Artaaj Events

Last week, Artaaj orchestrated a property launch for a joint venture in the growing Emirate of Ajman, held at the newest hotel on Dubai’s 5 star map, The Raffles Hotel. Local real estate developer High Sky Properties and German investment company ICT, wowed their invited guests with a custom made laser show projected onto a 8m water screen complete with smoke machine and dramatic music.



Artaaj also provided a celebrity MC for the event to conduct the show and end on a high note by introducing the lively entertainment. The whole show was filmed by our videographers and shown on the big screens. All sound and light was provided by Artaaj.

Marie-Hélène from Canada has close to four years of experience in conferences and training throughout the UAE and into the Far East. Prior to establishing herself in Dubai in 2004, she worked for one of the world’s leading localization companies for nearly five years, first as project manager and then as production manager. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Translation from the University of Montreal and an MBA from HEC Montreal.

TBWA/RAAD commissioned Artaaj events to run a mall promotion for VISA, the number one payment card used by people around the world. The 2008 summer promotion encourages card holders to use their card abroad during their summer vacations, and win a “royal trip” i.e., get flown in style to either the Chateau de Bagnols Castle Hotel of France or the Thornsbury Castle Hotel of England, with spending money credited to their card.



Held for 6 days at the Ibn Batutta Mall in Dubai, the promotion area had a royal feel to fit the campaign’s theme complete with a set of thrones, crowns & royal robes. Our promoters dressed as “guards” and “maids” in custom designed royal livery, interacted with mall visitors, inviting them to wear the robes and crowns and sit on the royal throne. Our promoters then used Polaroid cameras, to provide the visitors with the picture instantly, capturing their royal moment forever!





Artaaj was involved in the complete organization & production of the promotion, from the promoters, their costume designs to the production of the entire stage. This would be one Royal experience that Artaaj would never forget!

Late in January 2008, we were contracted by Global Village, a member of Tatweer, to organize and manage Disney Live! presents Mickey’s Magic Show, a magical on-stage production showcasing a never-seen-before combination of master magician Mickey Mouse and the ever-dazzling Minnie.





Global Village, a leading culture and entertainment destination for families in Dubai, brought in this multimillion dollar production to the GCC the first time, as part of their mandate towards raising awareness of Dubai as the foremost tourism destination in the world.



The show itself is produced by the worldwide leader in producing and presenting live entertainment experiences, with 25 million people in attendance at its shows each year, which include Disney On Ice, Disney Live! among various others.



With these robust credentials behind us, we set about bringing the show to life. Working with the marketing team at Global Village as well as the production house; we created a blue print for the show, covering every aspect from marketing, sponsorship, promotion, ticketing, hospitality, infrastructure and production. With the show dates decided as 15 – 26 May, we then started generating marketing material including all outdoor, print, radio and below the line promotion plans and creative.



Our operations team simultaneously worked with the production teams at the production house to ascertain show requirements and ensure that the venue was equipped with adequate infrastructure, looking at procuring additional equipment wherever necessary. The task at hand was to create a theater seating an audience of 2000 from scratch at Airport Expo, an exhibition center in Dubai. Designing the venue and seating plans, the teams overcame several challenges along the way including several moves from one hall to another, as well as another corporate potentially taking over the hall partially midway through the show!





As the show dates came closer, we worked with the Global Village team to put together several promotional events where Mickey Mouse was flown into Dubai to attend the show announcement press conference, make a special appearance at Ibn Battuta Mall as well a visit to the Dubai Center for Special Needs. After the press conference, tickets went on sale, with all the media started coming on line with newspapers and billboards around Dubai splashed with advertisements, and the radio ringing aloud with Mickey’s Magic Rap!



All too soon, the production team were flying in, with their equipment freighted across from their previous show in Egypt. While we assisted them on site with the load in and build up, another part of the Artaaj team was coordinating the show crew with ushers, stage hands, merchandisers, security, housekeeping, parking attendants. All in all, more than two hundred people worked to bring the show to life!





Opening day brought with it the usual jitters and challenges, as well as a very special guest! We were honored by a visit by Her Highness Sheikha Fatima, grand daughter of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, UAE Prime Minister and Vice-President, Ruler of Dubai, and many other famous members of the royal family from around the emirates like, Ras Al Khaimah, Fujeirah, Sharjah & Ajman





It wasn’t all work and no play, however, we did have a fantastic opportunity to get to know all the teams better when our CEO hosted a networking dinner at his home on one of the show nights. Of course, we all left in the wee hours of the morning, establishing this as the first of many great nights out altogether, with ski trips and dinners galore!





As they say, “there ain’t no business like the show business”, and we all had a fantastic experience working on the project, creating a more than a few lasting friendships along the way.

Cristina Barerio from Naples, Itlay has a degree in International and Diplomatic Sciences. Having worked in Rome, Itlay, she has been in the event field for two years before joining Artaaj as an Account Manager. Cristina is a big museum and theatre lover and enjoys her travels across Europe.

Michelle Bush read Hospitality Studies at Anglia University in the UK and joins Artaaj with immense experience in the hospitality and events industry. Michelle’s previous assignments have been functions manager at the Waterfront Place in England and as Events Manager for three years at the Jumeirah Beach Hotel. She loves travelling and has lived in Singapore, Tokyo, New York and England before taking on Dubai as her new home.

Ebrahim Feroze, with six years of experience in the events industry, has organized events for names such as Versace, Vivienne Westwood, presidential visits ,royal events and various corporate events. In London, Ebrahim was contracted to work at The British Library, Victoria & Albert Museum, Deloitte & Touché and Ofgem. Having also trained in the Health and Safety and Security & Events Industry, Ebrahim worked at various prestigious sites across London as Security Operations/Events Manager. Ebrahim was born in South Africa and looks forward to his new role with Artaaj. His hobbies include fishing, travelling and Rugby.

Tasneem Alibhai from Norway graduated from Laksevaag Gymnas and has worked in Norway, London and UAE before joining Artaaj as Account Manager. Tasneem’s experience includes working in London’s fashion industry and managing a team at Panduit’s in the Scandanavian region (Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland). Tasneem is quite the linguist at Artaaj with seven languages under her belt including Norwegian and counts photography as her all time hobby (just after shopping!)

Archana Yadvendu joins Artaaj with 10 years of experience in the event field. Born in the East Indian city of Patna, where she finished her junior school, Archana, moved to Mumbai to earn a Honours in Economics from Sophia College. She joined Rotaract Club of Churchgate, Mumbai for extra-curricular development and eventually got introduced to the hectic and highly addictive world of events. After a three year stint at the Pineapple Club, Archana moved to work on a variety of assignments in various industries including education, film and television.

Chloë recently moved to Dubai from London where she worked for the Royal Society, the UK’s National Academy of Science, and the University of Cambridge. She joins Artaaj as Events Manager. With nearly 5 years experience in events management and Communications, Chloe has organized a range of events, from international conferences and public lectures to award ceremonies, gala dinners and fundraising launches. In her spare time Chloë enjoys diving and travelling.