A Saudi man visits an arts exhibition by late US artist Andy Warhol at the Maraya concert hall in the ruins of AlUla, a UNESCO World Heritage site in northwestern Saudi Arabia, on February 19, 2023.
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A Saudi man visits an arts exhibition by late US artist Andy Warhol at the Maraya concert hall in the ruins of AlUla, a UNESCO World Heritage site in northwestern Saudi Arabia, on February 19, 2023.
AFP via Getty Images
The Saudi government is considered one of the most conservative and repressive in the world, with strict gender-based laws and an expansive death penalty. But now, a country that once had a decades-long ban on movie theaters has morphed into a regional hub for arts and entertainment.
A general view during MDLBEAST SOUNDSTORM 2021 on December 18, 2021 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Neville Hopwood/Getty Images for MDLBEAST SOUNDS
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A general view during MDLBEAST SOUNDSTORM 2021 on December 18, 2021 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Neville Hopwood/Getty Images for MDLBEAST SOUNDS
Later this month, it will host a Formula One Grand Prix race for the third year in a row. But there’s also a massive rave in the desert…