When the pop stars Lisa Scott-Lee of Steps and her husband, the former Hear'say singer Johnny Shentallinvited wannabe performers to sign up for their new performing arts academy in Dubai this month, the security guards in the car park outside struggled to control the traffic.
The British songstress can rely on her celebrity kudos to attract youngsters to the Dubai Performing Arts Academy, and Shentall can boast 25 years of experience as a dancer for superstars such as Robbie Williams and Diana Ross.
But they have launched at a time when the UAE market for performing arts businesses would appear to be saturated.
Some of the new and expanding businesses are tapping into the Glee factor, attracting young "Gleeks", as fans of the US TV show musical sensation are known.
"Popular arts has been glamourised by shows such as Glee and High School Musical - it's cool now for teenagers to perform, whether they are male or female", says Ferne Reynolds Lategan, whose company Drama Scene Dubai is about to expand into Khalifa City in Abu Dhabi. "Our business is going really well, we have waiting lists for our classes."
Hayley Doyle, a former West End dancer and published author, set up Hayley's Comet Theatre Company in Dubai's Alex and James Studios last year. For Ms Doyle, the secret to running a successful performing arts company is absolute dedication to the craft.
"I never switch off," she says. "If I stop working for a few days, the business just stops running. My holidays are a nightmare - I am always on the hunt for Wi-Fi. Hopefully, the hard work makes the shows we do extra special."
As well as performing arts in general, there has been a surge in growth within the dance market in particular. The Iranian singer Afshin Jafari, who headed the German band A-Team and counts fans in their millions, launched Melodica music and dance studio in JLT this month. And Ocean Kids Dubai, which already has a base in Karama, opened a new branch this month in Al Ghusais, offering Bollywood, hip-hop and contemporary dance classes.
There are now more than 20 dance studios operating just in Dubai. In the US, the dance studios market has grown 2.3 per cent a year since 2009, according to the business intelligence provider IbisWorld.
Krista Degaetano, who runs Contemporary Dance Dubai (CDD) from a studio at a hotel on Jumeirah Beach, says TV shows such as So You Think You Can Dance and Dancing with the Stars are driving the demand for dance classes.
However, the entrepreneur acknowledges that running a dance studio can be a tricky business model to operate here. "The big issue in Dubai is that the rental cost of dance studios is so high. There's less and less space available for the growing dance world. As the economy develops, there are more smaller studios opening which are being used solely for their own purposes and not to rent or collaborate with other companies. The studios are often not fitted out to the professional standards of what a studio needs for professional dance. So the hardship is either not finding space at all, or finding poor quality studio spaces that are not suitable for a professional company."
Lisa and Scott Marshall have run Diverse Choreography since 2008. They have managed to ride out the storm of escalating rental costs by moving into their own studios, and signing a three-year deal binding their landlord to allow rent to rise only by a small, set amount each year.
"The price of the chiller was included in the rent, so that's been a massive thing for us", says Ms Marshall. "The landlord has been good to us, and we've been lucky. But the move was expensive. We refitted four studios, which cost us almost Dh500,000. And this month, we've just expanded again, with two extra dance studios and a drama room.
"Some of our senior level students want to make a career out of dance and are here for 30 to 40 hours a week, so it's really important for them to have spring flooring. But it's not cheap. For one studio it costs almost Dh30,000. You also need mirrors to check moves, which we ship in from Italy because they're of a better quality. We didn't take out a loan, we scrimped and saved. But it was tight."
Ms Marshall says it can be challenging to make a performing arts business profitable. "It depends who's running it," she adds. "Scott and I were both professional dancers before we came here - not business minds - but we're driven by trying to make what we offer the best it can be."
But not every company survives. The Bollywood star Meghna Naidu, who appeared in the 2004 film Hawas, established the Meghna Naidu Dance Academy in Dubai in July 2012. But the Bollywood dance company later shut down. Earlier this year, Move Ya Dance Studios in JLT also closed its doors. The managing director Wafik M'hamdi, who is now a personal trainer, says: "There was just no profit to be made in the dance business and there's so much competition in this market."
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How being social media savvy can improve your well being
Next time when procastinating online remember that you can save thousands on paying for a personal trainer and a gym membership simply by watching YouTube videos and keeping up with the latest health tips and trends.
As social media apps are becoming more and more consumed by health experts and nutritionists who are using it to awareness and encourage patients to engage in physical activity.
Elizabeth Watson, a personal trainer from Stay Fit gym in Abu Dhabi suggests that “individuals can use social media as a means of keeping fit, there are a lot of great exercises you can do and train from experts at home just by watching videos on YouTube”.
Norlyn Torrena, a clinical nutritionist from Burjeel Hospital advises her clients to be more technologically active “most of my clients are so engaged with their phones that I advise them to download applications that offer health related services”.
Torrena said that “most people believe that dieting and keeping fit is boring”.
However, by using social media apps keeping fit means that people are “modern and are kept up to date with the latest heath tips and trends”.
“It can be a guide to a healthy lifestyle and exercise if used in the correct way, so I really encourage my clients to download health applications” said Mrs Torrena.
People can also connect with each other and exchange “tips and notes, it’s extremely healthy and fun”.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
The biog
Name: Fareed Lafta
Age: 40
From: Baghdad, Iraq
Mission: Promote world peace
Favourite poet: Al Mutanabbi
Role models: His parents
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Venue: Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Date: Sunday, November 25
The specs: 2018 Renault Koleos
Price, base: From Dh77,900
Engine: 2.5L, in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission
Power: 170hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 233Nm @ 4,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 8.3L / 100km
Two products to make at home
Toilet cleaner
1 cup baking soda
1 cup castile soap
10-20 drops of lemon essential oil (or another oil of your choice)
Method:
1. Mix the baking soda and castile soap until you get a nice consistency.
2. Add the essential oil to the mix.
Air Freshener
100ml water
5 drops of the essential oil of your choice (note: lavender is a nice one for this)
Method:
1. Add water and oil to spray bottle to store.
2. Shake well before use.
Biog:
Age: 34
Favourite superhero: Batman
Favourite sport: anything extreme
Favourite person: Muhammad Ali
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
Coffee: black death or elixir of life?
It is among the greatest health debates of our time; splashed across newspapers with contradicting headlines - is coffee good for you or not?
Depending on what you read, it is either a cancer-causing, sleep-depriving, stomach ulcer-inducing black death or the secret to long life, cutting the chance of stroke, diabetes and cancer.
The latest research - a study of 8,412 people across the UK who each underwent an MRI heart scan - is intended to put to bed (caffeine allowing) conflicting reports of the pros and cons of consumption.
The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, contradicted previous findings that it stiffens arteries, putting pressure on the heart and increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke, leading to warnings to cut down.
Numerous studies have recognised the benefits of coffee in cutting oral and esophageal cancer, the risk of a stroke and cirrhosis of the liver.
The benefits are often linked to biologically active compounds including caffeine, flavonoids, lignans, and other polyphenols, which benefit the body. These and othetr coffee compounds regulate genes involved in DNA repair, have anti-inflammatory properties and are associated with lower risk of insulin resistance, which is linked to type-2 diabetes.
But as doctors warn, too much of anything is inadvisable. The British Heart Foundation found the heaviest coffee drinkers in the study were most likely to be men who smoked and drank alcohol regularly.
Excessive amounts of coffee also unsettle the stomach causing or contributing to stomach ulcers. It also stains the teeth over time, hampers absorption of minerals and vitamins like zinc and iron.
It also raises blood pressure, which is largely problematic for people with existing conditions.
So the heaviest drinkers of the black stuff - some in the study had up to 25 cups per day - may want to rein it in.
Rory Reynolds