NYUAD’s Arts Centre celebrates UAE National Day with eighth edition of Hekayah

ABU DHABI, 22nd November, 2022 (WAM) — The Arts Centre at NYU Abu Dhabi (NYUAD) will celebrate the UAE’s 51st National Day with the eighth edition of Hekayah | The Story which is part of the Abu Dhabi City of Music festive musical events.

Held at The East Plaza on 28th November at 19:30, Hekayah | The Story is a one-of-a-kind event bringing together poets, spoken word artists, musicians, and storytellers from diverse backgrounds and cultures to showcase the beautiful diversity of the UAE.

The season’s theme is directly inspired by the name of the event, Hekayah | The Story. Through poetry, spoken word and song, the artists share their stories and narratives of home, family, heritage, and nation, in all the complexity those concepts contain, asking questions such as “what does home mean to you?”. Hekayah has been one of the most important vehicles for The Arts Centre to celebrate local and regional talent, from award-winning artists and writers to emerging student talents and everything in between. It is designed to reflect the depth and breadth of the UAE and the many communities that call it home. The lineup of performers was selected through a collaborative curatorial process by key players in the UAE’s cultural, poetry, arts, and writing communities, including Farah Chamma, Osama Mootassem, Maryam Khalifa Alshehhi, Dorian Paul Rodgers, and Bill Bragin.
Audiences will enjoy a mix of live performances by a lineup of Hekayah artists featuring, MC Maryam Khalifa AlShehhi (UAE); Ali Al Zaabi – Spoken word poetry (UAE); Bea Laszlo – Music (Hungary); Danabelle Gutierrez – Spoken word poetry (Philippines); Dorian Paul Rogers – Spoken word poetry (USA); Fatema Al Fardan – Spoken word poetry (UAE); Jiire Smith – Music (Nigeria); Maitha Alsuwaidi – Spoken word poetry (UAE); Marion Wrenn – Spoken word poetry (USA); Monika Pawlowska – Spoken word poetry (Poland); Moving Mudras – Dance (India/Sri Lanka/Singapore/Malaysia); Nathalie Handal – Poetry (USA/France/Palestine); Samar Abdel Jaber – Spoken word poetry (Palestine); and ZigZag Ghanim – Music (Egypt).

Executive Artistic Director at NYUAD Arts Centre Bill Bragin commented, “Hekayah is a significant event to The Arts Centre because it allows us to expand beyond our knowledge and relationship through its collaborative curatorial process. Through this process, we are introduced to artists we might not have previously known, as well as shine a light on community artists who may have been at The Arts Centre previously, whether as NYUAD students and faculty, as performers at Rooftop Rhythms’ monthly open mics, or in the case of an artist like ZigZag Ghanim, part of a previous production, Sima Dance Company’s Rhyme.”

Bragin added, “Hekayah creates a transnational space for the celebration of UAE National Day and acts as a platform for Emirati Nationals and residents alike to pay tribute to the place we all call home.”