Birmingham Royal Ballet’s Director Carlos Acosta promises entertainment for all ages when he brings an explosion of Spanish sunshine, spectacular dance and vivacious comedy to Sunderland Empire March 10th – 12th.
In a new production created especially for Birmingham Royal Ballet and featuring all-new designs by Tim Hatley, Don Quixote introduces us to Cervantes’ famous knight himself, lovers Kitri and Basilio, and a host of supporting characters. As the Don sets out on a quest to track down his true love, with his loyal friend and servant Sancho Panza at his side, he finds himself embroiled in an unlikely adventure of love and dreams. Steeped in literary references, Don Quixote is a tale of love, lust, laughter and longing for better things, most of which seems to only be present in our hero’s mind.
Don Quixote on stage has been played by some true greats including the famous Rudolf Nureyev and Mikhail Baryshnikov – usually a traditional production, Director Acosta promises this updated version will wow audiences whose tastes and expectations are now more keenly attuned with Strictly and Dancing on Ice.
“For this new production, I wanted to give it a completely new take and a new look to the one that I gave to the Royal Ballet so that Birmingham has its own. It’s a new production with new concept and designs, re-orchestration, new elements of the choreography, new colours, a whole new palette. “Don Quixote is the best ballet to attend if you are not a ballet connoisseur,” Carlos says. “If you don’t know anything about ballet this is a great chance to learn something about it by watching Don Quixote. It appeals to family audiences; it is great for children because the story is easy to follow.
"It’s very sunny and people will laugh a lot. The world of ballet is so full of tragedies, Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet etcetera, they are all tragedies but in Don Quixote nobody dies, it’s a happy tale.
“The ballet is very exotic; it provides escapism into this amazing world of colour and the music has an amazing Spanish flavour. When it’s raining and cold then you want to come and see Don Quixote because it’s a sunshine ballet. It’s a great show - when you’ve seen it, you leave on a high.”
This promises to be a wonderful new version for the discerning connoisseur but perhaps just as importantly, a brilliant introduction to anyone who has not yet been captured by the magic of live ballet – funny, witty, amazing and enthralling.
Tickets are available from https://www.atgtickets.com/shows/birmingham-royal-ballet-don-quixote/sunderland-empire/