NYUAD expands its line-up of online shows across music, dance and film
NYU Abu Dhabi Arts Centre has announced its latest batch of free and ticketed online shows and film screenings as part of its sixth season.
The highlight is set to be the annual Barzakh Festival, a series of eclectic concerts that will be streamed next month.
Kicking off the festival on Monday, February 1, are the Afro-Venezuelan musical duo Betsayda Machado and La Parranda El Clavo, who will perform archival recordings by rural female singers from their homeland.
On Wednesday, February 3, the Martha Redbone Roots Project will take on the virtual stage. The namesake US singer’s set mixes Appalachian music with soul, blues and Native American musical elements. Redbone will also return online later next month, on Sunday, February 21 and Tuesday, February 23, for a Q&A session about the show, as well as to conduct music workshops.
Wrapping up the festival on Saturday, February 6, are Boom. Diwan, an Afro Khaleeji music
collective featuring pianist Nduduzo Makhathini, the first South African artist signed to legendary US jazz music label Blue Note Records. Their compositions take traditional Kuwaiti pearl diving anthems and inject them with jazz.
Also on the programme is Manifold – A Festival of Musical Diversity. Running on Friday and Saturday, February 12 and
13, the event is home to contemporary music and features Italian concert pianist Emanuele Arciuli.
Dance lovers will also be catered for with Ahuti by The Nrityagram Dance Ensemble. Pre-recorded in Bangalore, India, the performance will be streamed on Wednesday, February 17, with a preview held the day before.
More micro-online theatre is also on the way. The US company Theatre for One will present Here We Are, a single audience production where a live actor delivers a powerful account of the current times, ranging from the pandemic to the Black Lives Matter global movement. The shows will run from Wednesday, April 7 to Sunday, April 11. Also returning for another round of performances is spoken word series Rooftop Rhythms, with its ninth iteration kicking off on Friday, January 22.
The contemporary Arab films series CinemaNa will resume monthly screenings from Monday, February 8, with diverse films from the region, followed by live discussions with the talents. Included in the series is Nagafa by Emirati director Abdulrahman Al Madani on Monday, March 8, and Gaza Mon Amour, by Palestinian filmmakers Arab and Tarzan Nasser, on Monday, April 19.
The new shows form the second half of NYUAD Arts Centre’s sixth season. Beginning last September, the online-only series featured performances by Canadian DJ and producer Kid Koala and a piano recital by Greek virtuoso Ioannis Potamousis.
NYUAD Arts Centre’s artistic director, Bill Bragin, says the expanded line-up will continue to underscore the challenging times we are presently in. “We live in an interconnected, online world where we need the arts more than ever before.
“The rich, diverse and exciting international cast of artists speak to the challenging times we are living through, but also transcend the moment to provide a joyful, life-affirming sense of possibility and freedom.”