Make it in the Emirates Forum Scenic Fabrication, Abu Dhabi 2023

Building a Unified Scenic Environment for Make it in the Emirates

The second Make It in the Emirates Forum took place at Abu Dhabi Energy Centre from 31 May to 1 June 2023. The venue needed to accommodate a main conference stage, breakout presentation spaces, sponsor exhibition environments, arrival features, branded circulation routes and integrated technical displays within one connected event environment.

Evolution Scenic was appointed to deliver the full turnkey scenic solution and developed the overall event concept before translating it into practical temporary architecture. The scope included the main stage, breakout stages, exhibition area, arrival arch, project flooring, scenic walls, branded portals, signage, wayfinding and integrated display structures.

The exhibition layout was developed to accommodate six diamond sponsors and 30 additional sponsors. Each organisation needed its own visible and functional presence, while the wider environment still had to maintain a consistent architectural identity. Balancing individual sponsor requirements with the overall scenic concept became an important part of the design and fabrication approach.

Rather than treating the project as a collection of unrelated stages, booths and branded structures, Evolution Scenic developed the venue as a single scenic system. Geometry, materials, graphics, screen integration and architectural detailing were repeated across different zones so that the environment remained visually connected from arrival through to the main conference and exhibition spaces.

Developing a Consistent Architectural Language

The scenic concept used a strong geometric language based around angled wall profiles, layered surfaces, framed openings and illuminated linear features. These details were repeated across the main stage, breakout spaces, sponsor structures, Government Hub, arrival environment and wayfinding features.

The main conference stage established the principal architectural direction. A broad screen composition was surrounded by angular scenic architecture, while layered stage steps carried the same geometry into the floor. Branded vertical elements added another level of depth and connected the presentation area with the visual identity used throughout the venue.

Breakout stages applied the same design principles on a smaller scale. Integrated screen openings, presentation plinths and scenic wall systems provided each space with the functionality required for individual sessions while maintaining a clear relationship with the primary conference stage.

The exhibition environments extended this language into the sponsor areas through fabricated walls, overhead structures, counters and integrated display positions. The arrival arch introduced the same architectural character before visitors reached the main environment, using dynamic content and fabricated scenery to establish the project identity from the entrance onwards.

Fabricating the Scenic Package

MDF and plywood were the principal scenic materials used across the project. Their versatility allowed the workshop team to manufacture the controlled flat surfaces, angular profiles, arches, screen frames, stage features and exhibition structures required by the concept while maintaining consistent edges and junctions across the different areas.

Selected elements combined metal framing with MDF cladding. The internal metal construction provided structural support where required, while the MDF faces created the smooth visible architectural surfaces used throughout the wider scenic scheme. This allowed individual structures to respond to different technical and functional requirements without changing the external design language.

Evolution Scenic fabricated the project flooring, all scenic walls and arches and most of the other visible scenic elements. With multiple stages, sponsor environments, portals and presentation zones being manufactured as parts of one package, accurate set-out was essential to maintaining relationships between wall lines, floor transitions, overhead features, graphics and screen openings.

Workshop production therefore played a central role in controlling the complete installation. Components needed to connect accurately once delivered to Abu Dhabi Energy Centre, while graphic zones, technical apertures and adjoining scenic structures had to maintain the proportions established during design development. Fabrication accuracy allowed the different parts of the project to come together as one consistent temporary architecture on site.

Delivering the Forced-Perspective Feature

Forced perspective formed part of the wider event concept and introduced a scenic feature that relied on controlled geometry rather than conventional flat construction. The feature was fabricated as two principal sections before being transported to Abu Dhabi Energy Centre and assembled in its final position.

Dividing the structure into two sections made the feature practical to manufacture, handle and install while creating an important requirement at the connection between the two halves. Once assembled, the separate components needed to appear as one continuous scenic form rather than two independent fabricated sections.

Forced-perspective environments depend on the relationship between line, scale, depth and the position from which the feature is viewed. Maintaining these relationships through the fabrication process meant the geometry of both sections needed to correspond accurately when brought together on site.

The finished feature demonstrates how visually complex scenery can be broken into practical manufactured sections without losing the intended effect. It also illustrates the importance of considering transport, assembly and installation while developing unusual scenic forms rather than resolving those requirements only after fabrication has begun.

Integrating Screens into the Scenic Construction

The project incorporated an extensive technical display package across the main conference stage, breakout areas, Government Hub, sponsor environments and arrival architecture. One principal screen was supplied by Abu Dhabi Energy Centre, while the remaining screens were installed by Evolution Technical’s in-house team.

The venue screen was incorporated into the main stage architecture rather than treated as an independent technical element. Scenic walls and stage geometry framed the display and connected it visually with the surrounding environment, allowing the screen to become part of the architectural composition of the stage.

Additional screens were integrated into fabricated structures throughout the sponsor exhibition areas, Government Hub, breakout stages and presentation spaces. Screen positions needed to align with the scenic openings, while surrounding panels, trims and graphic surfaces created the finished architectural interface around each technical system.

The arrival arch also incorporated dynamic content, extending the relationship between scenic fabrication and digital display into the visitor arrival sequence. This allowed the visual language established around the main stage technology to continue into a very different type of structure.

Coordination between Evolution Scenic and Evolution Technical was particularly valuable at the interface between fabricated scenery and technical equipment. The technical systems required suitable support and operational access, while the scenic construction needed controlled edges, accurate openings and clean finishes. Developing both disciplines within the Evolution group allowed those interfaces to be treated as parts of the same built environment.

Constructing the Sponsor Exhibition Environment

he exhibition area was developed to accommodate six diamond sponsors and 30 additional sponsors within a shared architectural environment. The challenge was to provide individual organisations with clear presence and functional presentation space without allowing the exhibition floor to become a collection of visually unrelated stands.

Fabricated wall structures, overhead branding elements, integrated monitors, meeting counters and presentation surfaces established the individual sponsor environments. Open frontages maintained visibility and circulation through the exhibition area, while scenic structures created enough architectural definition for each organisation to establish its own presence.

Repeated details such as vertical fins, angled portals, illuminated edges and framed screen openings linked these individual areas back to the wider Make It in the Emirates identity. Sponsor graphics and digital content could vary within each space, while the physical construction retained the common geometry and material language established across the project.

The Government Hub created one of the strongest individual environments within the exhibition. Vertical illuminated features, recessed screens and a central branded header defined the area, while its curved layout created a recognisable presentation zone without disconnecting it from the angular scenic language used elsewhere.

By controlling the architecture centrally while allowing individual branding within it, Evolution Scenic was able to balance sponsor visibility with overall consistency. The result was an exhibition area in which individual identities remained clear while the physical environment continued to read as part of one event.

Installing Within Abu Dhabi Energy Centre

The scenic package was installed within the existing finished environment of Abu Dhabi Energy Centre. Protecting the venue formed an important part of the site operation, with protective measures applied to existing floors, walls and glazed surfaces during installation and subsequent dismantling.

This was particularly important given the physical extent of the project. Large scenic wall assemblies, project flooring, arches, stages, display structures and numerous sponsor environments all needed to be transported through the venue, positioned and assembled without damaging the surrounding architectural finishes.

Evolution Scenic installed the project flooring, all scenic walls and arches and most of the additional scenic elements. The two-part forced-perspective structure was assembled on site, while the main stage and exhibition environments were coordinated with both the existing venue screen and the additional display systems installed by Evolution Technical.

The scenic installation also had to respond accurately to fixed conditions within the building. Existing architecture, usable floor areas, circulation routes and technical infrastructure established physical boundaries around which the temporary environment had to be positioned.

Bringing the project together required careful coordination between flooring, large scenic structures, sponsor zones, screens, graphic finishes and supporting branded elements. The installation translated a substantial workshop-built package into the final venue environment while maintaining the consistent geometry and finish developed through the scenic concept.

Completing and Removing the Temporary Environment

Once installed, the scenic package transformed Abu Dhabi Energy Centre into a connected series of branded temporary environments. The main conference stage, breakout stages, sponsor exhibition areas, Government Hub, arrival feature and wayfinding structures all performed different functions while sharing the same architectural vocabulary.

Integrated display systems became part of the physical architecture rather than sitting independently within it. Screens were framed within scenic walls and sponsor structures, while the arrival arch combined fabricated form with dynamic content. MDF, plywood and selected metal-framed construction allowed these different elements to maintain a consistent external finish despite their varied structural and technical requirements.

The sponsor exhibition environment demonstrated the same approach at a larger scale. Six diamond sponsors and 30 additional sponsors were accommodated within individual settings while the repeated geometry, framing and illuminated detailing maintained visual consistency across the complete floor.

Following the forum, Evolution Scenic dismantled the temporary installation, completing a scope that extended from concept development and fabrication through installation and final removal. Venue protection remained part of this process as the scenic structures, flooring and technical interfaces were taken out of the finished building.

Make It in the Emirates demonstrates Evolution Scenic’s ability to manage a substantial multi-zone scenic package combining conference staging, exhibition fabrication, sponsor environments, temporary architecture, branding and technical integration. By developing the physical environment and coordinating closely with Evolution Technical, the project could operate as one complete scenic system rather than a collection of independent production elements.