Top 10: Catch the opening of Comic Craze in Al Ain, enjoy the Shopping Soiree in Abu Dhabi, see two films in the Nowplaying series

Your essential guide to what's happening in the Emirates

Catch the opening of the exhibition Comic Craze in Al Ain, featuring works by artists including Ali Khamas and Saeed Al Hebsi (an image detail, pictured). TCA Abu Dhabi

Al Ain

Exhibition

Join the opening of Comic Craze, an exhibition of comic-strip works created by artists in the UAE, which has a flourishing community of graphic artists. The exhibition showcases examples of various techniques and materials, from fabricated portraits to animated films. Among the artists to be featured is Khalid bin Hamad, whose animated series Empire of mixes action and sci-fi with an Emirati twist, using Japanese style to reflect on Emirati identity. Pictured: an image by Ali Khamas and Saeed Al Hebsi

Opens today, then runs daily until October 19, 5pm to 9pm, Al Qattara Arts Centre, Al Ain, 03 761 8080, www.visitabudhabi.ae

Abu Dhabi

Shopping event

Visit the Shopping Soirée and find products and gift items created by UAE-based female entrepreneurs. Items for sale include handmade decor, beach wear, sandals, skincare products, children’s clothing, candles and jewellery.

Today, 10am to 2pm, free entry, The Westin Abu Dhabi Golf Resort and Spa, Abu Dhabi, www.facebook.com/ShoppingSoiree

Al Ain

Book fair

Attend the Al Ain Book Fair presented by the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority, and enjoy a celebration of Emirati titles and authors. The cultural programme highlights the experiences of these creative minds and showcases their works in the fields of literature, philosophy, poetry, history and academia.

Daily until October 2, 9am to 1pm and 5pm to 9pm, free entry, Al Ain Convention Centre, Al Ain, www.abudhabievents.ae

Nationwide

New movie

Kingsman: The Golden Circle is the sequel to the 2015 film Kingsman: The Secret Service, and is based on the comic book series Kingsman, about an independent intelligence agency tasked with keeping the world safe. In the latest instalment, the agency faces a new challenge when its headquarters is destroyed and the world is held hostage. It discovers another spy organisation, Statesman, and the two join forces to save the world. Comedy starring Colin Firth, Julianne Moore, Taron Egerton, Mark Strong, Halle Berry, Elton John, Channing Tatum and Jeff Bridges.

Screening at cinemas across the UAE (15+)

Dubai

Kids’ fun

Dubai Aquarium and Underwater Zoo is offering unlimited weekday access for children under 3 and a parent or guardian with its Baby Aquarist pass. Kids can learn about sea life through meet-and-greets, storytelling, scavenger hunts, arts and crafts and the Toddler Touch Pool.

Offer valid weekdays until October 26, 10am to 1pm for Toddler Touch Pool and activities; 10am to midnight for unlimited access, Dh100 per adult and child younger than 3, Dubai Aquarium and Underwater Zoo, The Dubai Mall, Downtown Dubai, 04 448 5200, www.thedubaiaquarium.com

Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo offers the Baby Aquarists pass, enabling children younger than 3 and a parent or guardian to experience sea life up close at a special price. Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo

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Read more:

Animation exhibition coming to Al Qattara Arts Centre in Al Ain

TCA announces new music programme

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Al Ain & Abu Dhabi

Concerts

The seventh season of Abu Dhabi Classics starts with a concert in Al Ain by the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra, which will perform Grieg, Wagner and Beethoven. The following evening in Abu Dhabi, the programme includes pieces by Rossini, Rachmaninoff and Brahms. Both nights feature American pianist Nicholas Angelich.

October 12 to 13, 7pm on October 12, from Dh100, Al Jahili Fort, Al Ain; 7pm on October 13, from Dh195, Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi, www.abudhabimusic.ae

Dubai

Concert

Book tickets to attend a concert by Grammy Award-winning singer Toni Braxton, who returns to the UAE for the first time since 2012. The American R&B star's hits include Un-Break My Heart, Another Sad Love Song, You Mean the World to Me and Breathe Again.

October 19, from 7.30pm, from Dh255, 21+, Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium, Al Garhoud, Dubai, www.platinumlist.net

Dubai

Oktoberfest

Grand Hyatt Dubai is to present another Oktoberfest in true Bavarian style, with a festival tent and all the traditional elements of the celebration, including live music from the band Die Kirchdorfer. Flown in from Munich, the musicians will play standards as well as singalong party music. You can also enjoy German specialities served buffet-style on opening night, October 11, and à la carte on other nights, as well as a brunch buffet on Saturdays.

October 11 to 28, 7pm to 1am on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays; 7pm to 2am on Thursdays and Fridays, from Dh195 for the opening night buffet at 7.30pm, free entry and à la carte on other nights; from Dh249 for the all-ages brunch on Saturdays from 12.30pm to 4pm, closed Sundays and Mondays, 21+ for evening events, Grand Hyatt Dubai, 04 317 2222, [e-mail]

Dubai

Exhibition

Grey Noise presents Sand, an exhibition of works by Daniel Gustav Cramer and Joana Escoval that reflects the dialogue between the artists' practices. The properties of the works explore liquidity and movement directed by gravity. There is also a recurring mirror motif, with materials reflecting their surroundings and the works mirroring each other. Pictured: Owl by Daniel Gustav Cramer

Daily until October 28, 11am to 7pm, Saturdays to Thursdays (closed Fridays), Grey Noise, Alserkal Avenue, Al Quoz, Dubai, 04 379 0764, www.greynoise.org

See the exhibition Sand, featuring works by artists including Daniel Gustav Cramer (pictured, a detail of Owl). Grey Noise

Dubai

Film screenings

Catch two films screening as part of the Nowplaying series presented by Cinema Akil and Alserkal Avenue. Lucky is a 2017 film by John Carroll Lynch, starring the late Harry Dean Stanton as Lucky, a fiercely independent 90-year-old man who lives on his own in a small desert town and is thrust into a journey of self-exploration. Columbus is a 2017 film directed by Kogonada about Jin (John Cho), a Korean man who flies to Columbus, Indiana, where his architect father has fallen into a coma. There, he strikes up a friendship with a local woman, Casey (Haley Lu Richardson), who is also caring for a sick parent.

Tonight, 7.30pm Lucky; 9.30pm Columbus, Dh35, Warehouse 68, Alserkal Avenue, Al Quoz, Dubai, www.cinemaakil.com