‘The Night of the AdEaters’ Rocks Oman
Muscat has become the latest city to host ‘The Night of the AdEaters’, the world-renowned international advertising festival

Oman was treated to ‘The Night of the AdEaters’, the fabulous worldwide ‘advertainment’ show, dedicated to showcasing creative advertising from across the globe on a giant screen set in a crazy atmosphere! Since its origin in France in 1981, ‘The Night of the AdEaters’ has grown into a global phenomenon, with shows in more than 160 cities. Held at the Palm Gardens in the Muscat InterContinental Hotel on October 24-25, the show was presented by Nawras.

Bank Sohar, Times of Oman and Al Shabiba were associate sponsors of the event, which was brought to Oman by Applause Events, The Event Specialists, a division of United Media Services LLC. The other partners included H!, FACES, Al Youm al Sabe, Oman Printers & Stationers Ltd, Infoline, AXA Insurance, Oman Air, Samsung Electronics, Citizen Watches-Sarco LLC, Capital Stores, Business International Group, A’Saffa Poultry, Tanuf-National Mineral Water, Red Bull, Pizza Hut, Al Mudhish and Al Shatti Plaza.

The two-day extravaganza was packed with corporate honchos, students, specially from Sultan Qaboos University, homemakers, professionals and people from all walks of life. Over 2000 AdEaters turned out for the sold-out shows on both the days. ‘The Night of the AdEaters’ was a great opportunity to loosen up and relax in a fun-filled ambience. The audience soaked in the non-stop entertainment – a spectacular show reel of amazing advertisement commercials that left the crowd asking for more. Some advertisements were funny, few hilarious and the rest thought provoking.

Total entertainment
Besides the display of world-class advertisements, the crowd was enthralled with different forms of exciting entertainment. Shock’n’ Knock was an altogether different kind of an experience for the audience. The troupe had the gathering spell-bound with electrifying break dancing performances. The rhythmical Drum Circle, performed by Dubai-based group, was mesmerizing. With an assortment of 64 drums, the Drum Circle turned out to be a an interactive magical, musical group experience that Muscateers will never forget and talk about for months to come. To make the evening more pleasurable, the crowd was provided with whistles, party poppers and drums. With a perfect weather and clear sky, serial lights illuminating rows of palm trees and refreshments kiosks around, it was a perfect ambience to unwind and enjoy.

Bouquets all round
Narrating his experience Khalfan Al-Taley, Deputy General Manager and Head of Retail Banking, BankSohar said, “It was an amazing show. As it is the first time the show is being conducted in Oman, I thoroughly enjoyed the event. The commercials were world class. Shock ‘n’ Knock troupe performed extremely well. The Drum Circle, with their rhythmic percussion was a trance. I could see the oneness all over the Palm Gardens. The event was well organised and I am happy about the whole thing.”

Usama Karim AL-Haremi, Manager - CC&M, Oman Air said, “What a great experience it was. The show was fabulous. I attended the full show for two days. The excitement was all over. The SQU students came in batches and they encouraged the Shock ‘n’ Knock troupe. The troupe is very professional and all of them were Omanis. They have toured UK and Europe with their daredevil performance. The commercials were of international standards and we were lucky to see and enjoy the same. Why only an annual affair? I suggest we should organise the shows at least twice a year. Showcasing such a world class event goes to show that Oman has come of age. The Sultanate is booming and firing from all cylinders.”

Ajay Ganti, GM, SARCO said, “Overall it was a nice experience. The commercials were excellent. It was nice to see so many youngsters from SQU, taking part in big numbers. Otherwise, there will be the same set of corporate faces for all events. For the next event, we should add more variety like quiz competition, etc. I liked the show.”

Hemant Pajankar, GM Business International Group said, “The show was a great success.”

Ross Cormack, Nawras CEO, said, “Nawras was delighted to support AdEaters and most grateful to UMS for the opportunity to be part of another exhilarating ‘first’ in the Sultanate of Oman. The innovative evenings were extremely well organised and a fantastic experience for all those who had the pleasure of attending. Nawras is known for being creative and for setting trends and AdEaters was the perfect entertainment event for this award winning mobile operator to proudly participate in. Both AdEaters and Nawras celebrate the promotion of creativity with the resulting combination considered a huge success by the audience on both evenings.”

The Night of the AdEaters’ had its final show on October 25. Raffle draws were conducted, with fabulous prizes such as a 32” LCD TV, DVD Players, MP3 Players and Camcorders from Samsung, Citizen Eco-Drive watches, gift vouchers from Capital Store LLC and Pizza Hut.

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