DanceXchange and Birmingham Hippodrome hosted the launch for IDFB 2012 in The Patrick Centre yesterday. Co-Artistic Directors David Massingham and Stuart Griffiths unveiled the highlights of the programme, whilst attendees were also treated to a beautiful duet from Elisabetta d’Aloia & Nuno Silva, and a performance from a DanceXchange community group.

The streets of Birmingham will come alive with dance next April when International Dance Festival Birmingham (IDFB), the UK’s biggest dance festival, takes place across the city. Now a well established, biennial event co-produced by DanceXchange and Birmingham Hippodrome, IDFB 2012 will include a world-class programme of international performers, world premieres, new commissions and a range of participatory events in venues and public spaces across Birmingham and the West Midlands.

The programme of the 2012 festival has been released for the first time, and performances include Canadian choreographer Dave St-Pierre’s (in)famous Un peu de tendresse bordel de merde!, Artifact by William Forsythe from the Royal Ballet of Flanders and TURF – a dance, break and parkour commission, a new commission from Australian artist Shaun Parker. Birmingham Royal Ballet will perform a new creation from US choreographer Jessica Lang,  whilst Victoria Square will host a huge outdoor finale to the festival, featuring dance, circus, live music and archetectural projections on the Town Hall. Danza Contemporanea de Cuba, Breakin’ Convention, hosted and curated by UK hip hop theatre legend Jonzi D, and Sylvie Guillem & Russell Maliphant will all appear at the Birmingham Hippodrome.
Finally, The Patrick Centre will host a double bill from Canadian Louise Lecavalier, and David Toole, Lucy Hind & Remix Dance Company (South Africa), who will perform The Impending Storm.

You can view the whole IDFB 2012 programme here, and more shows will be announced soon.

The launch also saw the announcement of Home, a bold, inventive new production that will animate public spaces across Birmingham city centre in 2012. The final production will be based around the theme of ‘home’ and what it means to each of us. It will be developed using ideas, inspirations and choreographic material contributed by 1000 individuals through workshops, open days, and uploading films online. The performance below was a DanceXchange community group’s contribution, performed live at the launch.

Building on the success of IDFB 2010, which generated over 66,000 audience and participatory experiences, IDFB 2012 aims to create even more opportunities for people to get involved, and attract more national and international visitors to the city.

Artistic Director of DanceXchange and Co-Artistic Director of IDFB 2012, David Massingham said, “The city’s existing dance offering provided by DanceXchange, Birmingham Hippodrome and Birmingham Royal Ballet has already created the biggest dance hub in the UK. IDFB 2012 not only creates a window to what is now a world centre for dance, but extends our reach to new, young audiences by breaking free from traditional venues and providing opportunities to participate in many different ways.”

Stuart Griffiths, Chief Executive of Birmingham Hippodrome and Co-Artistic Director of IDFB 2012 added, “With IDFB 2010 creating £6.2m worth of economic activity, it is well recognised that this festival makes a significant contribution to the economic growth of Birmingham and the West Midlands. It is a great example of a successful partnership working to enrich the cultural offering in the city.”

Click here to download the full IDFB 2012 press release.