Ballet celebrating inspirational Brummy women set to hit the stage at the Hippodrome

In celebration of the city of Birmingham, “Luna” is the final offering in a trilogy which has included the outstanding “City of a Thousand Trades” and the exceptional “Black Sabbath”, but this time the ballet focuses on the inspirational females from the city, rather than male dominated tales of industry or heavy metal.

Featuring the talents of an all-female creative team including a group of diverse female choreographers from across the globe, “Luna” consists of five separate stories told through dance, each depicting moments of darkness and light in line with the moon.

The ladies are certainly situated far and wide. Iratxe Ansa is from Spain, Wubkje Kuindersma is from The Netherlands,Thais Suárez is from Cuba and then there are two choreographers from the UK, Seeta Patel and Arielle Smith.

Producer, Caroline Davis, is extremely passionate about the piece and very excited to be working on her first theatrical production.

Setting up her company, Outdoor Places Unusual Spaces when her daughter was just a few weeks old in 2018, Caroline has gone from strength to strength, boasting a portfolio of contrasting outdoor events, including the Motionhouse show, “Wondrous Stories” which opened the Commonwealth Games in 2022, festivals and performances in non-conventional arts spaces, but this is her first taste of producing within a theatre environment.

“Normally you will find me in a zoo, at a train station, in the botanical gardens, on a tram, out and about trying to bring culture to people in public and civic spaces, but this is completely different as I won’t be able to join in or move around, or hear what people are saying and sense the vibe,” laughed Caroline. I told her to go to the Ladies loo in the interval and listen – that is how to find out opinions!

Birmingham Royal Ballet (BRB) has certainly made an impact on Caroline. “The first day that I had in the studios when I was allowed to sit in the company class, made me feel that it was one of the best working days in my career and I couldn’t believe that was the job I had,” she said.

The pressure is on as the whole team, including the five female choreographers, don’t actually come together until the technical week of the ballet, not surprising given their locations.

Caroline continued: “Carlos Acosta has invited well-respected, international choreographers with very different styles, as he is determined to push the company with a more contemporary movement language as well as the classical repertoire they are known for. It has been very interesting to watch the different methods of creation in the studio, but also it is about invitations and the ability to tour work and build relationships and take the city’s name around the world.”

Caroline said “Luna” was originally conceived as a very different project.

“As it is the last in the trilogy, Carlos wanted to look at the city in a different light but then, as with a number of projects, it went in a different direction last year. It was originally entitled “Mah” which is Persian for moon. It was a predominantly female creative team behind it and then I started a conversation about the moon and the Luna society and said wouldn’t it be amazing to explore what a contemporary female Luna society would look like today,” said Caroline.

“I was reminded of a children’s book called 'Once Upon a Time in Birmingham: Women who dared to dream' by Louise Palfreyman, which depicts amazing women who have made a contribution to the city. We then asked the choreographers to reflect on that book.”

“Luna is not a story of one woman,” she continued. “It is an abstract ballet; an evening of dance which allows us to tell the broad thematic principles of the women in that book, who are shaping this city, but I think what you see with the rich choreographic movement vocabulary is a really different picture. It doesn’t use all of the usual tropes about Birmingham like industry and heritage, but it is about pioneering women, and also the everyday struggles of women who are trying to make life better for themselves, their communities and their children.”

And speaking of children, there are no less than thirty four children from the city’s children’s choir involved in the ballet too and a soprano and baritone who will be singing some of composer Kate Whitely’s wonderful score.

Kate Whitely has worked together with each of the choreographers to choose existing works and then there is also a new commission for Seeta Patel’s piece to bring in more of the rhythmic elements she prefers to work with. Caroline said,“It has been a beautiful patchwork quilt to meet the individual choreographers’ wants and needs.”

There is no doubt that “Luna” is championing female empowerment, despite the fact that there is a male at the head of the project.

Even the printed programme for the ballet is female orientated, as part of its typeset is in a specially chosen font called “Mrs Eaves”.

Caroline told the Express & Star: “The font, a variant of Baskerville, which was itself created in Birmingham by John Baskerville in the 1750s, was created by Zuzana Licko in 1996 as a tribute to Sarah Eaves. Initially Baskerville hired Sarah as his housekeeper, but she became his lover and then his wife. Like so many of the great men of the past, a woman was a key part of this famous man’s success.

“Sarah was the person who ran Baskerville’s home and accounts for him, allowing him to become the renowned printer he is remembered as today. It seemed very appropriate to recognise the vital, but largely hidden work of Sarah Eaves, and so many others like her throughout history in this particular programme,” she said.

The themes within the pieces are interesting. Women’s issues always feel timely, but there was something that spoke to Caroline personally.

“The moon is generally represented as a female deity, yet no woman has ever been to the moon,” Caroline observed.

It would seem women are still seen as the weaker sex, but Caroline is hopeful that will change. “Kamala Harris is inspiring, and there is a Luna trip from America next year, where the first ever female astronaut will go to the moon,” she said. “I have an all female team for my production company and I am a big champion of women in the workplace.”

“I am so looking forward to seeing 'Luna' on stage, Caroline continued.

“Arielle’s piece is all female dancers and there is a lot of female partnering work in it and it is all about female empowerment and supporting women,” she told me.

“Another piece is about overcoming adversity and another is about being over exposed and living in a patriarchal society, which is danced by one female lead and a male corps de ballet.”

Despite it being Caroline’s first ballet, she has taken risks by employing young, up and coming talents, who do not have a lot of experience, but under Carlos’s leadership should thrive. I think it is good to have a fresh take on a production from a different generation who are likely to come up with brand new ideas.

“I am looking forward to getting into the theatre now and I hope the audiences have an enjoyable evening,” added Caroline.

I am sure this will be on the best ballets to grace the Birmingham Hippodrome stage this year.

“Luna”, presented by the awe-inspiring Birmingham Royal Ballet, runs at the Birmingham Hippodrome from October 3 to 5, before moving to Sadlers Wells in London from October 22 to 23.

Also look out for details of short fifteen minute excerpts from “Luna” in opera festivals across the country at a later date.

To book tickets, visit birminghamhippodrome.com or call 0844 338 5000.