I AM by Camille A. Brown & Dancers 2027 in Abu Dhabi

I AM by Camille A. Brown & Dancers comes to The Red Theater at The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi on Thursday 21 January 2027, bringing one of America’s most celebrated choreographers back to Saadiyat Island. Billed as a love letter to Black joy, identity and self-expression, the show mixes West African, modern, jazz, tap, social, street and hip-hop dance with live violin, drums and piano, and invites the audience to join in.

Who is Camille A. Brown?

Camille A. Brown was born in New York City in 1979 and grew up in Jamaica, Queens. She trained at LaGuardia High School and The Ailey School, earned her degree at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, and danced with Ronald K. Brown’s company Evidence before founding Camille A. Brown & Dancers in 2006.

Since then she has become one of the most in-demand choreographers in the United States, working across dance, theatre and opera:

• Broadway: she directed and choreographed for colored girls who have considered suicide/when the rainbow is enuf in 2022, becoming the first Black woman to direct and choreograph a Broadway production in six decades. She has five Tony nominations, including for Choir Boy, Hell’s Kitchen and Gypsy.
• Opera: at the Metropolitan Opera she choreographed Porgy and Bess and co-directed Fire Shut Up in My Bones with James Robinson.
• Television: she choreographed NBC’s Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert in 2018.
• Awards: a Bessie Award, a Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, Princess Grace Awards, an Obie Award and a Guggenheim Fellowship.

Her company is known for an identity trilogy, Mr. TOL E. RAncE, BLACK GIRL: Linguistic Play and ink. Abu Dhabi audiences have seen her work before: the company brought ink to the same Red Theater in April 2019.

What is I AM?

I AM is the follow-up to that trilogy, and Brown has said she wanted to make something centred on joy. It premiered at Jacob’s Pillow in 2024 and had a sold-out New York run at The Joyce Theater in February 2025, where The New York Times made it a Critics’ Pick. Reviewer Siobhan Burke described it as “pulsing with a sense of freedom and possibility”, adding: “It’s as if majorette dancing met Twyla Tharp’s ‘In the Upper Room,’ and it’s electric.”

The work is set across everyday places, the playground, the street, the club and the church, and turns ordinary moments into celebrations of who people are and where they come from. It draws on HBCU drumlines, majorettes, classic R&B groups and iconic music videos.

Part dance show, part concert

The music is as central as the movement. The soundtrack blends original compositions with reimagined R&B and hip-hop classics from artists including Lil’ Kim, Busta Rhymes, Method Man and Mary J. Blige, reworked for violin, drums and piano and played live by the company’s musicians. Through the tradition of call and response, the audience is encouraged to stomp, snap and sing along, so this is not a show for sitting in silence.

The ticket listing credits 13 dancers and three musicians, with the piece directed and choreographed by Brown together with the company. For the New York run the band was Deah Love Harriott on piano, Juliette Jones on violin and Jaylen Petinaud on drums; Jones also played violin when the company performed ink at NYU Abu Dhabi in 2019. The title and some of the inspiration come from an episode of the HBO series Lovecraft Country.

The venue: The Red Theater, NYU Abu Dhabi

The Red Theater is the main stage of The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi, in the Arts and Humanities building on the university’s Saadiyat Island campus. It is one of the capital’s key venues for contemporary dance, theatre and music.

• Times: doors open at 7pm and the performance starts at 7:30pm. The ticket page lists a running time of 1 hour 30 minutes.
• Age: the show is for ages 8 and over.
• Campus entry: bring your ticket and the campus access QR code emailed by NYUAD Campus Safety. Entry is through the East or West Parking areas or the Welcome Center.
• Access: for wheelchair spaces and access bookings, email the NYUAD box office at nyuad.boxoffice@nyu.edu.

By bus, route 170 runs to the Saadiyat New York University 3 stop, a short walk from the building. Taxis and ride-hailing apps also serve the campus.

Who it suits

I AM is a strong pick for dance lovers, fans of Broadway who know Brown’s work from Hell’s Kitchen or for colored girls, and anyone who enjoys R&B and hip-hop. With an 8+ age rule and a participatory, upbeat feel, it also works as an introduction to contemporary dance for older children and teenagers.

For more cultural nights, see our art and culture and shows and theatre guides, things to do in Abu Dhabi and things to do in January.