International Dance Festival Birmingham 2014 Wins UK Theatre Award for Achievement in Dance

Birmingham Hippodrome and DanceXchange won the award for Achievement in Dance at the recent annual UK Theatre Awards for INTERNATIONAL DANCE FESTIVAL BIRMINGHAM 2014 (IDFB). A strong category which also included English National Ballet and Rambert Dance Company.

The award was presented to the partner organisations at the City of London's famous Guildhall in recognition for their "bold, extensive programming and presentation of International Dance Festival Birmingham 2014".

Accepting the award Stuart Griffiths, Chief Executive Birmingham Hippodrome and IDFB Festival Co-Director said "We're absolutely thrilled to receive this award. This truly is a festival with an international reach securing the involvement of some of the world's most prominent dance companies which has helped to establish Birmingham as a major cultural player within the UK. Thanks go to all the talented artists, companies, producers, and for a great team effort. And of course, we want to recognise all our sponsors and funders such as Birmingham City Council and Arts Council England for helping to make the festival so successful."

David Massingham, DanceXchange Artistic Director, and IDFB Festival Co-Director, who also accepted the award, added: "We are delighted that the partnership between DanceXchange and Birmingham Hippodrome to produce IDFB has been recognised by the UK Theatre Awards. Over four festivals, IDFB has become known for the sheer diversity of amazing dance performances from across the world presented in very different venues and unusual or outdoor spaces across the city of Birmingham. The festival joins up the city, connecting across the arts from visual arts to music, bringing a world of dance to the city."

International Dance Festival Birmingham has become an important biennial event in the international dance calendar attracting dance companies and artists from all over the globe. Since its launch in 2008 over 172,000 people have enjoyed 164 performances in venues and spaces across the city including Town Hall Symphony Hall, Crescent Theatre, The Rep, Birmingham Hippodrome, the Patrick Centre and, in recent years, Warwick Arts Centre as well as 416 free events across the city.

Artists who have performed include dance superstars Sylvie Guillem and Carlos Acosta, The Kirov Ballet, Akram Khan, Russell Maliphant, Hip Hop Festival Breakin' Convention, Royal Ballet Flanders, Danza Contemporanea de Cuba, National Ballet of China, Birmingham Royal Ballet and large scale free outdoor performances including Wings of Desire and the recent B-Town in Victoria Square. Productions which start life at IDFB have since gone on to tour the world, such as 2012 festival hit show Spill which has featured in festivals from Dublin to Sydney through to New York in 2014, with 139 performances in 51 parks to over 28,500 people.

The UK Theatre Awards are the only nationwide Awards to honour outstanding achievement in regional theatre throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

UK Theatre Awards committee commented: "It has been an extraordinary year of achievement on and off stage in theatres across the UK - this strength and depth is reflected in what is possibly the most diverse range of nominations we have seen for these awards."

In 2010 International Dance Festival Birmingham was awarded a Gold Award in the Heart of England Excellence in Tourism Awards.

The next International Dance Festival Birmingham is planned to take place spring 2016.

DanceXchange (dx) is a power house of dance with excellence, innovation, education and inclusion at its heart - and is part of the largest dance partnership in Britain. dx takes the best British dance to a worldwide stage and brings outstanding artists from across the world to Birmingham. dx is also a producing house; it produces innovative site-specific commissions and large-scale performance events in both professional and community contexts, co-produces a range of touring productions, and develops work for theatres and for outdoor places and unusual spaces. dx also engages people from all backgrounds in healthy dance activity, and nurtures gifted young people to help shape the dance artists of the future.

Birmingham Hippodrome is an independent, not-for-profit, registered charity. The unsubsidised Hurst Street based venue averages over 500,000 visits annually making it the most popular single auditorium in the UK. With no public revenue funding, it is home to Birmingham Royal Ballet and DanceXchange, presents all of Welsh National Opera's repertoire, welcomes the best in international dance, West End and Broadway musicals and is home to the world's biggest Pantomime. Birmingham Hippodrome sells more seats for dance than any other theatre outside London

Birmingham Hippodrome is currently expanding its Creative Programme -- Hippodrome Plus -- building on its successful work in schools and in the community, and with free outdoor performances. With partners including Arts Council England, Birmingham City Council and private funders, the Hippodrome has recently enjoyed co-producing and producing new events including, International Dance Festival Birmingham, The Voyage (for the London 2012 Festival) and Summer in Southside. It is currently producing the 4 Squares Weekender, a weekend of outdoor arts performances in celebration of the opening of the Library of Birmingham on behalf of Birmingham Arts Partnership. Recently Hippodrome Plus presented Minimum Monument a major outdoor installation by Brazilian Artist Néle Azevedo featuring 5,000 ice sculptures as part of the city's World War 1 commemorations.

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