This week’s editorial musings
from magpie’s nest<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The quote:<\/mark><\/strong> We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light\u00a0Plato<\/em> …<\/p>\n\n\n\n And\u00a0\u2026\u00a0we’re back<\/b><\/mark><\/mark> Belated new year greetings to all readers old and new\u00a0…<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Odedra dances<\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong>\u00a0Aakash Odedra has one of the most distinctive dance styles of our time, contemporary dance merged with kathak. He also loves Abu Dhabi, where he\u2019s premiered two works (including one in The Arts Center\u2019s first season) and performed another four. His new work\u00a0Songs of the Bulbul<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0has a single performance there this weekend; we saw it earlier in its tour, and it\u2019s achingly beautiful \u2013 with great music and great staging, too. Booking info is\u00a0here<\/strong><\/a>, and\u00a0here\u2019s<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0our longer take on it …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Last chance for Short+Sweet<\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong> Registrations close at midnight tonight (15 January) for the revamped\u00a0Short+Sweet Dubai 2026<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 no longer associated with the Junction, the festival of 10-minute plays is now under direct management and performances will be at New Covent Garden Theatre (4 April to 9 May) \u201cwith a stronger artist experience, a bigger stage for the Gala Final, and a wave of new opportunities flowing from the launch of Short+Sweet\u2019s regional headquarters in Dubai\u201d.\u00a0Here\u2019s the link<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0to register if you\u2019re an actor, director, theatre group or backstage crew …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tech art now<\/mark>\u00a0<\/strong>Submissions are now open for two of the biggest, best and longest-established tech art prizes \u2013 deadline for both is 4 March.\u00a0Prix Ars Electronica<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0is accepting entries in the categories Digital Humanity, Interactive Art +, New Animation Art, and u19 \/ create your world. There\u2019s no entry fee, artists and creators from any country and region can enter, and the four winners get prize money of up to \u20ac10,000. Info is\u00a0here<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0…<\/p>\n\n\n\n The other is the S+T+ARTS Prize<\/strong><\/a> for \u201cinnovative projects at the nexus of science, technology and the arts that have what it takes to make a significant impact on economic and social innovation\u201d. Two winners each get \u20ac20,000. Info is here<\/strong><\/a> …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Closer to home, the upcoming NVDIA Studio Nights 6<\/strong><\/a> (15 Feb) is inviting entries for a Creative Challenge \u2013 categories for 3D\/CGI, interior design, short films, photography, and digital fashion. Entrants have to be using an NVDIA product and submissions must reflect the event’s theme, which somewhat lumpenly is just ‘Museum of the Future, Dubai’. There will be “exciting” prizes and trophies, plus recognition on NVIDIA’s social channels; the deadline for entries is 25 January. More details and the entry form are here<\/strong><\/a> … <\/p>\n\n\n\n Laugh at home<\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong> If you can\u2019t get enough standup comedy, check out\u00a0 Butterfly minds<\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong>\u00a0Butterfly Gardens<\/strong><\/a>, directly in front of Abu Dhabi\u2019s National Aquarium, is a stunner: more than 10,000 butterflies (all ethically sourced) in a climate-controlled world \u201cdesigned to feel uplifting and inviting, a place where people can disconnect from the pace of the city and connect with something real and beautiful\u201d. Tickets are AED 55 (or AED 150 for combined entry with the Aquarium. Info\u00a0here<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0…<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here for two weeks<\/mark><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong> Tourism<\/strong>\u00a0now accounts for around 14% of the UAE\u2019s GDP, worth around $70 billion in 2025. For most countries with a significant tourist trade it’s less than 10%, though Spain clocks 14.7%. Hotels recorded a record 23m guest nights in the first nine months of the year …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Grok off<\/mark><\/strong> If you still use X and your timeline is full of Grok posts, try the\u00a0Un-Grok<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>extension \u2013 you can browse X as usual, but all tweets mentioning @GROK will be removed from your feed. Chrome only, sadly, but check it out\u00a0here<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0…<\/p>\n\n\n\n Buy now<\/mark><\/strong> Betterhomes\u2019 Dubai Residential Market Report<\/a><\/strong> for 2025 reports the strongest year ever for residential sales: 203,000 transactions (up 20%) that sold for a total of AED 547 billion (up 28%), which we reckon makes the average sale about AED 2.7m. \u201cLiquidity was broad, repeatable and focused on segments where both end-users and investors continue to transact with confidence\u201d said the man. Indulge yourself in the full report\u00a0here<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0…<\/p>\n\n\n\n Festival time<\/mark><\/strong> The Ras Al Khaimah Art Festival<\/strong><\/a> opens 16 Jan. Earlier iterations tried to be a bit all-things-to-all-RAKfolk, but it\u2019s been getting better and more focused: this opening weekend mixes exhibitions with performances, workshops and more. And admission is free …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Abu Dhabi\u2019s Al Hosn Festival<\/strong><\/a>, always worth a visit, opens 17 Jan. It\u2019s all about heritage \u2013 so traditional souks, performances (lots of ayyalah), food, coffee, kids\u2019 workshops and more. Entrance is a modest AED 35 …<\/p>\n\n\n\n And LitFest<\/a><\/strong> is back at the InterCon Festival City from a week from 21 January with 150+ wordish events \u2013 many of which get booked up quickly, so move fast …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tonight’s the night<\/mark><\/strong> The\u00a0UAE National Orchestra<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0opens its inaugural concert series, the first with its full ensemble of 70 musicians and 30 choir, at Emirates Palace. Oud virtuoso Naseer Shamma guests …\u00a0The\u00a0Laughter Factory\u2019s January tour<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0looks like one of the best bills yet. Tonight it\u2019s at Al Hamra Golf Club in RAK; the two final dates are in Dubai tomorrow and Saturday …\u00a0Yuyu Zhiton<\/strong><\/a>g\u2019s solo show\u00a0at Volery Gallery opens in a blaze of colour …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Useful app of the week<\/mark><\/strong> Duplicate Word Finder<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0is a simple browser tool that does exactly what it promises \u2013 it highlights repeated words in your text so you can spot and fix overuse to make your writing cleaner. Check it out\u00a0here<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0…\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Something for the weekend<\/mark><\/strong> Update your knowledge of the world with\u00a0Dataguessr<\/strong><\/a>, one quiz at a time \u2013 it uses data to give you a better understanding of the state of the world.\u00a0Try it here<\/a>\u00a0…<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Things we didn\u2019t know no.94<\/mark><\/strong>\u00a0First names affect how you are perceived at work<\/strong><\/a>. So Anna<\/strong>\u00a0and Joseph<\/strong>\u00a0are consistently considered trustworthy, honest and reliable; Victoria\u00a0<\/strong>and Ryan\u00a0<\/strong>are considered competitive, ambitious and extrovert\u00a0…<\/p>\n\n\n\n Earworm of the week<\/mark> <\/strong>Imarhan : Derhan N’Oulhine<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Ali Al Sayed\u2019s Crowd Work Special<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0on his YouTube channel \u2013 an hour of fully improvised chat with and riffing off the crowd as an impromptu encore to a full stand-up show. There\u2019s a bit of over-sensitive censorship on compan y names and the like; but it\u2019s amiable, a good vibe, and makes you wish you could\u2019ve been there\u00a0
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