Birmingham Rep giving audience a peak behind the curtains with open day
Birmingham Rep is offering members of the public a chance to take a peek behind the scenes with a free open day this month.
The full day of activities for all the family will take members of the public behind the scenes of the only large-scale theatre in the city that builds all of its own productions on site from scratch.
From 10am until 4pm on Saturday February 26, families can enjoy backstage tours, workshops, performances, technical demonstrations, heritage talks, plus the chance to buy show-stopping garments in The Rep’s costume sale.
Artistic director Sean Foley and executive director Rachael Thomas said: “We are thrilled to be throwing open our doors and inviting the people of Birmingham and beyond into their theatre for a day packed full of free activities.
“The Rep is a theatre for everyone, all are welcome. Please come and join us for exciting backstage tours, see the workshops where our sets and theatre designs come to life, tread the boards on our huge main stage where some of the UK’s greatest actors have performed, or join us for a series of workshops and learn about the theatre’s rich history.”
The open day will include short backstage tours led by The Rep’s volunteers where visitors can learn about the venue's long theatrical history and take a peek at backstage spaces usually closed to the public,
The Rep’s costume sale will allow visitors a rare chance to riffle through rails of items and outfits from the theatre’s costume stores and take them home. All proceeds raised will go toward the Open House Appeal. .
Families can also discover backstage secrets with exclusive interactive demonstrations from The Rep’s leading technical and production team.
Professionals in lighting, sound, costume, technical drawing, carpentry and stage management will be offering a peek at how theatre magic is made.
From early years through to ages 11-16, young people can join The Rep’s renowned Creative Learning team for a series of four different theatre-based workshops throughout the day. All workshops will have a sign-up sheet from 10am onwards with a limit of 25 participants per workshop.
Attendees can also delve into The Rep’s rich theatrical history with a variety of fascinating talks hosted by The Rep’s volunteers plus the chance to watch as Young Rep members aged 18-25 perform extracts from some of Shakespeare’s most notable works throughout the theatres Foyer spaces.
Booking is not required.
