Birmingham Hippodrome’s Young Community Drop-In Sessions have been developed by our Young Advocates.
Are you interested in dance, movement, theatre, puppetry, production, tech, costume? Well, we’ve got an event for you!
On Friday 21 February from 12pm until 7pm, we’re bringing some of the best professionals in the dance industry to Birmingham Hippodrome for our first Young Community Drop In of 2025.
Young people will get to take part in lots of taster workshops to learn about all the possible career paths, outside of performing on the stage. And even if you are committed to performing, these workshops will teach you how to take your performance to the NEXT STEP! Understanding all the jobs required to put on an incredible production is vital in creating a career in the dance world.
We’ll have workshops exploring international touring and producing, facilitating and teaching with using movement and dance, puppetry, costume and making an impact on stage.
Our Young Community Drop Ins are designed for young people to experience things they’ve never thought about or tried before and a chilled sociable environment.
And as always, this event is completely FREE, there’s snacks, crafts and lots of fun!
Programme:
Puppetry and Movement with Autin Dance
Autin Dance Theatre will lead a workshop where participants will learn the basics of puppetry, using Bunraku-inspired brown paper puppets. Information and detail will be given to participants on how to add breath, focus, and weight to the puppet.
Autin Dance’s award-winning work ranges from extensive touring of their sensational outdoor show featuring a 13ft-tall puppet at international festivals to publishing children’s books about saving the ocean.
Dance Creation with Clint Lutes
Following the completion of his BFA in Dance at NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Clint Lutes performed with the French choreographer Yann Lheureux as well as the Korean choreographer Eun Me Ahn. From 2003-2010, Clint was founder and co-director of the LUCKY TRIMMER platform in Berlin. His choreography has been presented around Europe, in the USA and in Asia.
He has created performances with professionals as well as non-professionals in dance studios, psychological care facilities, prisons, hospitals, elderly care homes and elsewhere. Clint’s workshop will focus on what you can do with technique and how you can use it to allow for each individual’s personality to emerge.
Costuming Dance and Movement with Nicolai Hart Hansen
Nicolai trained as a set and costume designer at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama (BA) and The Slade School of Fine Art (MFA), and has worked in the UK, Europe and the US.
He has worked with Candoco Dance Company and Rambert Dance Company as well as working on performances seen in many of London’s greatest theatres including Trafalgar Studios, Charing Cross Theatre, Royal Court Theatre and Southwark Playhouse.
Producing and Touring Dance with Joe Bates – CEO of Dance Consortium
Dance Consortium exists to tour the best contemporary dance from across the world to local audiences across the UK and Ireland. The Consortium was formed by a group of UK Theatres in 2000 and is currently made up of 21 member theatres from all regions of the country as well as the Republic of Ireland.
Since 2000, they have organised 53 tours by 30 different companies and have performed to over 800,000 people.
Joe himself has worked for Arts Council England, run his own production and management company: Morton Bates Arts Services and has worked with a number of dance companies including Candoco Dance Company and Richard Alston Dance Company.
Crafts with Bobbie Petford
Bobbie is back! This time bringing some traditional Korean inspired crafts with a modern twist, that you can make and take away! As always, this space will be mindful and calm.
We hope to see you there!