• L’amore che ho: dir Paolo Licata (2025)

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

    A classic rags-to-riches story of a fierce, gifted woman who rose against overwhelming odds from gruelling labour in the fields of Sicily to the most prestigious stages and huge audiences. In 1990, the near-legendary Sicilian folk singer Rosa Balistreri was [ ... ]

    AED 25
  • Ali Al Sayed: Ali is Unperfect

    New Covent Garden Theatre Mall of the Emirates, Dubai

    The king of Dubai's live standup scene has a brand-new show – "a comedy journey through the perfectly imperfect realities of modern life, relationships, culture, success, failure, and everything in between ... his most personal and ambitious show yet". Always [ ... ]

    From AED 175
  • Baarah

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

    A "gripping" Hindi adaptation of Reginald Rose's classic courtroom drama film 12 Angry Men, reimagined for contemporary India. Twelve jurors have to decide the fate of a young man accused of a brutal crime: inside the jury room, personal biases, [ ... ]

    AED 120
  • Politically Incorrect Comedy

    Xandros Singature 1 Hotel, Barsha Heights, Dubai

    Mad Cat Comedy's regular standup night at Xandros in Signature 1 Hotel, TECOM. The cover charge of AED 80 includes one drink.

    AED 80
  • Anna: dir Monica Guerritore (2025)

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

    An emotional biopic about the famed Italian actress Anna Magnani. In 1956, Magnani was in the running for the Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role; waiting for the news to arrive, she spends the night wandering the [ ... ]

    AED 25
  • Baarah

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

    The second performance for Gautam Goenka's "gripping" Hindi adaptation of Reginald Rose's classic courtroom drama film 12 Angry Men, reimagined for contemporary India. Twelve jurors have to decide the fate of a young man accused of a brutal crime: inside [ ... ]

    AED 120
  • Joke Hub

    Canopy by Hilton Dubai Al Seef Al Seef Street, Umm Hurair 1, Dubai

    A regular Mad Cat Comedy night – "Dubai's wildest comedy show on Saturday" at "the first purpose built comedy room in the country". The cover charge of AED 99 includes two F&B coupons.

    AED 99
  • LAST CHANCE Jumana Emil Abboud: The Storyteller and the Obedient Tide

    Jameel Arts Centre Al Jaddaf, Dubai

    Jumana Emil Abboud’s first solo exhibition in the Emirates draws on the lineage of Palestinian folktales and their continued resonance in the present – how stories inhabit landscapes, shape personal histories and collective memory, and create an enchanted relationship to [ ... ]

    Free
  • Maktaba: A Speculative Thought Circle – Sound

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

    Maktaba is 421's monthly gathering dedicated to collective reading, viewing, and discussion across disciplines. For its final iteration this season, researcher and sonic practitioner Safeyya Alblooshi will guide the conversation around sound, soundscapes, and interventions within sound cultures; texts shared [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • Baarah

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

    Final performance of Gautam Goenka's "gripping" adaptation of Reginald Rose's classic courtroom drama film 12 Angry Men, reimagined for contemporary India. In Hindi, with English subtitles.

    AED 120
  • Book Cellar Dubai: Bartleby, the Scrivener

    Le Brasserie sur le Boulevard Kempinski The Boulevard, Mohammed Bin Rashid Blvd, Dubai

    You can't really go wrong with a classic like Herman Melville's quizzical short story. What exactly is going on here? Of course you could always take refuge in The New York Times summary of "a quintessential New York book" that [ ... ]

    Free
  • Comedy at the Speakeasy

    Moon Bar Mina Al Salam, Madinat Jumeriah, Dubai

    The Mad Cat team does the rather cool Moon Bar at the Sana Restaurant in Mina Al Salam. The door price includes one drink.

    AED 99
  • Berklee Abu Dhabi’s Jazz Night

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

    The second edition of this "celebration of musical dialogue, artistic collaboration, and contemporary reinterpretation". Headliner is the Syrian singer-songwriter Faia Younan, known for her cinematic sound and poetic approach to Arabic music and her presenting a special set of her [ ... ]

    AED 120
  • LAST CHANCE Elusive Territories

    Zawyeh Gallery Warehouse 27, Alserkal Avenue, Dubai

    Elusive Territories is group show for 15 prominent Palestinian artists whose work examines the relationship between exile, memory, and homeland – three dynamics that constantly engage with one another, especially at this critical time. Says the gallery: "Throughout the exhibition, [ ... ]

    Free
  • The Comedy Lab @ Easy Tiger

    Al Ain Palace Hotel Corniche Road, Abu Dhabi

    Mad Cat’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 ...

    AED 99
  • Musing x Anti-Rot: Staying Creative When It Becomes a Business

    M39 Al Rutam Street, Mina Zayed, Abu Dhabi

    Three creative practitioners to talk about what it takes to stay creative when work becomes a business with clients, deadlines, and repetition. The programme: 5-6pm Networking 6-6.30pm Mouza Al Hemrani (illustrator and multimedia artist) What I Do on Purpose to [ ... ]

    Free
  • The Laughter Factory Premium Comedy Club

    Jumeirah Golf Estates – Earth Terrace Dubai

    The July Laughter Factory tour looks like a good one, the usual mix of international visitors and a local star but with the bar set high for all of them: Josh Baulf – British stand-up comedian hotly tipped for success: [ ... ]

    AED 140
  • Politically Incorrect Comedy

    Xandros Singature 1 Hotel, Barsha Heights, Dubai

    Mad Cat Comedy's regular standup night at Xandros in Signature 1 Hotel, TECOM. The cover charge of AED 80 includes one drink.

    AED 80
  • LAST CHANCE Safwan Dahoul – The Eye: An Aperture Into the Soul

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

    Safwan Dahoul’s most recent body of work continues his Dream series – an ongoing body of work investigating the dream state that he began back in the late 1980s, exploring "the physical and psychological effects of alienation, solitude, and longing [ ... ]

    Free
  • One Day Choir DXB presents ‘Africa’

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

    Join a room full of people from different backgrounds and different age groups to learn, rehearse and perform Toto's anthemic Africa in a single day – no auditions, no commitments: just a great song, and the chance to meet and [ ... ]

    AED 150
  • The Laughter Factory Premium Comedy Club

    Studio One Hotel Dubai Studio City, Dubai

    The July Laughter Factory tour looks like a good one, the usual mix of international visitors and a local star but with the bar set high for all of them: Josh Baulf – British stand-up comedian hotly tipped for success: [ ... ]

    AED 140
  • Laughter Lounge

    New Covent Garden Theatre Mall of the Emirates, Dubai

    A Callback Comedy night promising "raw, unfiltered comedy" from six good local standups plus host.  

    AED 150
  • Song of the Sea: dir Tomm Moore (2014)

    SAF Photography Gallery Al Manakh, Sharjah

    This engaging animated feature takes inspiration from the Selkies of Irish folklore, who live as seals in the sea but become humans on land. 10-year-old Ben and his mute little sister Saoirse, the last Seal-child, embark on a fantastic journey [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • The Laughter Factory Premium Comedy Club

    The Club Al Mina, Abu Dhabi

    The July Laughter Factory tour looks like a good one, the usual mix of international visitors and a local star but with the bar set high for all of them: Josh Baulf – British stand-up comedian hotly tipped for success: [ ... ]

    AED 140
  • The Comedy Lab @ Easy Tiger

    Al Ain Palace Hotel Corniche Road, Abu Dhabi

    Mad Cat’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 ...

    AED 99
  • Tangerine Dreams

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

    Ayyam Gallery's summer collective exhibition focuses on the colour orange: "occupying a unique space between intensity and comfort, orange embodies both vitality and reflection. Associated with sunlight, fire, ripened fruit, and shifting horizons, the colour carries a rich spectrum of [ ... ]

    Free
  • In Transit

    Artbooth Gallery Centro Capital Center, Al Khaleej Al Arabi Street, Abu Dhabi

    A group exhibition featuring works by Wadeei Khaled, Ahmad El Badawi, Bahram Hajou, Hanibal Srouji, Jamal Bassiouni, Rania Amoudi and Yervant Hawarian – an introduction to artists who will be featured in upcoming exhibitions throughout the year, alongside others whose [ ... ]

    Free
  • City Circles: Architecture beyond walls – the role of landscaping in urban placemaking

    Natural History Museum Jacques Chirac St, Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi

    Part of Guggenheim Abu Dhabi’s ongoing City Circles programme exploring the connections between architecture, the environment, and urban life, this conversation explores how culture is shaped not only inside museums and galleries but also in the public spaces and gardens where [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • A Writing Practice: Penmanship as Friendship

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

    "A welcoming space to write alongside others and find your voice on the page" in the form of a writing seminar led by Sarah Afaneh designed for writers at any stage of their practice. It comprises six sessions held across [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • The Laughter Factory Premium Comedy Club

    Bla Bla Dubai The Beach, Dubai

    The July Laughter Factory tour looks like a good one, the usual mix of international visitors and a local star but with the bar set high for all of them: Josh Baulf – British stand-up comedian hotly tipped for success: [ ... ]

    AED 140
  • Politically Incorrect Comedy

    Xandros Singature 1 Hotel, Barsha Heights, Dubai

    Mad Cat Comedy's regular standup night at Xandros in Signature 1 Hotel, TECOM. The cover charge of AED 80 includes one drink.

    AED 80
  • The Laughter Factory Premium Comedy Club

    Bla Bla Dubai The Beach, Dubai

    The July Laughter Factory tour looks like a good one, the usual mix of international visitors and a local star but with the bar set high for all of them: Josh Baulf – British stand-up comedian hotly tipped for success: [ ... ]

    AED 140
  • Bookends Book Club: Yellowface

    Bookends A3 building, Dubai Silicon Oasis, Dubai

    RF Kuang's 2023 satire of racial diversity, cultural appropriation and plagiarism in the publishing industry garnered some mixed reviews; the Washington Post was particularly critical of the main character (lacked depth) and the depictions of publishing (perfunctory). Our own view [ ... ]

    Free
  • The Laughter Factory Premium Comedy Club

    Radisson DAMAC Hills Hessa Street Dubailand, Dubai

    The July Laughter Factory tour looks like a good one, the usual mix of international visitors and a local star but with the bar set high for all of them. This final pair of dates are both on 11 July, [ ... ]

    AED 140
  • Karak After Dark Vol 2

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

    The first iteration of this improv comedy night at the Junction was sold out and well liked, so Tall Tales Productions and The Junction are coming back with a second. As before, it's a show created on the fly from [ ... ]

    AED 89
  • The Laughter Factory Premium Comedy Club

    Dukes The Palm Palm Dubai, Dubai

    The final stop on the July Laughter Factory tour looks like a good one, the usual mix of international visitors and a local star but with the bar set high for all of them. Josh Baulf – British stand-up comedian [ ... ]

    AED 140
  • Sirocco and The Kingdom of the Winds: dir Benoît Chieux (2023)

    SAF Photography Gallery Al Manakh, Sharjah

    This slightly trippy animation features two intrepid sisters, four-year-old Juliette and eight-year-old Carmen, who discover a passage into the extraordinary world of their favourite book, Kingdom of the Air Streams. Transformed into cats and separated from each other, the girls [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • Dubai Bibliophiles: Giovanni’s Room

    The Coffee Club Times Square Center, 4B Street, Dubai

    His publishers rejected Giovanni's Room as a failure, telling James Baldwin the novel would damage his reputation. Knopf claimed the judgement was nothing to do with the book’s content, but Baldwin was convinced that the publisher didn't want "a story [ ... ]

    Free
  • LAST CHANCE Made in the UAE

    JD Malat Gallery ACT 2 Tower, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Blvd 13A ,Downtown Dubai, Dubai

    A group exhibition for seven UAE-based artists – Ahmed Emad (UAE/Egypt), Anila Ashraf (Pakistan), Camelia Mohebi (UAE), Elizaveta Pugacheva (Russia), Samo Shalaby (Egypt/Palestine), Sasan Nasernia (Iran) and Yousif Albadi (Sudan) – chosen from more than 300 submissions received through an [ ... ]

    Free
  • The Comedy Lab @ Easy Tiger

    Al Ain Palace Hotel Corniche Road, Abu Dhabi

    Mad Cat’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 ...

    AED 99
  • LAST CHANCE Farshid Shafiey, Atieh Sohrab, Baran Shafiey: All in the Family

    Leila Heller Gallery Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    A group show for three artists whose work here explores the dialogue that emerges between generations of artists, revealing how personal histories, cultural memory, and individual artistic languages intersect. Through painting and illustration, the artists reflect on themes of identity, [ ... ]

    Free
  • The Curator and the Artist

    Dubai Mall Dubai

    What makes a meaningful artist–curator relationship? Curator and artist Nadine Khoury talks with 𝐑𝐚𝐛𝐚𝐛 𝐓𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐰𝐲, founder of artist collective Studio Thirteen DXB, about curation, collaboration, and navigating today’s contemporary art landscape. This features in the month-long Duette Studio / Public.ae ‘cultural clubhouse’ [ ... ]

    Free
  • Safar Book Group: Free – A Child and a Country at the End of History

    Ciao Bella Restaurant Media One Hotel, Falak Street, Media City, Dubai

    Lea Ypi's colourful, hectic coming-of-age story through the end Communism in the Balkans, published in 1922, has won several awards, made the shortlist for many more, and features on several 'Best Book of the Year' lists. The shock felt by [ ... ]

    Free
  • A Writing Practice: The Writers’ Workshop

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

    The second of six sessions for this writing seminar led by Sarah Afaneh designed for writers at any stage of their practice. It comprises six sessions held across three months, alternating between guided teaching and communal workshops. In this workshop [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • Sahab x Kutubna Documenting War

    House 436 Al Shindagha, Dubai

    The Sahab Collective writing group is getting together to produce written materials for possible inclusion in Kutubna’s Documenting Culture in the Gulf in a Time of War exhibition (opens 3 September). The exhibition asks "what does it mean to be [ ... ]

    Free
  • Politically Incorrect Comedy

    Xandros Singature 1 Hotel, Barsha Heights, Dubai

    Mad Cat Comedy's regular standup night at Xandros in Signature 1 Hotel, TECOM. The cover charge of AED 80 includes one drink.

    AED 80
  • Afterlives: dir Kevin Lee (2025)

    Jameel Arts Centre Al Jaddaf, Dubai

    A desktop documentary that critically engages with the historical and digital traces of extremist propaganda, questioning how images of violence circulate, mutate, and persist. The film moves between virtual investigations and real-world encounters with artists, activists, and researchers who seek [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register