• Authentic Flamenco: Daniel Casares

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

    A second evening of performances (at 5.30pm and 8.30pm) for the award-winning flamenco guitarist and this explicitly titled show. This is the Teatro Real de Madrid production that has been wowing audiences for some time; it aims to deliver a [ ... ]

    From AED 120
  • 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
  • Lamya Gargash: Kun

    Maraya Art Centre Al Qasba, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates

    Through her work, Gargash delves into spirituality, transformation, and the human journey. Her first solo exhibition with the Maraya Art Centre has a title – kun means 'to be' – that reflects the exploration of a liminal state between different [ ... ]

    Free
  • Meeting Mozart

    Theatre by QE2 Queen Elizabeth 2, Port Rashid, Dubai

    This acclaimed interactive experience for the young has been a major success for Sydney Opera House; it’s a 40-minute show aimed at children aged 2 to 10 (and their families) which blends live music, storytelling, and song to introduce young [ ... ]

    AED 80
  • Reminiscencia

    Al Qasimiyah School Sheikh Saqr Bin Khalid Al Qasimi St, Sharjah

    Confined to his home during the Covid lockdown of 2020, artist Malicho Vaca Valenzuela sat down in front of his computer and began collecting memories from the residents of Santiago. His goal was to tell the story of his neighbourhood, [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • LAST CHANCE Andy Warhol, The Glam Factory

    Foundry Downtown Boulevard Crescent, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Boulevard, Dubai

    A collection of more than 100 of Warhol’s works, curated by Nada Ghandour, which aims to trace Warhol's rise from his modest beginnings in commercial illustration to his status as the Pope of Pop Art via screenprints, photos, and magazines [ ... ]

    AED 80
  • Call Me Dancer: dir Leslie Shampaine (2023)

    Alliance Française Dubai Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    Charismatic, athletic Manish is a talented young street dancer from a poor Mumbai family who struggles against his parents’ insistance that he forgets his dreams of becoming a professional dancer. He meets Yehuda, a curmudgeonly 70-year-old Israeli ballet teacher who [ ... ]

    Free
  • Rookies | Allons enfants: dir Thierry Demaizière and Alban Teurlai (2021)

    Alliance Française Dubai Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    A prestigious Paris high school takes an audacious bet: to integrate students from working-class districts and to make them break the cycle of school failure through training in hip hop dance. Each student brings their own story: complex family relationships, [ ... ]

    Free
  • Reminiscencia

    Al Qasimiyah School Sheikh Saqr Bin Khalid Al Qasimi St, Sharjah

    The second (and final) performance of this piece by the Chilean artist Malicho Vaca Valenzuela. Confined to his home during the Covid lockdown of 2020, he sat down in front of his computer and began collecting memories from the residents [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • LAST CHANCE I Kept The Night Vigil …

    Leila Heller Gallery Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    Subtitled ‘Exploring Women’s Voices Across and Beyond the Middle East’, this exhibition – curated by Behrang Samadzadegan – is inspired by the evocative poetry of al-Khansa, who eloquently conveyed the nuances of grief, strength, and transformation. Says the gallery: “the exhibition resonates [ ... ]

    Free
  • LAST CHANCE Sumayyah Samaha: Lines and Forms

    Leila Heller Gallery Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    A range of works from the Lebanese-born NYC-based artist that are rooted in spontaneity and the intuitive interplay between forms and lines. The exhibition continues an exploration of form, line, and colour in a series that began in 2014 and continues [ ... ]

    Free
  • LAST CHANCE Maria Jose Benvenuto: Nature’s Pulse

    Leila Heller Gallery Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    A series of vibrant abstracts inspired by the landscape of North Head National Park in Manly, Australia, the area where Benvenuto works. The series is guided by intuition and emerges directly from the subconscious, drawing on the deep reservoirs of [ ... ]

    Free
  • From Ground Zero

    The Arts Center @ NYUAD NYUAD Campus, Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

    A screening of 22 short films made in Gaza, accompanied by a live conversation with the Palestinian filmmaker Rashid Masharawi who launched the initiative.  The films vary in length from three to six minutes; each presents a unique perspective on [ ... ]

    Free, but currently unavailable
  • Taste the Waste: dir Valentin Thurn (2011)

    Alliance Française Dubai Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    Valentin Thurn's documentary shines a spotlight on the global scandal of food waste. Why do we throw away so much? On the way from the farm to the dinner table, more than half the food we grow gets thrown away. [ ... ]

    Free
  • Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF)

    Expo Centre Sharjah Sharjah

    The 43nd edition of SIBF promises to be the fair’s biggest edition ever, claiming to show more than 1.5 million titles by 2,500 publishing houses from 112 different countries. There will also be a packed 12-day agenda of more than [ ... ]

    Free
  • Putting the Record Straight: The Lost Women of Art History

    Society Dubai Jumeirah Street, Dubai, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    Continuing this seven-part lecture series by art historian Rose Balston on female artists from the 16th through to the 18th century – “women who have not only been side-lined, but literally (and shockingly) blocked out of history”, mainly by the [ ... ]

    AED 250
  • Music From Space: Where Science Meets Art

    The Arts Center @ NYUAD NYUAD Campus, Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

    This talk by Leonardo Barilaro, pianist, composer and aerospace engineer, explores the intersection of science and art, transcending cultural barriers to bring people closer to the marvels of space. Dr Barilaro will showcase his compositions sent to the International Space [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • LAST CHANCE Here We Are

    Italian Cultural Institute of Abu Dhabi Al Qasbah Street, Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

    A research-based group show presented by the Italian Cultural Institute of Abu Dhabi in collaboration with ZU's College of Arts and Creative Enterprises (CACE). The exhibition explores the subtleties of feeling at home within oneself, one's work, and one's environment; [ ... ]

    Free
  • Laal Collection Volume II

    Total Arts at the Courtyard Al Quoz, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    The latest instalment of this exhibition features Fereydoun Ave's extraordinary collection of modern and contemporary Iranian and international art, from 1959 to the present – a potent (and highly recommended) reflection of the collector’s personal journey, connections, sensibilities, and experiences. [ ... ]

  • LAST CHANCE Fariba Boroufar: In Our Bones

    Gallery Isabelle Unit 17, Alserkal Avenue, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    Fariba Boroufar’s first exhibition at the gallery features her signature woven forms. Reminiscent of elements of the built environment, they offer a poetical portrait of our broken present, a protest against forgetting, and a paean to another way of moving [ ... ]

  • DIFC Art Nights

    DIFC Gate Village Dubai

    Nine days of “artistic celebration and cultural engagement” (7-15 November) to commemorate the 20th anniversary of DIFC, apparently with public art installations, panel talks, performances, live art, workshops for kids, and musical entertainment. The website doesn’t currently have much information [ ... ]

    Free
  • Men’s Rings: the Yves Gastou Collection

    L'ÉCOLE Middle East, School of Jewelry Arts Building 10, Dubai Design District, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    The late dealer / collector Yves Gastou (he passed away in 2020) was known for his educated eye, eclectic tastes, and an ability to discover lost gems and new talents in art, design, jewellery and exquisite taste generally. From an [ ... ]

  • Into The Beat | Dein Herz Tanzt: dir Stefan Westerwelle (2020)

    Cinema Akil in 25hours Hotel Trade Center St, Dubai, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    A great coming-of-age movie – teen destined for ballet stardom discovers hip hop dance. She finds a new passion that challenges everything she knows. Torn between ballet and hip-hop, Kaya must decide which path to follow: the one set by [ ... ]

    Free
  • Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra with Jaap Van Zweden and Sarah Chang

    Emirates Palace Abu Dhabi

    On its first ever concert in the UAE, the Seoul Philharmonic under the baton of Jaap Van Zweden is joined by the award-winning violinist Sarah Chang for Shostakovich’s Symphony No.5 in D minor. The programme also includes Beethoven’s Symphony No.5 [ ... ]

    From AED 150
  • Steven Naifeh: Found in Translation

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

    The first solo exhibition in Abu Dhabi in 50 years of works by Steven Naifeh, Pulitzer Prize-winning author, businessman and artist – particularly of large-scale geometric abstractions that owe much to hos appreciation of geometric art in the Middle East. [ ... ]

    Free
  • LAST CHANCE Seulgi Kim: Ride the Wave

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

    Seulgi Kim’s first solo exhibition in the Middle East brings to Volery Gallery a deeply personal exploration of her emotional journey,. The sea, which plays a central role in her work, becomes a metaphor for life’s turbulence and tranquillity; her [ ... ]

    Free
  • Urban Market Festival

    Manarat al Saadiyat Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

    Originally launched in Dubai in 2021 to promote sustainable thrift shopping, this event arrives in Abu Dhabi with a makeover and what looks like a more commercial bent – the 40+ vendors do include thrift and vintage fashion, but there’s [ ... ]

    AED 25
  • Meeting Mozart

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

    This acclaimed interactive experience for the young has been a major success for Sydney Opera House; it’s a 40-minute show aimed at children aged 2 to 10 (and their families) which blends live music, storytelling, and song to introduce young [ ... ]

    From AED 120
  • Call Me Dancer: dir Leslie Shampaine (2023)

    Alliance Française Dubai Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    Charismatic, athletic Manish is a talented young street dancer from a poor Mumbai family who struggles against his parents’ insistance that he forgets his dreams of becoming a professional dancer. He meets Yehuda, a curmudgeonly 70-year-old Israeli ballet teacher who [ ... ]

    Free
  • Blackadder Goes Forth

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

    A stage adaptation of the fourth (and best-scripted) of the BBC sitcom originally written by Richard Curtis and Ben Elton. Dubai Drama Group really can't go wrong with this – a series of schemes by Captain Edmund Blackadder to escape [ ... ]

    AED 125
  • Meshwar: A Musical Journey

    Berklee Abu Dhabi UAE Pavilion, Saadiyat ISland, Abu Dhabi

    The latest in Berklee Abu Dhabi’s concert series showcasing different musical styles and genres. Headlining are Canadian singer-songwriter JP Saxe (soulful R&B-influenced pop: he's on the left in the pic) and Jordanian singer/composer /producer Aziz Maraka (on the right: he's [ ... ]

    AED 120
  • Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra with Jaap Van Zweden and Inmo Yang

    Emirates Palace Abu Dhabi

    A second Abu Dhabi Classics concert for the Seoul Philharmonic conducted by Jaap Van Zweden, again featuring a stellar young soloist in Inmo Yang. They will play one of the most popular concertos in the solo violin repertoire, Bruch’s Violin [ ... ]

    From AED 300
  • LAST CHANCE Armin Najib: -continuum

    Aisha Alabbar Gallery Warehouse C19, Alserkal Avenue, Dubai

    Najib is a multidisciplinary artist from Iran whose practice includes painting, drawing, photography, sculpture, and art jewellery but primarily revolves around kinetic mechanisms and magnetic fields. His fascination with magnetism, ergonomic placement elements, and environmental sensing has led him to [ ... ]

    Free
  • Fictional Landscapes

    Foundry Downtown Boulevard Crescent, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Boulevard, Dubai

    A group exhibition featuring 28 women artists from the UAE, Russia, Iran, Armenia, India, Pakistan, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Indonesia, Iceland, USA and more. These artists, who live and work across the globe, look at landscapes — urban, imagined, natural and artificial [ ... ]

    Free
  • Awodiya Toluwani: The Becoming

    Zidoun-Bossuyt Gallery 796 Jumeirah Street, Dubai

    Toluwani's fourth exhibition with the gallery (and his second in Dubai) looks at marriage in his native Nigeria. It provides insights into several marital practices observed across different local cultures and analyses prospects for the institution. To 7 January. Above: [ ... ]

    Free
  • L’ÉCOLE Middle East: Public Open Day

    L'ÉCOLE Middle East, School of Jewelry Arts Building 10, Dubai Design District, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    A Public Open Day at L’ÉCOLE Middle East, School of Jewelry Arts as part of Dubai Design Week. Expect tasters and demonstrations of the jewellery and gemstone courses, kids workshops, guided tours and other activities – and the new exhibition [ ... ]

  • Move on Screen: Short Films UAE

    Alliance Française Dubai Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    A programme of dance-related shorts in the Move on Screen programme. The 24 films include 10 produced by students of the Sharjah Performing Art Academy; the remainder are by local filmmakers and artists.

    Free, but pre-register
  • Gallant Indies | Les Indes galantes: dir Philippe Béziat (2021)

    Alliance Française Dubai Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    On the stage of the Opéra Bastille in Paris, 30 dancers from non-traditional genres – hip-hop, krump, break, voguing – reprise and remix Jean-Philippe Rameau's baroque 1735 masterpiece, Les Indes galantes. It’s an opera offensive to modern sensibilities that reflected [ ... ]

    Free
  • Rise | En Corps: dir Cédric Klapisch (2021)

    Alliance Française Dubai Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    Élise (played by real-life Paris Opera Ballet principal ballerina Marion Barbeau in her first film rôle) thought she had the perfect life: an ideal boyfriend and a promising career as a ballet dancer. It all falls apart the day she [ ... ]

    Free
  • Steinway Concert Series: Illia Ovcharenko

    Dubai Opera Studio Downtown Dubai, Dubai

    The young Ukrainian pianist Illia Ovcharenko is something of a must-see, especially when he's playing the Romantic repertoire – and most especially for his treatment of Liszt. Praised as “technically flawless and impeccably musical” (International Piano) and winner of multiple [ ... ]

    AED 220
  • Blackadder Goes Forth

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

    The second and final performance by Dubai Drama Group of this  stage adaptation of the fourth (and best-scripted) of the BBC sitcom – a series of schemes by Captain Edmund Blackadder to escape the horrors of World War One, aided [ ... ]

    AED 125
  • Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige: The Vertiginous Story of Orthosia

    Bait Gholoum Ibrahim Al Issa Corniche Street, Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates

    The Nahr al Bared refugee camp was built in north Lebanon in 1948 for Palestinian families fleeing the Nakba. At the time, nobody considered the possibility that they might still be there 75 years later. In 2007, fighting erupted in [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • Searching for Pierrot

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

    A return for this single-hander, written by and (we think) performed by Gillian Rhodes, who is really very good at this storytelling-with-performance sort of thing. This time it's a coming-of-age tale of a young boy in the late 19th century; [ ... ]

    AED 120
  • LAST CHANCE Areej Rajab: Interwoven

    Mestaria Gallery Unit 35, Alserkal Avenue, Dubai

    New work by the Bahraini artist, based on an interplay of colours and emotions where the intricate patterns of human behaviour are delicately overlapped with the rhythms of nature: "she reveals the intricate beauty of natural forms and how they [ ... ]

    Free
  • LAST CHANCE Alymamah Rashed: Mirrors from the Sidewalk

    Tabari Artspace Gate Village Level 2, DIFC, Dubai

    A solo exhibition of Alymamah Rashed’s latest work. A new series of large-scale watercolour and acrylic canvases, it's shaped by the belief that bodily connection to specific environments and elements can facilitate spiritual awakening. Rashed reflects on the immersion of [ ... ]

    Free
  • Pina: dir Wim Wenders (2011)

    Alliance Française Auditorium Oud Metha, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    A captivating dance documentary that celebrates the life and work of the world-renowned choreographer Pina Bausch. During the preparations for the film in 2009, Bausch died suddenly; the dancers of Bausch's company, Tanztheater Wuppertal, convinced him to proceed as a [ ... ]

    Free
  • Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige: The Vertiginous Story of Orthosia

    Jameel Arts Centre Al Jaddaf, Dubai

    A second performance for Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige's speculative performance about the lost Roman city of Orthosia. buried beneath the Nahr al Bared refugee camp in north Lebanon. The ruins of the ancient city of Orthosia, lost since being [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register
  • Wissam Shawkat: Calligraformism

    Mestaria Gallery Unit 35, Alserkal Avenue, Dubai

    The Iraqi artist and calligrapher introduces the latest examples of his signature style, merging the beauty of classical Arabic scripts with modern design principles; Calligraforms transforms Thuluth script lettering into abstract, fluid forms that are removed their textual meaning and [ ... ]

    Free
  • Bigger Than Us: dir Flore Vasseur (2021)

    Jardins Germaine Tillion Hazza Bin Zayed St, Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

    When she was 12 years old, Melati Wijsen started a campaign to ban single-use plastic in Indonesia. Now 18, she decides to travel the globe seeking to connect with fellow young activists who are committed to making their world a [ ... ]

    Free, but pre-register