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COMPANY PROFILE
SHARJAH PERFORMING ARTS ACADEMY CHAMPIONING HOMEGROWN TALENT IN THE MENA REGION, SHARJAH PERFORMING ARTS ACADEMY IS WORKING TO PRODUCE THE NEXT GENERATION OF LIVE EVENTS PROFESSIONALS. Historically, the live events industry in the Middle East has not been known for its wealth of homegrown talent, with incoming international acts and even locally based production houses hitherto tending to employ technical crew who learned their craft elsewhere. However, looking to change that is Sharjah Performing Arts Academy (SPAA) – the only dedicated performing arts academy of its kind in the Middle East, aiming to produce the next generation of talent, both on stage and behind the scenes. SPAA offers a range of undergraduate courses, including BA Production Arts – a four-year programme that aims to prepare the stage managers, technicians, and production
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designers of tomorrow. “The students get a taste of everything, from lighting, audio and video, to stage management, event management and scenic construction,” began Programme Leader, Jacqui George. “It’s so important that all the students get a good understanding of all aspects of live event production.” In the second year, the Production Arts programme is built upon three main strands – Technical (light, sound, video), Stage Management (show calling, stage and production management), and Design Realisation (scenic painting and construction, props, costume making and maintenance). “This is when the students get the opportunity to diversify and explore more specialist topics,” George explained.
By the third and fourth year, students spend most of their time working on productions – both internal SPAA shows and external placements. “Sending students out to do external placements is a chance for them to get practical, hands-on experience and build up their CV for when they graduate,” George noted, adding that the abundance of world-class venues and productions in the region provided a wealth of opportunities. “We’ve had students on placement at Dubai Opera, and one who production managed a Saudi Film Festival.” When George started at SPAA in September 2018, the facility was still a building site. Since then, she has seen the academy grow and witnessed the setup of a world-class facility. “We
