Reflecting over two decades of efforts to promote the creative industries in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Abu Dhabi Festival has announced its 20th anniversary edition, guided by the theme “The Will for Evolution”.
The Festival, which will take place during the first three weeks of March and continue with community-wide initiatives throughout the year, hopes to reflect the nation’s drive for progress and prosperity, of which the arts forms a key part.
Artists include Peruvian operatic tenor, Juan Diego Flórez, Bruce Liu, winner of the 2021 International Chopin Piano Competition and 16-year-old violin prodigy, Leia Zhu. Academy Award-winning composer Tan Dun conducts the Orchestra of Teatro Comunale di Modena Pavarotti-Freni and world-famous Chinese cellist Jian Wang in an unforgettable musical journey from West to East, followed by the UAE premiere of his original Pipa Concerto.
Elsewhere Emirati writer Maitha Al Khayat and Emirati composer Eman Al Hashimi join forces with American contemporary dance Company E for Pearl Diver’s Daughter, the longest continuous augmented reality experience ever created. This tale of family, tradition and the perils of the diver and the wonders of the sea, blends cutting-edge technology with choreography, music and narrative to take audiences of all ages on a dive beneath the waves of the Gulf.
Over the past two decades UAE has actively invested in the sector as a key element of its economic diversification strategy and its efforts to support the sustainability and well-being of its population. Moreover, the Festival is a key platform for promoting the nation’s soft power and cultural diplomacy to policymakers and influential figures internationally.
To explore the full programme of events happening in both the UAE and abroad, as well as the community and education initiatives that appear alongside the Festival, visit: https://abudhabifestival.ae/