Birmingham 2022 Festival – We’re creating the opening show!

We’re delighted to be able to share the news that we’ll be creating the spectacular opening show of the Birmingham 2022 Festival! The show will be produced by the wonderful Opus Arts.

From the 17 – 20 March 2022, we will be transforming Centenary Square in Birmingham into the stage for ‘Wondrous Stories’, an extraordinary large-scale production, which will be the opening show of the Birmingham 2022 Festival.

The show will launch the six-month festival shining a global spotlight on creativity in the West Midlands that will sit alongside the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. You will be able to attend seven performances of this spectacular, free event, which will bring together the people of Birmingham in a celebration of the wondrous stories of ordinary people across the region.

Wondrous Stories will be created by our Artistic Director Kevin Finnan MBE and our professional dancers will be joined by local choirs and a community cast of up to 300 from the Birmingham 2022 Festival Critical Mass participation project.

Centenary Square is home to buildings that house or tell stories – the Library of Birmingham, Symphony Hall and Birmingham Rep – and ‘Wondrous Stories’ is inspired by this. A giant aerial spectacle with a flying book, bicycles and a large globe, are just some of the thrilling elements that will wow the audience alongside incredible digital projections that will help set the scene for the show.

To create the show, Kevin has pulled together an exciting team of artistic collaborators including choreographers Sonia Sabri and Jamaal Burkmar, poets Raza Hussein and Sebbie Mudhai, composer Sophy Smith and digital artists Logela Multimedia, amongst others.

We will be sharing loads of updates as we create this extraordinary event, so watch this space!

Image credit: Iain Jamieson