Birmingham Repertory Theatre and Birmingham Royal Ballet (BRB) have announced they are embarking on a creative partnership to work on new shows together, starting with a ballet inspired by social distancing.
The two companies have joined forces to work together and develop dance productions for Birmingham audiences and help revive the city’s cultural life following lockdown.
It is the creation of the companies’ new artistic leaders, Sean Foley at Birmingham Rep, and Carlos Acosta at BRB, both of whom joined their respective organisations within the past year.
Acosta said: “I hoped the cross-sector collaboration would maximise our different creative networks and represented a shared vision to making Birmingham the greatest city in the arts".
The partnership will begin with four shows staged for live audiences at the Birmingham Rep in October. These will include the premiere of a new ballet by Will Tuckett, Lazuli Sky, which is inspired by and uses social distancing.
Of the plans Foley said: "This is the beginning of an exciting partnership that will encompass full-scale productions, and new ways to create audiences together. Combining the Rep’s own history with Birmingham Royal Ballet’s reputation for world-class ballet gives us both hope that we can help establish Birmingham as the very best city for theatre, for dance and the creative arts.
"The arts must find new and inventive ways to collaborate and create new works. The new collaboration will deliver excitement and artistic excellence for the people of Birmingham and wider afield - both nationally, and internationally".
Lazuli Sky will be part of a triple bill of ballet, with music by the Royal Ballet Sinfonia, running from October 22 to 24 which will also include the neo-classical Our Waltzes by Vicente Nebrada and solo piece Liebestod, by Valery Panov.
Birmingham Rep and BRB are also developing a new work for 2021 entitled City of a Thousand Trades, which will be part of a season celebrating 30 years since BRB moved from London to Birmingham.
The one-act ballet, inspired by the stories of Birmingham and is residents, is due to premiere next May.
