The camera pans across a vast expanse of desert before careening toward an artificial island lined with luxury homes in the Persian Gulf. Eerie chords ring out, as though warning viewers: This is not your B次元官网网址淩eal Housewives of Orange County.B次元官网网址�

For the first time in its 16-year history, the American franchise that has become an institution of reality television will take its glamor and soap opera abroad B次元官网网址� specifically, to the skyscraper-studded sheikhdom of Dubai. While the franchise has sold countless global spinoffs from Lagos to Vancouver, none have been produced by the Bravo network before.

B次元官网网址淭he Real Housewives of DubaiB次元官网网址� debuts on Wednesday, inducting six new women into networkB次元官网网址檚 crown jewel of catfights and marital meltdowns that is beloved, binged and hate-watched around the world.

Dubai might be some 13,000 kilometers (8,000 miles) away from the California gated community where the reality-show empire premiered in 2006, which a cameo by camels in the seriesB次元官网网址� teaser makes clear.

But as DubaiB次元官网网址檚 B次元官网网址渉ousewivesB次元官网网址� gossip over lavish lunches, bicker while sipping from stem glasses and arrive at casual gatherings engulfed in designer logos, it turns out theyB次元官网网址檙e not so far from Orange County after all.

ThatB次元官网网址檚 a message the women want to convey. Cast members say showing off their extravagant, party-hard lives on screen debunks stereotypes about the United Arab Emirates, a Gulf Arab federation where Islam is the official religion.

B次元官网网址淭his is an opportunity for me to show the Western world, or the world in general, how a modern Arab woman can be,B次元官网网址� Sara Al Madani, a serial entrepreneur and single mom, told The Associated Press from her quirky villa adorned with portraits of her favorite non-fungible tokens and a room full of trophies commemorating her career.

Instead of the traditional black abaya, Al Madani sported a wide-brimmed suede hat. With a nose ring, tongue piercing and arm tattoo that reads B次元官网网址淩ebel,B次元官网网址� she was the first to admit: B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 not your typical Arab or Emirati.B次元官网网址�

Al Madani is the only Emirati cast member B次元官网网址� a ratio that comes as no surprise in a country where expatriates outnumber locals nearly nine to one.

The other B次元官网网址渉ousewivesB次元官网网址� found DubaiB次元官网网址檚 glitz from far afield. Caroline Stanbury, a reality star who stirred up drama in BravoB次元官网网址檚 B次元官网网址淟adies of LondonB次元官网网址� series moved to Dubai with her kids after getting divorced and remarrying a former soccer player.

Caroline Brooks, an Afro-Latina businesswoman from Massachusetts, rose to success in DubaiB次元官网网址檚 cutthroat real estate industry. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 very expensive to cheat on me,B次元官网网址� she tells viewers in the trailer. B次元官网网址淎sk my exes.B次元官网网址�

Nina Ali, an ultra-glam Lebanese mother of three, founded Fruit Cake, a fruitcake business. Lesa Hall, a Jamaican designer of luxury maternity clothes and former beauty queen, recently posted on Instagram an ice-cream cone B次元官网网址� with a 24-karat-gold-leaf on top.

Chanel Ayan, a breezy Kenyan-born model who overcame prejudices in the UAE to walk for top-tier European fashion houses, is now developing a makeup line. She described herself in an interview with the AP as B次元官网网址渙utgoing, funny, crazy and insanely hot.B次元官网网址�

Like American stars of the franchise, the women in Dubai are not housewives in the traditional sense but rather socialite business owners trying to define their brands. And Dubai, a city ceaselessly trying to market itself on the world stage, provides a fitting backdrop.

With zero income taxes, gleaming skyscrapers and countless malls, the emirate was engineered to be a global destination for the ultra-wealthy. Fortune-seekers, rich and poor, flock to Dubai from around the world, including migrant laborers from South Asia, Africa and the Philippines who work long hours for low pay. The franchise, however, takes as its focus just a tiny subset of wealthy womanhood.

The cast members described Dubai as a Westernized playground where women are free to have fun and do what they want.

B次元官网网址淵ou have glitz, you have glamor, you have fashion,B次元官网网址� Stanbury said, cradling her black Pomeranian named Taz against her sequined Prada crop top. On her coffee table was F. Scott FitzgeraldB次元官网网址檚 B次元官网网址淭he Beautiful and Damned.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址淵ou donB次元官网网址檛 understand how much itB次元官网网址檚 worth to live in a country like this,B次元官网网址� she added.

But in the UAE, women are legally obligated to obey their husbands under the nationB次元官网网址檚 Islamic law. Despite major legal changes, cursing, drinking and kissing in public can still land you in trouble. Homosexuality remains forbidden, as does crossdressing. Authorities stamp out hints of political dissent.

Executives insisted that the UAEB次元官网网址檚 traditional values and speech restrictions, which had long hampered the oil-rich countryB次元官网网址檚 efforts to become a regional entertainment hub, did not hold the housewives back.

Fans can still expect alcohol-soaked gatherings and dramatic confrontations, said Sezin Cavusoglu, the Bravo executive in charge of the series. But there will be no drink-throwing, table-flipping, hair-pulling or otherwise ostentatious fighting in public.

B次元官网网址淭hey live there. They know whatB次元官网网址檚 acceptable, and whatB次元官网网址檚 not acceptable,B次元官网网址� Cavusoglu said. B次元官网网址淭hey still gave us amazing content just by being who they are and having really honest and difficult conversations.B次元官网网址�

DubaiB次元官网网址檚 government-run media office did not respond to AP requests for comment. DubaiB次元官网网址檚 Tourism Board and Film Commission approved the series and facilitated its production.

ThatB次元官网网址檚 already a stark shift from over a decade ago, when the Dubai government cited moral concerns in rejecting the producers of the B次元官网网址淪ex and the CityB次元官网网址� movie sequel.

Not everyone in the UAE is glad of the B次元官网网址淩eal HousewivesB次元官网网址� limelight. Aghast at the foul-mouthed, bikini-clad women in the trailer, Emirati social media influencer Majid Alamry lambasted the series on Instagram last week.

B次元官网网址淲e are a tolerant country, but that does not mean that others can walk all over our morals,B次元官网网址� he said in a viral clip. Local media also profiled more-down-to-earth homemakers in the UAE who were B次元官网网址渄emanding a more accurate representation.B次元官网网址�

But the reality franchise always was escapist fare, cast and executives say, split off from the reality of ordinary viewers.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 meant to be just entertainment,B次元官网网址� Stanbury said from her pristine kitchen, where on a clear day she can see elephants stalking a nature preserve and the worldB次元官网网址檚 tallest tower rising over the desert. B次元官网网址淵ou guys get insight into all of our crazy lives.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址擨sabel Debre, The Associated Press