Ballet Black Double Bill, Barbican Theatre

Ballet Black celebrates international dancers of black and Asian descent, showcasing technique, precision and grace in especially commissioned pieces that appeal to audiences from diverse backgrounds.

Ballet Black was established in 2001 by its British-Trinidadian artistic director Cassa Pancho. While training at the Royal Academy of Dance, Pancho became increasingly distressed by the scarcity of role models available for young aspiring black and Asian dancers.

Consequently, upon graduating Pancho founded Ballet Black 'to provide dancers and students of black and Asian descent with inspiring opportunities in classical ballet.' A great deal of hard work later and this remains her thriving company’s mission today, alongside the aim to bring ballet to a new generation of admirers from all walks of life.

For this latest double bill, British choreographer Cathy Marston, renowned for producing expressive and beautifully crafted work, has created a new narrative ballet.

Devised for all eight of Ballet Black’s artists, the piece is based on Can Themba’s South African fable The Suit.

Completing the evening is a restaging of choreographer Arthur Pita’s A Dream Within a Midsummer Night’s Dream. This compelling piece of dance-theatre was Ballet Black’s first tutu ballet when it premiered in 2014 – and it earned Pita an Olivier Award nomination.

Shakespeare’s comedy is portrayed through a fusion of classical and contemporary movement, performed to an eclectic soundtrack that features Eartha Kitt, Barbra Streisand and Yma Sumac.