London Children’s Ballet will formally open to the public as part of Wandsworth Arts Fringe (25 June to 11 July 2021) in a cultural space provided by The Big Yellow Self Storage Company for free for 125 years, with an initial lease to London Children’s Ballet for 20 years, as part of its planning application for its new development on Lombard Road.
It includes a state-of-the-art dance studio with sprung dance floors, ballet barres and mirrors, as well as open plan offices, a meeting room, storage for costumes and props and bathroom and changing facilities.
London Children’s Ballet is one of a number of cultural organisations moving into the Lombard Road / York Road area, including Royal Academy of Dance, Tavaziva Dance and BBO Dance, and several creative youth programmes around Providence House and Caius House.
Company founder Lucille Briance said, “this is an extraordinary benchmark for London Children’s Ballet. Over the last 24 years, our charity has had a vision to inspire children to excellence, to be the best they can be and build self-esteem and confidence. We ensured our auditions are always free and have responded to what we’ve heard from parents and children. With the support of Wandsworth Council, it is exciting that we will now be able to reach more children from every background.
"When Jim (James Gibson, Big Yellow’s CEO) offered to help us store our costumes, it began an important relationship with Big Yellow. The whole team at Big Yellow have turned themselves inside out over the years to help us—with storage, with performance sponsorship, and now providing us with studio space where we can show the work we do. These studios make it possible for us to bring hundreds more young people to have confidence in themselves, to try new things and give them an opportunity to shine."