A dhow-shaped auditorium that converts from a proscenium theatre to a flat-floor hall in six hours.
Opened in 2016 at the foot of the Burj Khalifa, designed by Janus Rostock at Atkins in the shape of a dhow — the bow forming the main auditorium and the hull the stage, with the flat deck at the rear used as a rooftop terrace.
It seats about 2,000, and the notable feature is that the auditorium transforms. It runs as a conventional proscenium theatre, and can be converted to a flat-floor concert hall or a banquet space by retracting the seating and raising the stalls floor, in around six hours. Very few venues of this size can do it.
The programme
Genuinely broad, which is both its strength and the thing critics point at. In a season you might find touring opera and ballet, West End musicals, classical recitals, Arabic and Indian concerts, comedy, and corporate events.
It is not a producing house with a resident company in the European sense — it is a receiving venue, and the programme reflects whoever is touring. Placido Domingo opened it; the Bolshoi and the Mariinsky have appeared; so have a great many pop acts.
For visitors, the practical point is that there is nearly always something on, and the building is worth an evening regardless of what it is.
Prices
Wide range. Upper tiers are reasonable by Dubai standards and the sightlines are decent; the stalls and boxes are priced for the Downtown market.
Book online. Popular musicals and touring names sell out.
Dress
Smart casual is the stated code and is enforced loosely. No shorts or beachwear. Some galas are black tie and say so.
The building at other times
Guided tours run on non-performance days, covering the auditorium, backstage and the transformation mechanism, and are worth it if the machinery interests you.
The rooftop terrace and the ground-floor restaurants are open to non-ticket holders and give a view straight up the Burj Khalifa and across the fountain lake.
Around it
The Opera District around the building is the newest part of Downtown, and the walk from here to the fountain and the mall takes ten minutes on the promenade — comfortable between November and March and unpleasant in summer, when most people use the mall’s air-conditioned link instead.
