New season looks to the future by welcoming back key artists from past seasons.

Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi (NYUAD) has announced its milestone 10th season, with a calendar of events themed Looking Back and Looking Forward, featuring returning favourites bringing new projects, alongside groundbreaking new acts.

Highlights include the world premiere of Reem Almenhali and Ahmed Almadloum’s Hamour Doesn’t Leave the Cubicle; UAE debuts by Gaye Su Akyol (on a bill with TootArd); Cimafunk and futuristic Congolese/French collaboration KOKOKO!; Abosahar and Aita Mon Amour at the Tamaas Festival; and the first UAE performances of Cie. Hervé Koubi’s Sol Invictus, Chrystèle Khodr’s Augurs, and Cie. Omar Rajeh & Maqamat’s Beytna. Returning appearances include Trisha Brown Dance Company, Maysoon Zayid, and Yahael Onono Camara of Balimaya Project.

Executive Artistic Director of The Arts Center Bill Bragin commented: “The Arts Center is a place for discovery and inspiration. As we celebrate our 10th anniversary, we reflect on a decade of memorable collaborations that have positioned us as an international leader while also playing a vital role in developing the UAE’s arts landscape. We’re thrilled to have built strong and lasting relationships with both artists and audiences through a commitment to fostering creativity and serving as a vibrant hub for intercultural dialogue. The positive experiences of returning artists are a testament to the quality of engagement by our public audiences, and with the university community. Looking ahead, our commitment to developing NYUAD as a major cultural resource, on Saadiyat Island and for the UAE as a whole, remains a priority as we continue to champion innovation, diversity, inclusion, and artistic excellence.”

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LOOKING BACK: Over its first decade, The Arts Center has been a pioneer in bringing new work and serving as a place for artistic discovery. It has invested in commissioning 46 new works, presented 20 world premieres, and introduced 86 UAE debuts or premieres. Opening its 10th season, the Cie. Hervé Koubi returns with their new show Sol Invictus on September 5 and 6. Presented with the support of Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels, Koubi blends imaginative contemporary dance and kinetic urban movements, fusing ballet with hip-hop physicality. In addition to public performances, the company will also perform a matinee for invited school groups as part of its ongoing partnership with the US Mission to the UAE to expose students to the performing arts.

The 10th season also features NYUAD alumni artists, who started at The Arts Center as students and now return to its stages with their work. On October 18 and 19, Reem Almenhali (NYUAD Class of 2021) directs a new work Hamour Doesn’t Leave the Cubicle written by Ahmed Almadloum, commissioned by long-term partners the Abu Dhabi Music & Arts Foundation (ADMAF), and supported by the UAE Ministry of Culture. Almenhali won of the 2020 Gulf Capital ADMAF Creativity Award for her writing of Al Raheel | Departure, which premiered at The Arts Center in 2020 and was reprised in 2022.

The Trisha Brown Dance Company also returns to The Arts Center for the first time since 2017, presented by Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels, in the UAE premiere performances of In The Fall on a bill with Working Title on November 15. The 2023 work In The Fall is choreographed by Noé Soulier, whose previous work for CNDC d’Angers was part of The Arts Center’s 9th season. Soulier’s new choreography explores the physical act of falling, pushing the boundaries of bodily control. Paired with this piece, the company will perform Working Title by pioneer of postmodern dance, Trisha Brown, offering a look back to the iconic 1985 piece.

Two artists who performed in past seasons at The Arts Center will return to teach courses for NYUAD students, culminating with public performances.

Stand-up comedian and disability advocate Maysoon Zayid returns to The Arts Center with Bint Balad, a laugh-out-loud tale of beating the odds and bouncing back in the face of failure, exploring her family, global culture, and her life with cerebral palsy. A performance in English on Wednesday, January 15 is followed by an Arabic show on Friday, January 17. Both will feature sign language interpretation. An additional performance at a site to be announced in a Northern Emirate will also take place.