Contemporary's owner Paola Marucci, art historian Elena Zaytseva, and Lena Lenskaya from Lenskaya Design Bureau, the exhibition promises "a unique [ ... ]

  • Wednesday Night Impro: Maestro

    Courtyard Playhouse Street 4B, Al Quoz 1, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    The Courtyard's most peopular 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 [ ... ]

    Free
  • Benjamin Malick: Tales of Sarab

    La Ville City Walk, Al Multaqa St, Dubai

    Benjamin Malick, who recently established a studio at Hatta, has been working on a major body of work titled Tales of Sarab which documents his experiences since arriving in the UAE in 2020 – a project that has given him [ ... ]

    Free
  • The Prism: Project Oneness / Trust, Gratitude, and Love Journey

    Bassam Freiha Art Foundation Cultural District Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi

    "An immersive exploration of The Prism’s distinctive artistic vision ... Going beyond aesthetics, these exhibitions create emotionally and spiritually resonant experiences, transforming light and space to challenge perceptions and inspire deep reflection ... Through dynamic interplays of form, colour, and [ ... ]

    Free
  • Charade: dir Stanley Donen (1963)

    kanvas Dubai Unit 1, Al Khayat Art Avenue, 19th Street Al Quoz 1, Dubai

    Stanley Donen’s Paris-set romantic screwball / comedy / mystery film has been described as "the best Hitchcock film Hitchcock never made" – it has a genius plot, an elegant (or kitschy, depending on your tastes) vibe, and real chemistry between [ ... ]

    AED 50
  • Le Porteur d’Histoire

    The Junction Unit H72, Alserkal Avenue, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    La Troupe de Culture Emulsion (Dubai's only Francophone theatre group?) presents Alexis Michalik's massively popular theatrical tour de force – a literary treasure hunt that takes its audience through several eras and several lands in the company of a multitude [ ... ]

    AED 150
  • Le Porteur d’Histoire

    The Junction Unit H72, Alserkal Avenue, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    Second performance (of three) for Culture Emulsion's production of Alexis Michalik's massively popular theatrical tour de force – a literary treasure hunt that takes its audience through several eras and several lands in the company of a multitude of colourful [ ... ]

    AED 150
  • Artist talk: Athar Jaber

    Ayyam Gallery B11, Alserkal Avenue, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    Barjeel Art Foundation founder and noted cultural commentator Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi talks with Athar Jaber about the artist's practice, life, and thoughts. Athar Jaber’s first solo show at Ayyam Gallery, titled Vestiges, is midway through its run (to 1 [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • LAST CHANCE Three Tired Tigers

    Jameel Arts Centre Al Jaddaf, Dubai

    Bringing together more than 40 artists and collectives, drawing from politics, history, economics and urbanism, this exhibition takes a playful yet serious approach to how animals navigate and thrive within the gaps of urban environments. What happens when animals escape [ ... ]

    Free
  • Public Art Abu Dhabi Biennial: Bik Van der Pol’s The poem that jumps the fence

    Abu Dhabi Beach Al Hisn Street, Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

    Artist duo Bik Van der Pol (Liesbeth Bik and Jos Van der Pol) engage in collaborative projects on how art constructs public spaces for speculative thought and collective creativity. The poem that jumps the fence features weekly performances on Abu [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register