On May 3, NYU Abu Dhabi hosted The Arab Knowledge Forum, a networking event aiming to connect UAE youth with major industry partners. This forum is a result of a collaboration between NYUAD and the University Leadership Council of the UAE to discuss the country’s process of nation-building. The event was held in the auditorium of the A6 Arts and Humanities building from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The event was supported by the presence of His Highness Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Tolerance, and His Excellency Homaid Al Shimmari, deputy CEO of Mubadala Group. The event proceeded with an inaugural keynote panel about the UAE’s nation-building, followed by an exclusive interview with Her Excellency Bariza Khiari, Vice President of the Senate of France. The forum also hosted a Technology and Innovation Keynote Panel, a team from the NYUAD Solar Decathlon and a Youth Keynote Panel.

Representatives for companies such as McKinsey & Company, the American Business Council, PepsiCo and Emirates Global Aluminum also attended.

On May 4, NYU Abu Dhabi’s Arts Center hosted the second dance recital of the year. The event was organized by Attitude, NYUAD’s dance Student Interest Group. This is the first time Attitude has organized two shows, and double the effort was required to organize the event. The shows ran from 7 p.m to 9 p.m and showcased a range of dances from different genres and cultures. With high turnout, all tickets were completely sold out.

“The recital was a culmination of weeks of rehearsal and hard work by many [NYUAD] students as well as dancers from the Abu Dhabi community. We had performances ranging from Bachata to classical Spanish folk dance. The NYUAD Arts Center was an incredible support and we had a full house for almost two shows,” said Nandini Kochar, Class of 2021 and President of Attitude at NYUAD. “Lastly, the recital this semester was themed Regenesis, representing the constant change and renewal dance goes through in the process of conception, creation and performance.”

“From Attitude, I finally see the hope in dance at NYUAD. Seeing that there are so many people passionate about dance and interested in learning dance, I hope that more and more dance programs and events can happen on our campus and be enjoyed by more people,” said Hoya Liu, Class of 2021.

“It was excellent. [The recital] was really fun [and] gave a lot of people the opportunity [to] experience being [part of] a production. For me personally, it was a dream come true simply because it went smoothly and I was able to shape it the way I imagined, and we had positive feedback,” said Gabrielle Branch, Vice President of Attitude.

Between April 30 and May 3, the NYUAD Arts Center hosted four concerts where student musicians performed different pieces. Voice and instrumental performances were showcased in the recitals, beautifully illustrating two semesters’ worth of effort and practice in the music department. The concerts took place at the Blue Hall.

“Habanera is not an easy piece, so major shoutouts to my professors Clare and David Lesser who were so helpful. Luckily it went well, and I am very happy that I took the challenge. I am an alto, and this song has a couple high notes. In the beginning, they were real pains. But after [practicing], it became easy,” said Xinyi Zou, Class of 2021.

"I went [to] the concert not knowing what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised at the high quality of all the performances, and it has encouraged me to go [to] more of [the music department’s concerts]," said Ayaan Shah Ali, Class of 2021.