“This isn’t what we usually do,” begins Mike Rew, Bon Jovi’s crew chief, as he meets a lucky handful of press backstage pre-show.
“Is this a school trip or are you media?” barks the brash New Jersey native, as the assembled journos heft their gear onto the Du Arena stage.
And with that, moments before Thursday’s concert, we are set loose to explore the band’s sizeable collection of gear.
At first I was too scared to touch anything – by the end I had accidentally kicked over bassist Hugh McDonald’s energy drink.
Like kids in a sweetshop, I inspected David Bryan’s keyboards and mounted Tico Torres’s intimidating drum rider.
I counted 19 gleaming guitars belonging to new guy Phil X – and mimed a chorus into what appeared to be Jon’s mic.
The most memorable moment however came walking to the edge of the stage to take a picture, only to meet rafts of applause from frantic fans, hoping I was something to do with the band, or their arrival.
More than all that expensive gear, this fleeting moment gave a far greater glimpse into what it’s really like to be a rock star.
rgarratt@thenational.ae
Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
$1,000 award for 1,000 days on madrasa portal
Daily cash awards of $1,000 dollars will sweeten the Madrasa e-learning project by tempting more pupils to an education portal to deepen their understanding of math and sciences.
School children are required to watch an educational video each day and answer a question related to it. They then enter into a raffle draw for the $1,000 prize.
“We are targeting everyone who wants to learn. This will be $1,000 for 1,000 days so there will be a winner every day for 1,000 days,” said Sara Al Nuaimi, project manager of the Madrasa e-learning platform that was launched on Tuesday by the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, to reach Arab pupils from kindergarten to grade 12 with educational videos.
“The objective of the Madrasa is to become the number one reference for all Arab students in the world. The 5,000 videos we have online is just the beginning, we have big ambitions. Today in the Arab world there are 50 million students. We want to reach everyone who is willing to learn.”
Wonka
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%C2%A0Paul%20King%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3ETimothee%20Chalamet%2C%20Olivia%20Colman%2C%20Hugh%20Grant%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Joker: Folie a Deux
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson
Director: Todd Phillips
Rating: 2/5
Meydan race card
6.30pm: Maiden; Dh165,000; (Dirt) 1,200m
7.05pm: Handicap; Dh170,000; (D) 1,200m
7.40pm: Maiden; Dh165,000; (D) 1,900m
8.15pm: Handicap; Dh185,000; (D) 2,000m
8.50pm: Handicap; Dh185,000; (D) 1,600m
9.25pm: Handicap; Dh165,000; (D) 2,000m
