A West Midlands arts and events producing house is celebrating after reaching more than 120,000 people and working with over 2,100 artists during 2023.
Outdoor Places Unusual Spaces (OPUS), led by five women, produced 25 events over 74 days and delivered two new flagship events for Birmingham: the BBC Eurovision Fan Zone and Birmingham Festival 23, the official one-year anniversary festival for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. OPUS also engaged with Birmingham’s diverse communities by helping to celebrate occasions including Diwali.
Managing director and executive producer Caroline Davis said, “what a year 2023 has been. We’ve loved every minute creating and delivering amazing moments for the people of the region, all through supporting artists and organisations that live and work in the West Midlands.
“From showcasing the city’s artists on the Birmingham Festival 23 stage to transforming Dartmouth Park into a magical night-time playground, it's been wonderful to transform the places and spaces we’re all familiar with.
"We can’t wait to create and transform more places for more audiences in 2024, balancing our work within and outside the West Midlands, lending Birmingham talent to Rochdale borough council's new Festival of Ideas and a new community opera in East Anglia.”