A PEARLING JOURNEY PERFORMANCE AND BUILDING BOAT MODELS WORKSHOP HIGHLIGHT ABU DHABI AS A HISTORICAL PORT CITY

Taking a voyage into the UAE’s past, Wednesdays at the Warehouse programme presents a compelling mix of activities this Ramadan, aimed at performing arts enthusiasts and families. ‘The Journey of the Pearl’ live performance will reinterpret pearling stories from the UAE’s heritage on 15th June 2016 from 8.30 pm to 10 pm at Warehouse 421, while on 29th June 2016 between 4 pm to 6 pm, families can participate in a guided boat-building workshop to create their own structure.

Warehouse421 in collaboration with Rooftop Rhythms, will enable visitors to take the journey of an Emirati pearling family that dealt with the consequence of departure, travel and returning home through a compelling theatrical embracing the Emirates’ cultural heritage before the discovery of oil. Offering a first person perspective, the musical will be performed in both English and Arabic, providing a dynamic insight into the UAE’s heritage through word, music and movement.

The exhibition Departure, which features the famed Spanish sculptor Xavier Mascaró’s rusted iron and oxidized bronze boats installations, has appealed to visitors of all ages. Warehouse421 in collaboration with The Salama bint Hamdan Emerging Artists Fellowship (SEAF) will welcome children, aged seven and above, and their parents with a workshop revolving around building a skeleton form of a boat by using materials that imitate Mascaró’s own.

The family friendly workshop will be led by artist Ahmed Mohamed, a Fellow at SEAF, guiding but not limiting participants in developing their own structures. Families will have the opportunity to sketch their ideas and choose the material to work with, before forming the structure of the boat and building on it, in order to achieve a standing finished piece.

“Season two of ‘Wednesdays at the Warehouse’ is inspired by the current exhibition Departure and touches on the UAE’s geographical position and relation with the sea. Through this program, we aim to engage local communities in art related activities that unveils the country’s maritime history” says Faisal Al Hassan, Public Programs Manager at the Salama bint Hamdan Al Nahyan Foundation.

The current exhibition Departure is ongoing until September 4, 2016 and Lest We Forget: Emirati Family Photographs 1950-1999, has been extended to July 31, 2016. Warehouse421 Ramadan hours are from 10am-4pm and 8:30pm-10:30pm daily, closed on Mondays.