Closing Night: THANK YOU!

A great big 'thank you' to everyone who came to see FREEJ FOLKLORE in Dubai. It was a wonderful 10 days. We'll still be posting updates over the next week or so - probably with some 'interesting' behind the scenes bloopers :)

Friday night at Freej Folklore

Thursday night audience

Freej Folklore views on Tuesday

More Freej Folklore views

Audience opinions after the show

Day Four - here's what some of the audience thought of the show. Blogging live from Madinat Jumeirah Arena :)

First Views and Reviews

ArabEastern.com posted this great story about Freej Folklore, while The Kipp Report did a nice piece, too: "Remember Ali Baba, Sindbad and Aladdin and all those Arabian stories you heard as a child? Well, the show brings them all to life."

There are rave reviews in Emirates Business 24x7, "In a spectacular display of 3D special effects, combined with live-action and animation, audiences sat enraptured as they set sail with Sindbad on his voyage of discovery; followed in the footsteps of Arabian explorer Ibn Battuta; and wished upon a star with Aladdin and his genie."

And Abu Dhabi's The National called Folklore: "a pyrotechnic explosion of dance, light and sound."

But it's the reviews from people that have seen the show that have been really great to see. Blogger Aga in the UAE said: "the show was really fantastic. Music, dance, animation, acrobatics, special effects - all combined to create a really great theatrical experience."

We're glad you enjoyed it!!!

Gulf News Video

From Gulf News video: Mohammed and Ben talk about the Folklore production, the show and preparations!

Folklore Fever in Dubai

Opening night was a stunner. Yesterday running three consecutive shows was potentially a challenge, but everything went so smoothly, audiences were wowed and the result is raving reviews in today's UAE media and the blogosphere. His Highness Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, attended the English language shows yesterday at 7:00pm. It was such an honour to have His Highness as a guest!

And also a huge thanks to Al Khaleej newspaper for their review today. If you read Arabic, you can check it out here.

The Folklore Show

Some 'sneak preview' pictures of the show!

Live on UAE radio behind the scenes tonight

DJ Moe from Channel 4FM is setting up on site at the Madinat Arena. He'll be going live behind the scenes tonight for an exclusive sneak peak before opening night. From 7pm-10pm, the Evening Show with DJ Moe on 104.8FM will take UAE radio listeners into the world of FREEJ FOLKLORE!

Rehearsals

Rehearsals for Freej Folklore are progressing apace, with hundreds of performers including dancers and choreographers, animation specialists, sound and lighting engineers, producers and other technical team members all working together as the largest theatrical production ever in the Middle East gears up for its run at Dubai's Madinat Jumeirah Arena from the 8th-17th January 2009.

Freej Folklore, DSF 2009, Dubai Arts& Culture Authority: Ticket Offer!

Only until opening night, Thursday 8th January 2009, for every ticket, another one of equal value will be given. Why? Just because. Tickets in all Virgin Megastore outlets in UAE. The curtain will rise soon, ladies & gentlemen. And the rehearsals continue... (tech team slowly panicking...)

All cast in Dubai - rehearsals in full swing!

The entire cast and crew is in Dubai, we're rehearsing day and night. The dancers are still figuring out how to get in and out of their massive costumes! Tensions are running high - but we're all really excited and counting down till opening night. We move into the Madinat Arena tomorrow - but until then we've got this great gym space to work with.

This bearded Frenchman is Benjamin Monie from JBM - the co-producers of FREEJ FOLKLORE.

Maestros at work for the show's music

A live orchestra is recording the music for the show. ُEmirati composer Ibrahim Juma worked with Mohammed and the team at JBM to create this fusion of traditional eastern rhythm and western beats. Getting the 'soundtrack' right for the show - creating the illusions of fantasy, mixed with reality, 3D animation - it all comes together. Listen to the sample in the background of the video - we sneaked it in there after filming Mohammed :)

Al Yolla - UAE traditional dance

"Al Yolla"is the most popular battle scene dance in UAE culture. It's performed by a group of men using their sticks, swords or sometimes rifles. With rhythmic stepping to the beats of traditional musical instruments like the doumbek - which is made of ceramic and goatskin. It's used as a percussion instrument. Also the oud - a string instrument.

The Yolla dance gets performed at weddings and special occasions. The men form 2 or 4 rows, alternating their forward & backward steps to symbolize victory and defeat.

This is a rehearsal scene from the Yolla dance that's part of the FREEJ FOLKLORE show.

FREEJ Creator Debuts on blog : bil 3arabi

The creator of FREEJ, Dubai's own Mohammed Saeed Harib, welcomes you to the journey of discovery that is FREEJ FOLKLORE. Three years of scripting, animation, design, and more culminate in this 90-minute piece of incredible Arab theatre, to be staged in January 2009 at the Madinat Arena in Dubai.

FREEJ takes on Bollywood :)

Dubai's most popular grandmothers go Bollywood style for FREEJ FOLKLORE! Watch this or check it out on YouTube.com here.

Folklore in Style

FREEJ FOLKLORE costumes are ready! The designs are inspired by the legendary characters they are made for. Check out the Um Al Duwais dress -- all decked out in Swarovski crystals. Styled in the shape of a dagger around the waist, it's shaped like a 1950's princess ball gown, covered in crystals to create the illusion of blood drops trickling down the dress.

Um Al Duwais comes from UAE folk tales - she's the ultimate temptress, extremely attractive and graceful. But she's a demon that lures men to their peril. Even today, the name Um Al Duwais is used to refer to women who wear intense make-up to seduce men.

Where you can find us

Here's my welcome video message and news on where you can find us and get special ticket discounts. Hope you like it!