The full programme for Birmingham’s biggest arts festival has been announced, taking place from 22 – 24 September. Across the city over three days, there will be 120 performances, 300 artists and 26 new commissions. It will be a cultural adventure for audiences, with some special treats for dance lovers too. The award-winning Birmingham Weekender promises a packed weekend of free outdoor theatre, music, art installations and performance. With opportunities to take part and watch as the weekend unfolds, the city’s streets, shops and squares will come alive with something to entertain and delight all the family.
Square Dance in Victoria Square will be delivered with the organisers of Moseley Folk Festival. Hour by hour audiences can experience disco to folk, bhangra to Northern Soul as well as Kathakali dancers from India, followed by live music and heavyweight DJs each evening including Craig Charles, David Rodigan and Don Letts. Performances from Birmingham Royal Ballet will take place in the Bullring, with South Asian dance also being performed throughout the weekend. A new commission from 2Faced Dance and Rosie Kay, and a preview of DeNada Dance Theatre’s TORO: Beauty and the Bull, will be presented by DanceXchange at the Patrick Centre.
Theatre fans can see a preview of Outbox Theatre’s As A Tiger In The Jungle at the Birmingham Rep, which uses circus skills and spoken word to tell an inspiring story of life, circus and survival. Outside street theatre will pop up here, there and everywhere: including the hummelmania tribe – rubber band creatures – created by Rotterdam artist MetteSterre. KTO Theatre’s Peregrinus presented by Birmingham Hippodrome will see ordinary workers in striking masks journey through the city, appearing suddenly to perform to instantly recognisable music.
Birmingham Weekender is brought to the city by Culture Central, the cultural development agency for Birmingham, celebrating the city’s diversity, communities and artists. It will welcome international performers from around the world, and plays a key role within Utsav, Birmingham’s Year of South Asian Culture.