In an earlier post I mentioned that “Birmingham’s a busy city for dance this year”. Two major events have already taken place in the city and more are to come.
Already happened
First up was British Dance Edition 2010, hosted and directed by DanceXchange on behalf of the National Dance Network, which took over venues across the city from 3-6 February, showcasing some of the best UK-based artists and companies.
10 March saw a Royal gala performance from Birmingham Royal Ballet, with HRH Prince Charles in attendance to see highlights drawn from the company’s 20 years of success since moving to the city. Celebrations will be ongoing throughout the year and the plaudits started early, winning the dance category in the last ever South Bank Show Awards.
Still to come
International Dance Festival Birmingham takes place in April and May although if you’re reading this here, it probably doesn’t come as news to you.
However, sampad South Asian Arts will also be celebrating their 20th anniversary in May and two of their events form part of the IDFB schedule. Those two events are:
- The Absent Lover – Thresh Dance Company (13 May, The Patrick Centre)
- Kathak Duet – Abhimanyu & Vidha Lal (14 May, The Patrick Centre)
On 4 July the Hippodrome hosts U.Dance England 2010, a national showcase event for groups of young people aged 11 to 19. It will be held at Birmingham Hippodrome and will be the flagship performance for the U.Dance programme.
The series of events leading up to the Olympic Games is now getting into full swing. In the West Midlands the focus of the programme is People Dancing which aims aimed at get people across the West Midlands moving for themselves and inspire people of all ages, skills and abilities to make dance part of their everyday lives.
Birmingham: a world centre for dance
In January, Terry Grimley, arts editor of the Birmingham Post, previewed BDE 2010 and IDFB. This quote from David Massingham, co-director of IDFB, comes from that article:
“We are certainly thinking now about really seeing Birmingham as a world centre for dance,” says David. “That’s how we want the city to be seen. With Birmingham Royal Ballet and the other companies here, with the festival, the Hippodrome and all the work we are doing across the region, I’m sure it’s the largest hub in Britain for dance.”
