Bahrain’s first and only open-air, purpose-built live music venue opened last weekend with a sold-out concert by Saudi singer Rashed Almajid.

The Al Dana Amphitheatre (cap. 10,000) has been under construction since December 2018, with architects excavating more than 250,000m3 of rock and soil to build the venue 15m into the ground of the Sahkir desert.

Alongside the theatre, the venue also houses 22 F+B units to cater to attendees, eight corporate boxes, The Quarry Lounge which can cater to 800 guests, the Desert Garden which can cater to 400, and a Roof Garden for up to 200 guests.

The venue is located at the northeast corner of the Bahrain International Circuit (which hosts the Formula 1 Grand Prix annually) and is just a 30-minute drive from ASM Global’s Bahrain International Exhibition & Convention Centre, set to open in 2022.

“THE OVERARCHING OBJECTIVE IS THAT VISITING INTERNATIONAL ARTISTS CAN TOUR ACROSS MULTIPLE COUNTRIES THAT INCLUDE BAHRAIN”

“All these projects will be an organic extension of each other which will be mutually beneficial given that shared services and infrastructure can be utilised by all venues and any future projects,” says a spokesperson from the Al Dana Amphitheatre.

“The overarching objective is to collaborate and align with a number of venues in the region so that visiting international artists have the opportunity to tour across multiple countries that include Bahrain as part of their program.”

The amphitheatre is backed by HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister who has a vision to evolve Bahrain into a world-class entertainment destination.

The team behind the amphitheatre hopes it will become a “globally recognised world-class venue” with its capabilities of hosting local, regional and international events such as concerts and theatre shows.

At the time of writing, the Al Dana Amphitheatre is yet to announce any follow-up events to Rashed Almajid’s concert.