Sandance Dubai 2011

With Richard Ashcroft kicking off the event, followed by energetic Example, Sandance Dubai 2011 delivered more than it promised.When you think beach festival, despite having stretches of sand, Dubai is not the first place that comes to mind. If Sandance Dubai continues to deliver like it did on Friday night at Atlantis, it will gain recognition as an event that is not just a "must do" for residents, but a gig worthy of aligning your holiday plans with as a visitor. Had it taken place two weeks ago, the weather would have been unforgiving, but, at this time, Sandance was a great way to herald the cool season.Doors opened in the early afternoon and a handful of skydivers, including a world champion, entertained with creative falls before ending with a UAE national landing in a small circle drawn on the beach, and low flying from the plane — air-show style.Around sunset, the evening started to take off with Richard Ashcroft on his acoustic guitar. No fancy outfit, no backup dancers, just one Ashcroft in his T-shirt and jeans singing with passion. He talked to the crowd in between songs and guitar tuning and had us eating out of his hands, not to mention singing along in unison — to Verve hits such as Bittersweet Symphony, The Drugs Don't Work and Sonnet until his time was up.Local DJ duo Charl Chaka and Smokin' Groove kept the crowd swaying until Chicane came on. The energy of the lead singer was undeniable and she fed off the crowd's energy, finishing successfully with their most popular songs. Again, the crowd sang along.After that, blow-up beach balls, which were about five times larger than they should be, started bouncing around the crowd bringing joy to most and unexpected hits on the head to others.So far, the evening was progressing successfully. Fireworks lit the horizon, which gave an ever-so-subtle feel of a New Year's Eve.But just when we thought that the evening couldn't get any better, Example came on and proved us wrong. Together with DJ Wire, Example's performance had the crowd dancing, jumping, singing, screaming. Did I mention jumping? Because that probably needs to be mentioned at least three times in order for you to understand just how energetic and thoroughly enjoyable his performance really was.By the time David Morales and DJ Sasha came on, the crowd had expended much of their energy yet were still going strong.Overall, a well-organised event with clear and well marked areas — from ticketing to toilets. Traffic was not allowed to build up, with enough space for people to walk around, dance and sit on the sand. Lifeguards lined the water's edge, with security able to manage crowd without being overly imposing.Upon leaving, the car park was close by and taxis were aplenty. The evening worked everybody up into a sweat, but felt chilled out.