Horatio, an Al-Marah Arabian

This little guy has a fan following at Arabian Nights already, even though he is one of the newest horses featured in our dinner show. Horatio comes from Al- Marah Arabians in Tucson, Arizona, where he had a stellar career as a competition Reining horse for several years. His accomplishments include winning the Reining at The Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show, Reserve Champion at the Region 1 Championship Show and Top Ten at the Canadian Nationals.

Horatio came to Arabian Nights in November of 2009 to join our Holiday Show, and although he is small in stature, he made a big impression on both our staff and guests. Horatio stands at approximately 14.2 hands high (a hand is equivalent to 4 inches), making him just barely taller than a pony, but his refined features, excellent manners and boisterous whinny prevent him from being ignored.

It is not only his appearance and demeanor that make Horatio unique; he is also a very talented reining horse with a great deal of heart and athleticism. Easily 4 to 6 inches shorter than any of our other reining horses, Horatio can slide farther and spin faster than most of them—all while maintaining a pleasant and willing attitude that is the delight of his riders and the guests who watch Horatio’s energetic performance.

Horatio has been enjoying a little break after working very hard during the Holiday show season and will be making his debut in the new Native American Tribute act that will be featured in the Arabian Nights production soon.

Here's a picture of Horation in action.

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Guests and employees at Arabian Nights often remark on how beautiful and talented the horses in our show are and this week we feature Al-Marah Arabians.

Many of our horses are Arabian horses, a beautiful breed of horse that originated in the deserts of the Middle East and was prized for its stamina and beauty. These horses were imported first to Europe and later to the United States by horse owners and breeders who saw the incredible value of such athletic and refined horses.

One of the first American importers of these gorgeous horses was Bazy Tankersley, who still breeds and raises some of the finest Arabian horses on her farm Al-Marah Arabians, in Tucson, AZ.

Bazy’s son Mark Miller is the founder of Arabian Nights, and he grew surrounded by her fabulous horses, both on the farm in Arizona and at a farm they had in Maryland. His love for these beautiful horses is what prompted him to open Arabian Nights in 1988, and nearly twenty years later, a large number of the horses used in the show still come from his mother’s Al- Marah Arabians.

“We love our Al-Marah horses because they are unique in their beauty, athletic ability and willing dispositions,” Miller said.

Many of the Al-Marah foals are raised on Tankersley’s 2,000 acre Hat Ranch near the Grand Canyon in Northern Arizona, and after their wild youth is over, some of them come to Arabian Nights to become star performers, while other go on to become competitors in Endurance, Show Jumping, Reining and Dressage riding.

Not all of the horses chosen from Al-Marah to perform at Arabian Nights are suited to the task, and the stable managers at Arabian Nights carefully monitor how the horses adjust to this high intensity performance environment. Horses that seem uninterested in this type of performance career are returned to Al-Marah after they undergo their first round of training, and many go on to have outstanding careers as competitive performance horses.

Others thrive on the performing life at Arabian Nights, basking in the applause of the audience and the praise from their riders and trainers. These horses go on to have long and illustrious careers as the stars of the Arabian Nights show, where they excite and entertain audiences each and every night.

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At Arabian Nights, we are always thinking of new ways to delight our guests and we are getting ready to add many new features, stunts and a few other surprises to make the Most Honored Dinner Show on Horseback even more exciting.

The management team at Arabian Nights is proud to announce some exciting new changes for 2010. We are constantly working to improve the quality of our guests’ experience, from the website guests use to purchase tickets to the meal they enjoy and the spectacular show they enjoy at our facility in Orlando, Florida.

In 2010, Arabian Nights plans to unleash its renewed energy and new ideas thanks to the contribution of our new managers and experienced staff members alike.

New and exciting changes are coming to Arabian Nights in 2010

Coming in the first quarter of 2010, a new Arabian Nights website and a new ticket purchasing interface are only the beginning of the exciting changes to take place. The newly designed www.Arabian-Nights.com website is slated to launch in February 2010, featuring a dramatic new design and a more user-friendly navigation, and compelling content that connects site visitors to the magic of our Dinner Show, the cast, horses and all plenty of opportunity to interact using Twitter, Facebook and other social media apps.

The online ticket purchasing site, www.Tickets.Arabian-Nights.com had a soft launch in late December 2009 and is up and running to help guests book their tickets with ease and convenience from anywhere in the world. But that’s not all, soon enough there will be more features, including special offers, added to this site!

Many changes have already been implemented to improve the Guest Experience at Arabian Nights, including tasty changes to the dinner menu; upgraded seasonal vegetables, a new recipe for our mashed potatoes (mmm… yummy!) and a new way to serve our salads to keep them crisp and fresh! We are also exploring new entrée choices and recipes as part of our commitment to continuously look for ways to enhance the Arabian Nights experience.

But the food isn’t the only thing we plan on improving at our dinner show. We are also pleased to announce that there will be new music and choreography in many acts of our featured production for 2010. 5 Alarm Productions is set to provide the new music-and much of it will be tailored specially for our show, allowing us to continue adding new stunts and riding disciplines to the show as our horses and entertainers learn new skills throughout the year.

In addition to the food and the show, two new managers will be spearheading the effort to improve the Arabian Nights experience in 2010–Guest Experience Manager Arden Tilghman and Facilities Director Stephen Zink. Arden and Stephen both come from the Entertainment side of Arabian Nights, and both are eager to put their production skills to work and ensure that our guests have the best experience from the moment they set foot on our Palace of Horses and well beyond their visit to our show.

As always, you can stay in touch with Arabian Nights to learn about all the new and exciting changes by connecting with us via Facebook or Twitter.