On August 31, 2016, Dubai marked the opening of the city’s most distinguished address for the performing arts.
Dubai Opera's inaugural performance came as a statement of what the venue would be offering for years to come. The performance traversed centuries and genres, spanning Verdi and Wagner to West Side Story.
Placido Domingo was the star of the show, accompanied by a 65-piece orchestra. Even at 75, the tenor managed to deliver a performance that underscored his place on the operatic pantheon.
Domingo made his entrance with Nemico della Patria, an aria that is part of Umberto Giordano’s 1896 opera Andrea Chénier. The Spanish singer then powered through Verdi operas La Traviata and Il Trovatore, with duets alongside Ana Maria Martinez, the Puerto Rican soprano who was a frequent collaborator.
The second segment of the show took its cue from several Broadway classics. While Verdi is very much in Domingo’s element – the singer has released recordings of practically every tenor aria written by the 19th century Italian composer – it was surprising for many to see him belt through hits such as Some Enchanted Evening, a tune from the 1949 musical South Pacific. Martinez, meanwhile, paid homage to Julie Andrews with a rendition of I Could Have Danced All Night from the musical My Fair Lady.
However, the star performance was Tonight from West Side Story, invigorated with a playful duet by Domingo and Martinez. The performance drew to a close with a performance of No Suede Ser, written by Spanish composer Pablo Sorozabal.
However, as impressive as Domingo’s operatic prowess is, his character offstage has been scrutinised in recent years as multiple sexual assault allegations were made against the singer. At least 20 women, including a former colleague, have accused Domingo of forcibly kissing and grabbing them. The incidents reportedly spanned three decades, going as far back as the 1980s.
Domingo resigned as general director of the Los Angeles Opera when the accusations against him began surfacing in 2019. In February 2020, he released a statement apologising to the women who accused him for the “pain” he caused them and accepted “full responsibility”.
Since its opening, Dubai Opera has grown into one of the region's most important cultural hubs. In June, the venue announced that a record 250,000 guests attended shows during its 2023-2024 season, the highest number of people in a season since it opened its doors in 2016.
More than 100 productions and 200 performances were held at the venue during the season, spanning opera, ballet, symphonic, musicals and concerts.
Highlights included the UAE premieres of Orchestra of Teatro alla Scala, musicAeterna Orchestra and Rome Opera Ballet. Internationally acclaimed shows The Phantom of the Opera and Matilda The Musical also had successful runs.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The Bio
Favourite vegetable: “I really like the taste of the beetroot, the potatoes and the eggplant we are producing.”
Holiday destination: “I like Paris very much, it’s a city very close to my heart.”
Book: “Das Kapital, by Karl Marx. I am not a communist, but there are a lot of lessons for the capitalist system, if you let it get out of control, and humanity.”
Musician: “I like very much Fairuz, the Lebanese singer, and the other is Umm Kulthum. Fairuz is for listening to in the morning, Umm Kulthum for the night.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The 15 players selected
Muzzamil Afridi, Rahman Gul, Rizwan Haider (Dezo Devils); Shahbaz Ahmed, Suneth Sampath (Glory Gladiators); Waqas Gohar, Jamshaid Butt, Shadab Ahamed (Ganga Fighters); Ali Abid, Ayaz Butt, Ghulam Farid, JD Mahesh Kumara (Hiranni Heros); Inam Faried, Mausif Khan, Ashok Kumar (Texas Titans
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Global Fungi Facts
• Scientists estimate there could be as many as 3 million fungal species globally
• Only about 160,000 have been officially described leaving around 90% undiscovered
• Fungi account for roughly 90% of Earth's unknown biodiversity
• Forest fungi help tackle climate change, absorbing up to 36% of global fossil fuel emissions annually and storing around 5 billion tonnes of carbon in the planet's topsoil
The Little Things
Directed by: John Lee Hancock
Starring: Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, Jared Leto
Four stars
Match info
Uefa Champions League Group H
Manchester United v Young Boys, Tuesday, midnight (UAE)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- Margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars
- Energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- Infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes
- Many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts
More coverage from the Future Forum
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
Results
5pm: Al Falah – Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 1,200m; Winner: Bshara, Richard Mullen (jockey), Salem Al Ketbi (trainer)
5.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup – Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,400m; Winner: AF Musannef, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
6pm: Al Dhafra – Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: AF Mualami, Antonio Fresu, Abubakar Daud
6.30pm: Al Khaleej Al Arabi – Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Hawafez, Adrie de Vries, Abubakar Daud
7pm: Al Mafraq – Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: JAP Almahfuz, Royston Ffrench, Irfan Ellahi
7.30pm: Al Samha – Handicap (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Celestial Spheres, Patrick Cosgrave, Ismail Mohammed
NEW ARRIVALS
Benjamin Mendy (Monaco) - £51.75m (Dh247.94m)
Kyle Walker (Tottenham Hotspur) - £45.9m
Bernardo Silva (Monaco) - £45m
Ederson Moraes (Benfica) - £36m
Danilo (Real Madrid) - £27m
Douglas Luiz (Vasco de Gama) - £10.8m
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
