Every year, The Arts Center at NYUAD announces an exciting line-up as part of the performing arts season.
From stand-up comedy and live music to contemporary dance and almost everything in between, you’d be hard pushed to find a more diverse, boundary pushing and genre melding collection of events, performances and workshops anywhere else.
While live events and mass gatherings are taking a back seat for the meantime in an effort to stop the spread of COVID 19, the show must go on at NYUAD.
Last year, the Reconnect series, streamed past performances to people all over the world to connect communities and make the arts more accessible.
This year the new season, titled A Bridge, aims to connect Abu Dhabi with the world through exclusive performances.
Yet again a diverse range of performances and experiences are being lined up for the new season with virtual residencies from exciting artists and performers.
As well as live performances, the new seasons will include a number of Off The Stage events as part of each individual artist’s virtual residency including workshops, online Q&As and more.
First up, Kid Koala will host the robot dance party on September 5, where you can make your own robot costume and tune in and dance the night away.
The DJ and music producer will also reveal a new video and world premiere, commissioned by The Arts Center, on October 10.
Next, between September 9 and October 4, musician and street artist Tania El Khoury will perform a microtheatre piece As Far As Isolation Goes, a performance exploring the mental health of asylum seekers.
Theatre takes the fore again between October 7 and 18 as 600 Highwaymen perform A Thousand Ways: Part 1, a performance based around a phone call between two people socially distanced.
On October 27, New York-based documentary filmmaker Sam Green will screen a collection of short films that will be shown in the Middle East for the first time.
A special concert will be held on November 18 with Korean group Ak Dan Gwan Chil in collaboration with The Korean Cultural Center that will re-imagine Korean folk-roots music.
Additional performances will also be added from The Arts Center regulars Rooftop Rhythms and Hekayah as well as screenings from CinemaNA.
“When distance becomes a condition of performance, it raises challenging constraints, but The Arts Center is in a strong position to respond with innovation and creativity,” said Bill Bragin, executive artistic director of The Arts Center at NYUAD.
“The depth of the relationships we have with artists has allowed us to work with them to think beyond sharing archival videos and truly re-imagine how live events work when not staged in a physical venue.
“Throughout Season Six and with our Off The Stage program, we are investing in performances and experiences that connect thousands of people at the same time, as well as creating moving events for audiences of only one or two people.
“These are not normal times, but as we head towards our sixth season, we are excited for audiences to experience these new forms of performance.
“We are embracing the unknown, and are eager to explore new modes of engagement with our artists and audiences.
“The purpose of The Arts Center, to create a bridge between arts communities in Abu Dhabi, the UAE and the rest of the world, has never been more relevant, as the global arts community reacts to the shifting demands of performance.”
For more information and for the full schedule visit www.nyuad-artscenter.org.
