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Your Family Theatre Guide
BOX
OFFICE
Arena Theatre WV1 1SE
Box Office: 01902 321321
www.wlv.ac.uk/arena-theatre
24 – 26 Feb
Calamity Jane
Join Starcross Youth Theatre as they
return to the Arena with their “Whip-
Cracking” musical production including
all the famous songs!
25 Mar
Holi: Basant Ke Rang
7:30pm An entertaining evening of music
and dance, celebrating the rich diverse
South Asian heritage and culture present
in the UK today. Holi is globally known as
the Indian festival of colour when people
gather, sing and dance in celebration.
Basant Ke Rang translates as ‘the
colours of the spring season’. The festival
joyously signifies the arrival of spring,
traditionally celebrating as thanksgiving
for a good harvest.
Birmingham Hippodrome
B5 4TB
Box Office: 0844 338 5000
www.birminghamhippodrome.com
7 – 11 Feb
The Red Shoes
A tale of obsession, possession and one
girl’s dream to be the greatest dancer in
the world. Victoria Page lives to dance
but her ambitions become a battleground
between the two men who inspire her
passion. Suitable for ages 5+.
17 Feb
First Steps, A Child’s First Cinderella
1:00pm This hour-long, interactive
show, specially adapted for children
aged from three to seven, features ballet
excerpts from Cinderella, performed
by Birmingham Royal Ballet’s amazing
dancers and orchestra, interspersed with
scenes in which a storyteller introduces
the children to the music and the
leading characters, and shares some
technical magic. A feast of dance, music,
costumes and lots of fun, this is a perfect
introduction to ballet.
18 – 25 Feb
Cinderella
Cinderella’s life with her cruel stepmother
and stepsisters is one of drudgery
and hardship until the evening of
an extravagant party at the palace.
Cinderella is a sure-fire mix of wonderful
dance, spectacular scenery, and a cast of
characters that include mice, lizards and
even a dancing frog, that captures every
imagination.
7 Mar – 29 Apr
Billy Elliott The Musical
Set in a small mining town in the north
east of England, against the background
of the 1984/’85 miners’ strike, Billy Elliot
is the inspirational story of a young boy’s
struggle against the odds to make his
dream come true. Billy Elliot the Musical
is a funny, uplifting and spectacular
theatrical experience that will stay with
you forever. Suitable for ages 8+
Birmingham Repertory
B1 2EP
Box Office: 0121 236 4455
www.birmingham-rep.co.uk
20 – 26 Feb
Cirque Berserk
Combining contemporary cirque-style
artistry with adrenaline-fuelled stunt
action, this astoundingly talented
international troupe includes over thirty
jugglers, acrobats, aerialists, dancers,
drummers, daredevil stuntmen and of
course the award-winning clown, Tweedy.
The show also features the world’s most
hair-raising circus act - the legendary
motorcycle ‘Globe of Death’.
Genting Arena
B40 1NT
Box Office: 0844 33 88 222
www.gentingarena.co.uk
1 – 5 Mar
Cirque De Soleil Varekai - Tales Of
The Forest
Deep within a forest, at the summit
of a volcano, exists an extraordinary
world - a world where something else
is possible. A world called Varekai. On
this day at the edge of time, in this place
of all possibilities, begins an inspired
incantation to life rediscovered. The word
Varekai means “wherever” in the Romany
language of the gypsies the universal
wanderers.
Hall Green Little Theatre
B27 7RY
Box Office: 0121 707 1874
www.hglt.co.uk
17 – 25 Feb
Romeo and Juliet
7:30pm Celebrating 400 years since
the birth of Shakespeare, we present
the heartbreaking tale of forbidden love.
Share in the passion of the world’s most
famous young lovers, and get swept up in
the heartbreak as the tragedy of their two
worlds collide!
New Alexandra Theatre
B5 4DS
Box Office: 0844 871 3011
www.atgtickets.com
6 – 11 Feb
Wonderland
An enchanting musical adaptation of Lewis
Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
and Through the Looking Glass, with a
huge heart, a medley of magic and a
whole lot of wonder.
13 – 18 Feb
Thoroughly Modern Millie
Based on the 1967 Academy Awardwinning
film, Thoroughly Modern Millie
takes you back to the height of the Jazz
Age in New York City, perfectly constructed
evening of madcap merriment for all the
family.
New Hampton Arts Centre
WV1 4AN
Box Office: 01902 572090
www.newhamptonarts.co.uk
22 Feb
Beginnings
2:00pm Follow the antics of a wrinkly,
mischievous creator as he struggles
hilariously to create. Using his imagination
he conjures up a new creation from the
objects he finds on the stage. But not
everything is plain sailing and soon some
raucous and deliciously disgusting mishaps
befall him! Beginnings is a playful story of
persistence in the face of adversity with few
words accompanied by a wonderfully loud
drum kit! Puppet Making Workshops - Join
Helen Ainsworth, award-winning puppeteer
and puppet maker for a fun filled session
of inventive puppet making! Using recycled
fabric and wire and lots of unusual bits
and bobs we will create characterful and
striking glove puppets. 12:00noon ages
4+ with an adult, 3:00pm for ages 8-12.
Show £7, Advance tickets £6. Workshop
£6 (Accompanying adults free), Show and
workshop combined ticket (children) £10.
Stourbridge Town Hall
DY8 1YE
Box Office: 01384 812812
www.dudley.gov.uk
24 Feb
The First Hippo On The Moon
1:00pm David Walliams fantastical
adventure featuring puppetry, music,
mayhem and a giant space race to the
moon!
Sutton Coldfield Town
Hall B73 6AB
Box Office: 0121 296 9543
www.cloc.org.uk
7 – 11 Feb
Robin Hood and the Babes in the
Wood
Legend tells the story of courage and
friendship as Robin and his trusted band
of Merry Men try to outfox the greedy
Sheriff of Nottingham. Meanwhile, Nurse
Nellie Nickerlastic is desperately trying
to protect the Babes from the clutches of
the Sheriff’s bungling henchmen, Snivel
and Grovel. It’s fun and frolics all the way
with a hilarious schoolroom scene, not to
mention the mayhem of Nellie’s haunted
boudoir! Cram-packed with comedy, this
true pantomime version offers plenty of
Chorus involvement, audience participation
and honest-to-goodness family fun!
Symphony Hall B1 2EA
Box Office: 0121 780 3333
www.thsh.co.uk
12 Feb
Tim and Tom’s Symphonic Adventure
2:30pm Presenter Brothers Tim and Tom
discover an old suitcase full of mysterious
treasures and their imaginations begin to
run wild. With a bit of help from the full
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra,
they’re all set for an adventure without
limits. Music can tell any story they want
– or transport them to wherever they want
to go. Come and join them! FREE craft
activities in the foyer from 1:00pm.
18 Feb
Musical Picnic FREE EVENT
10:30am Following her exciting Emulsion
festival of new music in January,
saxophonist Trish Clowes is back in
Birmingham with her brilliant band for
a fun and jazz-inspired Musical Picnic!
Recommended for ages under 7.
22 Feb & 22 Mar
Musical Picnic : Midweek Explorer
FREE EVENT
10:30am Take time out in a relaxing and
friendly space with your little ones. Explore
music, dance and story- telling whilst
making new friends. Recommended for
ages 5 and under, our music practitioners
will help facilitate early years learning in a
supportive and fun environment.
The Core Theatre
B91 3RG
Box Office: 0121 7046962
www.thecoretheatresolihull.co.uk
15 – 18 Feb
Les Miserables School Edition
Set in nineteenth century, the well-known
epic story follows Jean Valjean has he is
relentlessly pursued by police inspector
Javert, who refuses to believe Valjean can
change his ways. Valjean tries to help a
poor factory worker, Fantine, by saving her
daughter, Cosette, from the evil innkeepers.
Marius, during the battles of post-French
Revolution, falls for Cosette, joins a band of
revolutionaries at the barricades in Paris...
but let’s leave it there.
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Primary Times FEBRUARY Issue | www.primarytimes.net/birmingham