The (Bloomberg) Make a big statement if you want to be noticed among the many new, opulent hotels opening in Dubai.
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When I was invited to the "Grand Reveal" weekend by Kerzner International, the company that built the Atlantis, I had my first sense that this wouldn't be your average lavish party. To showcase the facility, its 17 restaurants and bars, 795 rooms, and more than 90 pools, they were flying visitors in from all over the world. I was initially told by corporate employees that I had to stay the entire weekend and that I couldn't come and go for security reasons.
After some discussion, however, they announced that only a select group of people would be transported to the venue for the ceremony and music on Saturday night. on boats. The hotel's refusal to officially acknowledge that Beyoncé would be performing was another uncommon decision. (But everyone was aware.
So, for the first time since before Covid, I put on a costume, called a cab, and drove to the pier. About ten of us carefully boarded the boat there, at the base of the artificial Palm Jumeirah archipelago, and chatted during the boat ride's 30-minute duration, which seemed to take far longer than it should have. Depending on traffic, a similar automobile travel to the hotel, which is on the "crescent" of the Palm, or an outer ring road, might take between 10 and 15 minutes.
We were reminded of the ground rules for the evening by the Atlantis employee who was acting as our host on the boat: While we were permitted to take pictures and videos anyplace in the hotel, no phones were permitted once "the woman" started her show. I smiled and asked, "The lady?" Who do you mean, exactly? It's still a secret, the staff member embarrassed and stated. Right.
They didn't want the performance's photos or videos to be shared online without their permission. (It turned out that there were a lot of people who disregarded the guidelines, as evidenced by a quick scan through Instagram the next morning.)
We initially got a good view at the hotel from the water. Because of its distinctive design, many people either adore it or detest it. The vast, 43-story skyscraper, designed by New York's Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates, resembles a jumble of loosely piled boxes or a Jenga game turned on its side. The hotel's logo, a buckle, is formed like a huge void in the center. It dazzlingly lit up in blue and gold as you approached.
It was an influencer's paradise inside. Men and women dressed in tuxedos and huge gowns were constantly taking pictures. And there was no shortage of props for photos. Interior design was done by London-based G.A Group. There are numerous water features, including large fish tanks and sculptured fountains. One sunken pool in the corridor is so seamlessly integrated with the environment that it's amazing more people haven't fallen in by accident. (In fact, by Sunday night, the feature was surrounded by velvet ropes, and a staff member claimed that there were plans to somehow glass it off.) Droplets is a towering stainless steel sculpture in the lobby that is about 38 feet tall.
From the water, we initially had a fantastic view of the hotel. Many people either love it or hate it due to its unique design. The massive, 43-story tower was designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates of New York and looks like a mess of haphazardly stacked boxes or a Jenga game turned upside down. The buckle-shaped hotel logo has a sizable central space. As you got closer, it glistened in blue and gold.
Inside was a haven for influencers. A continual stream of photographers included both men and women wearing tuxedos and large gowns. Additionally, there was no shortage of photo props. The G.A Group, located in London, handled the interior design. There are many water elements, such as enormous fish tanks and elaborate fountains. It's incredible that more people haven't fallen in by mistake because one of the subterranean pools in the hallway is so perfectly merged with the surroundings. (In fact, the feature had velvet ropes around it by Sunday night, and a staff member reported there were plans to somehow glass it off.) In the lobby is a 38-foot-tall stainless steel sculpture called Droplets.
However, most individuals behaved as though they were at the New York Symphony Orchestra all around us, or at least in the VVIP section we snuck into. And that was unfortunate. While listening politely and enjoying their complimentary Mot, they stood or sat. When Beyoncé's 11-year-old daughter Blue Ivy Carter joined her mother on stage to perform "Brown Skin Girl," they weren't astounded. Concerts are fun because you can dance and rock out with other people who are truly into the music and aren't just there to be seen or heard. You could see why musicians enjoy giving concerts for their ardent supporters.
Because so few of them had likely listened to Renaissance, it didn't matter that Beyoncé didn't sing any songs from it. The CD is jam-packed with homages and allusions to legendary musicians, notably LGBT Black artists. (I played a song for my 3-year-old before pondering how frequently the F word was repeated; I had it on all week leading up to the concert.)
Beyoncé performed for almost 50 minutes. She had her trademark sweet and strong voice. She was surrounded by dancers from The Mayyas, a popular Lebanese ensemble in Dubai. Notably, most of the performers were female. Dancers splashed around in water features, manipulating the water to artistic effect, in a motion that has since become a trademark of Beyoncé's performances. Over the course of the performance, there were three costume changes. There were less high-energy dance parts and more musical epics. She concluded by practically hovering above the audience on a thin platform. When the show was over, fireworks—basically a Dubai nightly tradition—took off all around us. The entire structure glistened.
A 30% tax on alcohol purchases was recently eliminated, something I'm sure the event's organizers appreciated. Swedish House Mafia performed to round out the evening while servers kept serving free champagne.
The good news is that I was able to obtain a taxi home, after initially being informed I would have to take the boat back to the mainland. And I received the most Instagram DMs in my life when I woke up. I had no idea how much the concert was being discussed. There are two types of individuals in the world, according to a statement I published from an Instagram account. the people that are now residing in Dubai. and questioned, "Is this true?" James Coyle, a friend and coworker at Bloomberg, reacted by saying, "The entire internet is saturated."
Wow. Kerzner reportedly paid $24 million for Beyoncé's presence, according to the Sun newspaper, but I've heard from people that think it was far more. It appears that the business received its money's worth.
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