Sxip Shirey will present two shows as part of NYUAD Arts Centre's 2019-2020 performance programme. Courtesy NYUAD Arts Centre
Sxip Shirey will present two shows as part of NYUAD Arts Centre's 2019-2020 performance programme. Courtesy NYUAD Arts Centre
Sxip Shirey will present two shows as part of NYUAD Arts Centre's 2019-2020 performance programme. Courtesy NYUAD Arts Centre
Sxip Shirey will present two shows as part of NYUAD Arts Centre's 2019-2020 performance programme. Courtesy NYUAD Arts Centre

Musician Sxip Shirey to team up with local performers for Abu Dhabi show


Alexandra Chaves
  • English
  • Arabic

Circus composer and musician Sxip Shirey (pronounced "skip") is bringing his experimental and entertaining Sxip's Hour of Charm show to the UAE.

Part of NYUAD Art Centre's fifth season of shows, Sxip's Hour of Charm: Abu Dhabi will feature a variety of performances by UAE-based artists, which Shirey will co-curate with the centre's artistic director Bill Bragin, as well as the musician's own signature experimental compositions. The one-night-only show is set to take place on Thursday, April 9, 2020.

The centre will also present The Gauntlet, a performance piece by Shirey crafted in collaboration with dancer Coco Karol on Friday, April 17.

“We're thrilled to also add to the season two performances by Sxip Shirey, a composer who also comes from a strong history in circus,” said Bragin.

"We originally met when I programmed Sxip's Hour of Charm at Joe's Pub in New York, and fell in love with his sensibility – that of a classic carnival barker, curating shows full of surprises, including beatboxers, musicians, clowns, and his own inventive and janky object-based music."

New York-based Sxip Shirey is known for compositions that blend folk, gypsy punk and beatbox styles
New York-based Sxip Shirey is known for compositions that blend folk, gypsy punk and beatbox styles

Shirey is known for compositions that blend folk, gypsy punk and beatbox styles. His array of bizarre instruments, which he devises himself, include The Industrial Flute, Mutant Harmonicas, Obnoxiophone and the Regurgitated Music Box.

Previous editions of the show saw Shirey performing with Reggie Watts and Amanda Palmer, plus acts by contortionists, aerial artists, acrobats and sword swallowers, influenced by his time at The Bindlestiff Family Cirkus in the early 2000s. He has also written music for Neil Gaiman's short film Statuesque and has toured with the circus show Limbo in Australia and the UK.

'The Gauntlet: Abu Dhabi'

Shirey has also collaborated with Coco Karol on a choral and movement piece titled The Gauntlet: Abu Dhabi, which promises to be an immersive and intimate experience for visitors. The performers will not sing on stage, but will arrange themselves in a formation that visitors have to walk through.

As they do, the choir ‘pass along’ musical phrases to each other, producing waves of sound that build across the room. The ‘lyrics’ have been drawn from interviews with various local cultural figures and artists.

Dancer and choreographer Coco Karol performing 'The Gauntlet'
Dancer and choreographer Coco Karol performing 'The Gauntlet'

Karol, a trained classical dancer who began her career with the Boston Ballet, has choreographed the piece and will interact with the choir and visitors as the performance unfolds.

According to Bragin, Shirey has a way of finding spaces that have sonic potential.

“Sxip visited a few years ago and we shot a series of informal musical improvisation videos in some amazing acoustic site on campus," he said.

"I'm excited that we'll be able to activate yet another new space on campus which hasn't yet been thought of as a performance venue, and immerse audiences in music in a new and surprising way.”

For a full list of shows for the NYUAD Art Centre's 2019-2020 season, visit www.nyuad-artscenter.org

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Other workplace saving schemes
  • The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
  • Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
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  • In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
  • Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
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5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed

Gully Boy

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Producer: Excel Entertainment & Tiger Baby
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UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
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Keep it fun and engaging

Stuart Ritchie, director of wealth advice at AES International, says children cannot learn something overnight, so it helps to have a fun routine that keeps them engaged and interested.

“I explain to my daughter that the money I draw from an ATM or the money on my bank card doesn’t just magically appear – it’s money I have earned from my job. I show her how this works by giving her little chores around the house so she can earn pocket money,” says Mr Ritchie.

His daughter is allowed to spend half of her pocket money, while the other half goes into a bank account. When this money hits a certain milestone, Mr Ritchie rewards his daughter with a small lump sum.

He also recommends books that teach the importance of money management for children, such as The Squirrel Manifesto by Ric Edelman and Jean Edelman.

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MATCH INFO

Fixture: Thailand v UAE, Tuesday, 4pm (UAE)

TV: Abu Dhabi Sports

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Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8

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Power: 630bhp

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November 30-December 2, at The Sevens, Dubai

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Pool A – Abu Dhabi Harlequins, Jumeirah College Tigers, Dubai English Speaking School 1, Gems World Academy

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October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar. 

December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.

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March 1:  Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.

July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.

July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.

August 6:  The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.

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September 3: Qatar becomes independent.

November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.

November 29:  At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.

November 30: Despite  a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa. 

November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties

December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.

December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.

December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.

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Size: 600 plus

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Toss: Sindhis, elected to field first

Kerala Knights 103-7 (10 ov)

Parnell 59 not out; Tambe 5-15

Sindhis 104-1 (7.4 ov)

Watson 50 not out, Devcich 49

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PSA DUBAI WORLD SERIES FINALS LINE-UP

Men’s: 
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Ali Farag (EGY)
Simon Rosner (GER)
Tarek Momen (EGY)
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Gregory Gaultier (FRA)
Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY)
Nick Matthew (ENG)

Women's: 
Nour El Sherbini (EGY)
Raneem El Welily (EGY)
Nour El Tayeb (EGY)
Laura Massaro (ENG)
Joelle King (NZE)
Camille Serme (FRA)
Nouran Gohar (EGY)
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