Dubai’s popular Ductac theatre to close down

The Dubai Community Theatre and Arts Centre (Ductac) has announced that it will closing down at Mall of the Emirates.

In a statement on its website, Ductac, a non-profit centre founded in 2006, said it had been looking for an alternate location for a few months.

“Earlier this year, we began looking for a new home better suited to the changing needs of our customers and patrons,” it said.

“We have been working diligently to locate alternative premises that would offer our customers and patrons an enhanced Ductac experience that reflects the evolution of the creative and arts community. Unfortunately we were unable to find a suitable location. As a result we have taken the difficult decision to close our current facilities.”

The Ductac facility at Mall of the Emirates was spread across nearly 80,000 square feet and included a 543-seat theatre, an equipped studio theatre, a visual arts gallery, three dance/rehearsal studios, 18 art studios, workshops and classrooms, including a pottery and mosaic workshop and food and beverage facilities.

It also hosted the Centre for Musical Arts (CMA), the Art Materials Shop and The Old Library.

In April, Ductac had said that it would close down at Mall of the Emirates on June 30 and reopen at Mirdif City Centre in September. The move is a “new step in the centre’s evolution,” it stated.

“We see great potential in the growth and success of an up-and-coming art scene within Mirdif and want to share the positive impact Ductac has made on the Barsha community with the Mirdif community,” it said at the time.

It is not clear why the move to Mirdif was cancelled.

“We will continue to support arts and culture in the UAE through other avenues and hope to provide our community with upgraded experiences at our assets in the future,” the latest statement added.