The Royal Opera House will launch a month-long line-up of performances, films and events to celebrate International Women’s Day on 8 March 2024, championing women who perform, create and facilitate the work on- and offstage.
On 5 March, Colliding Forces: Mothers in Ballet, a new film directed by Eliza Schroeder exploring the experiences of dancers who are also mothers, will be screened.
On 8 March, the panel discussion Women in Technical Theatre is a free, ticketed event that will focus on the challenges and opportunities for women working in technical roles in theatre led by ROH Director of Technical, Production & Costume Emma Wilson. The Royal Opera’s Engender network will host a public panel discussion, The Diva and the Hag, exploring ageism and sexism in opera, chaired by Fay Jennett with writer and campaigner Nicky Clark and actor Rose Knox-Peebles, who played of Erda in The Royal Opera’s Das Rheingold. The day closes with the London première of Giant by composer Sarah Angliss directed by Sarah Fahie with a libretto by Ross Sutherland.
On Royal Opera House Stream, two films will be released marking the creative impact of women on the arts: Maria Fusco’s History of the Present, an opera-film exploring the trauma of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, and The Royal Ballet’s The Legacy of Nijinska, looking back on the career and life of Bronislava Nijinska.
On 9 March, the HerStory of the Royal Opera House tour will return, looking back at the women who have managed, directed and shaped both artistic companies.
On 21 and 22 March, The Royal Ballet will present the London premiere of California Connections: Three Pioneering Women performed by Yorke Dance Project, a mixed programme which celebrates female dance trailblazers Isadora Duncan, Martha Graham and Bella Lewitzky.