Construction has officially begun on Dar al Funoon Abu Dhabi, the new performing arts centre designed by Frank Gehry for the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi). Scheduled to open in 2030 on Saadiyat Island, the venue will host opera, ballet, theatre, live music, and multidisciplinary productions, marking another milestone in the transformation of the Saadiyat Cultural District into the emirate's leading cultural destination.
One of Gehry's latest projects, Dar al Funoon, takes the form of a sculptural building defined by a sweeping, undulating envelope reminiscent of a suspended piece of fabric that wraps around the performance spaces. According to the design team, the transparent façade is intended to reveal the creative process while strengthening the relationship between the building, the city, and its audiences, turning artistic practice into a shared public experience.
© Images are courtesy of the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi.
The programme is organised around a series of performance venues of varying capacities, including a multifunctional hall with more than 2,000 seats, a 3,500-seat outdoor amphitheatre, a 400-seat studio theatre, and a 250-seat jazz club, bringing the total capacity to more than 6,000 spectators. The institution will offer year-round programming featuring performances, artist residencies, international co-productions, and collaborations with companies worldwide.
"Dar al Funoon Abu Dhabi represents our long-term investment in artistic expression and reflects our integrated approach to cultural development," said Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, Chairman of the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi. "It will serve as a permanent home for performing arts at the highest international standards, bringing together artists, companies, and creative talent from the UAE, the region, and across the globe."
Al Mubarak added that the new centre "will expand opportunities for cultural exchange through artist residencies, international partnerships, and world-class productions, inspiring a new generation of creatives while further strengthening Abu Dhabi's position as a global centre for creativity, cultural exchange, and artistic excellence."
© Images are courtesy of the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi.
The building will rise within the Saadiyat Cultural District, alongside Jean Nouvel's Louvre Abu Dhabi, Foster + Partners' Zayed National Museum, Mecanoo's Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi, teamLab Phenomena Abu Dhabi, and the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, also designed by Frank Gehry and currently under construction. Rather than standing as an isolated landmark, Dar al Funoon forms part of Abu Dhabi's broader strategy to establish a world-class cultural district through signature architecture, commissioning some of the world's leading architects to design its cultural institutions.
© Images are courtesy of the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi.
With Dar al Funoon, Gehry adds another chapter to his long-standing exploration of performance architecture—a theme that has shaped much of his career, from the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles to the Pierre Boulez Saal in Berlin. Here, the project reimagines the theatre as an open cultural infrastructure, conceived not only as a venue for performance but also as an urban catalyst designed to support the growth of the emirate's creative industries and artistic production.
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© Images: courtesy of the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi.
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