Ballet and the Bard in Birmingham

Published: 21 January 2016
Reporter: Vera Liber

Artists of Birmingham Royal Ballet in The Shakespeare Suite Credit: Bill Cooper
Wolfgang Stollwitzer as Macbeth in The Shakespeare Suite Credit: Bill Cooper
Ambra Vallo as Titania and James Grundy as Bottom in The Shakespeare Suite Credit: Bill Cooper
Natasha Oughtred as Juliet and Jamie Bond as Romeo in The Shakespeare Suite Credit: Bill Cooper

Birmingham Royal Ballet's Shakespeare season commemorates 400 years since the death of the playwright with seven works including a new one-act ballet from Jessica Lang, a world première by David Bintley and two pieces new to the Company inspired by Shakespeare's work.

The season begins with a revival of Sir Frederick Ashton’s 1964 interpretation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Dream, originally created to mark Shakespeare’s birthday, which plays alongside A Month in the Country in an Ashton Double Bill (17 to 20 February).

For younger audiences, First Steps: The Dream (19 February) is an hour-long interactive presentation for children aged three to seven years old with a full orchestra and cast of dancers. This will also be performed at The Lowry, Salford on 4 March and Theatre Royal, Plymouth on 15 April.

The season continues with Kenneth Macmillan’s production of Romeo and Juliet (24 to 27 February), which will tour to The Lowry in Salford (2 to 5 March), Sunderland Empire (17 to 19 March), Nottingham Theatre Royal (30 March to 2 April) and Theatre Royal Plymouth (13 and 16 April).

In a first performance by BRB, John Cranko's The Taming of the Shrew will run from 16 to 18 June and also play at Bristol Hippodrome 29 June to 2 July. Jessica Lang’s new work Wink, inspired by Shakespeare’s sonnets, will receive its Birmingham première from 22 to 25 June.

BRB will perform for the first time José Limón's The Moor's Pavane, based on Othello. The bill will conclude with David Bintley’s The Shakespeare Suite.

The Moor’s Pavane and Wink will be seen alongside excerpts from Romeo and Juliet, The Dream and The Taming of the Shrew in the Shakespeare Midscale Tour which will visit Gala Theatre, Durham (10 to 11 May), York Theatre Royal (13 to 14 May) and Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury (17 to 18 May).

The Shakespeare season concludes with David Bintley’s new full-length ballet The Tempest in September 2016 with designs by War Horse’s Rae Smith, set to a new score by British composer Sally Beamish.

Before selected Friday evening performances, audience members are invited to join a panel from BRB as they discuss life as part of the ballet company. On some Saturday mornings, members of the public are invited behind closed doors as the company of dancers open up their daily class.

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