Access all arias

One of Abu Dhabi’s newest and glitziest hotels has gone the extra octave to give its guests a sophisticated experience…

Just after sunset on four nights of the week, the chandeliers dim at the Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi and the sound of opera washes through one of the Emirate’s most impressive hotel entrances.

Accompanied by a baby grand piano, Bulgaria-born soprano Nellie Petrova works through a set list that covers anything from Verdi to Andrew Lloyd-Webber.

Petrova has performed in some of the world’s finest concert halls since discovering her voice as a child, but she too is bewitched by this setting. “This is an elegant venue to perform in,” she agrees. “It is so beautiful, I feel like I am in a movie.”

Petrova says she always knew she was going to be a singer. “I started singing before I started talking because my mother used to sing a lot at home,” she recalls.

“For me, hearing singing was as natural as hearing talking; and I was always singing, nursery rhymes, performing, giving home shows… so I’ve been training for the job quite some time.

“I remember my parents taking me to a show and giving me a flower to give to the singer. I refused to leave the stage because I liked it so much.”

Later she was to enjoy masterclasses with Montserrat in Andorra as part of her formal studies and a Fellowship in Voice Performance at London’s Trinity College of Music.

All that has fed into a colourful career of opera theatre, concerts and solo recitals across Europe, including many festivals and shows in her home country. She has also stepped out of her ballgown a few times for crossover projects from band collaborations to commercials for Emirates Airline and CNN; recently she’s been “breaking another boundary” by improvising operatic style on house tracks at Café del Mar in Dubai.

“Throughout the career of an artist, one has to evolve and develop and do something challenging because if we keep on doing the same there is nothing to look forward to.”

She auditioned for the opportunity at the Ritz-Carlton last summer. “The UAE is quite an unusual place and we have to be creative in where to place the art. And because of that we are breaking the stereotype of a sit-down concert for an audience.

“I find that very appealing because the people don’t stay to listen because they paid for the ticket and have to force themselves; they stay because they like it. I like to see the immediate reaction and they see I am more approachable. If I’m in a formal set-up, there is that barrier where people are shy to come and talk, whereas here they can take a photo, ask me questions. I can have immediate feedback.

“This is the real test for me, and a measure of how well I do my job.”

The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi paired  Petrova with Jonathan Milla from Spain, a recent conservatory graduate. They hadn’t met until the day of their first performance, but the partnership appears to be flourishing.

She appreciates the Abu Dhabi audience, too. “Abu Dhabi is growing to have its own style of presenting culture. People who live here are slightly different and would like to do it differently, and rightly so. I find the Abu Dhabi audience, even the people who walk in here, very attentive and appreciative.

“I am sure Abu Dhabi is going to find its place in offering culture and what we have here now is one of the starts.”

Lynn Gervais, public relations director at the Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, would no doubt agree.

“We wanted to marry our Venetian theme with our distinguished location next to the majestic Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. Every evening at sunset we dim the lobby chandeliers and light candles all around so the Grand Mosque is the most prominent feature of the lobby. Then Nellie performs.

“It’s simply magical.”

Dennis Jarrett

Nellie Petrova and Jonathan Milla perform at 7pm on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday in the lobby of the Ritz Carlton Abu Dhabi, and will be there until 8th July. You can catch her after a short break with return performances from 8th August.
For more information call: 02 818 8888