Barbican announces new theatre and dance productions this autumn

The Barbican has today announced the new productions that will be taking to the stage as part of its Autumn/Winter season. 

The theatre and dance programme announced features all shows inclusive of October to December 2021. Opening The Pit as the first production will be Poetry + Film/Hack - Rocks, a show which closed over a year and a half ago at the beginning of the pandemic. It will begin with a screening of the critically acclaimed film Rocks and will be followed by readings from Black female poets including Barbican Young Poets Alumni.

Head of Theatre and Dance at the Barbican, Toni Racklin, said: “We’re thrilled to once again offer audiences our Theatre and Dance programme from this October for the first time since the pandemic hit in March 2020. As the spectacular musical Anything Goes continues throughout the autumn in the Theatre, we today announce an exciting hybrid programme which responds to our changed times and circumstances. Audiences can once again immerse themselves in a range of in-person events including live theatre performances, a 360° audio-visual spatial cinema experience and a 360° virtual reality screening. This is complemented by our continuing programme of innovative digital performances, all of which have been created especially for online viewing. We can’t wait for audiences to join us again at the Barbican this autumn.” 

Queer feminist US Theatre company Split Britches will return to the stage after more than two years with Last Gasp: A Recalibration, with Lois Weaver complimenting the premiere by hosting Porch Sitting: Stepping Out, a free online gathering for strangers giving audiences a chance to sit, think, dream and wonder. 

The Royal Shakespeare Company will present The Comedy of Errors and Fehinti Balogan has collaborated with Complicité to bring Can I Live?’to the screen, which was filmed at the Barbican during lockdown and combines visuals, hip-hop and spoken word. The film is directed by Daniel Bailey and co-directed by Simon McBurney. 

Vicki Bennett will make her first appearance at the Barbican under her artist name People Like Us, and theatre and dance will break out into Cinema 1 with Alone, a documentary charting the political awakening of Ukranian rock star Andrei Khluvniuk. 

Ballet Black’s work will for the first time presented digitally at the Barbican’s cinema on demand platform. There will be a double bill of made for film adaptations that will show Ballet Black Senior artist Mthuthuzeli November contemplating the purpose of life with The Waiting Game and Will Tuckett will blend music, poetry and classical ballet together in Then and Now.

Tickets are on sale to Principle Patrons and Barbican Patrons and Barbican Members Plus now, to Barbican Members on Friday 3 September and on general sale from Monday 6 September 2021.

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