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Birmingham Rep in Centenary Square, Birmingham
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Spring 2024 Season Announcement

Today we reveal a host of new productions for our spring 2024 season,  including the World Premiere adaptation of the classic cult comedy film, Withnail and I, and the UK Premiere of Bhangra Nation – A New Musical. This powerful and pulsating new show about competitive Bhangra dancing will run in The House from Sat 17 Feb – Sat 16 Mar 2024.

Other highlights include stage adaptations of film and literature classics, including a further World Premiere, Minority Report, and an inventive adaptation of Blue Beard by Emma Rice’s Wise Children.

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Sean Foley, Artistic Director at The Rep, said;

Spring 2024 promises to build upon The Rep’s stunning success of 2023 . Spitting Image and The Way Old Friends Do received West End transfers, Of Mice and Men was a groundbreaking production, and Sinatra The Musical, brought the style, class and production values of Broadway to Birmingham.

We’re committed to creating the very best theatre at the Rep, and we’re thrilled to join forces with the world-class creative and producing team of Bhangra Nation – A New Musical.. Our three stages will be full of original, exciting theatre for everyone over the coming year, and it’s a personal thrill to be to direct Withnail and I, working with the iconic Bruce Robinson to adapt the script from his original film.”

Bhangra Nation artwork. Image shows the title over a bright pink, cloudy background. The text “Bhangra” is in a curvy font, “Nation” is in a varsity-style font, and “A New Musical” is in cursive. On top of the R in Bhangra is a bright turquoise bhangra turban.
Blue Beard artwork. A close-up of just the head of a person with a bright blue beard and twirled handlebar moustache looking directly down the camera with one eyebrow raised. They have lots of glamorous black and blue make-up on their eyes. They are wearing a white nun’s habit and are in front of a dark blue, slightly pixilated background.
Text reads: 'A Nottingham Playhouse, Birmingham Rep, and Lyric Hammersmith Theatre Co-Production in Association with Simon Friend Entertainment. Minority Report. A Futuristic thriller by David Haig. Based on the short story by Philip K Dick. The artwork shows a woman looking to the side. Edited on the side of her is a woman running with a purple hue behind her.
The Promise artwork. The profile of an old white woman looking away into the distance. She is wearing a denim jacket and a beige scarf. She is in front of a burgundy background. From her hair emerge flowers and birds.

Joining these shows in the line-up for our largest theatre space, The House, are two productions inspired by works of literature set in the past and the future.

Emma Rice’s production of Blue Beard is her beguiling take on the classic fable, while David Haig’s Minority Report breathes new life into sci-fi writer Philip K Dick’s futuristic story.

We also have an incredible line up of shows in our most intimate space, The Door, curated by Associate Director Madeleine Kludje – including a World Premiere co-production with Deafinitely Theatre, The Promise. (Fri 5 – Sat 13 Apr). We look forward to welcoming audiences to enjoy the amazing experience of live theatre.”

Apphia Campbell as Nina Simone. Apphia is wearing a bright orange and green dress and a bright green scarf to tie up her hair. She is singing and smiling.

Alongside brand new productions, The Studio space will stage Black Is The Color Of My Voice, which returns to The Rep by popular demand. Inspired by the incredible story of Nina Simone, this unmissable one-woman show features many of her most iconic songs performed live. (Tue 27 Feb – Sat 2 Mar)

Can Bears Ski? A cartoon of a brown bear cub smiling and wearing an orange jumper. The bear has got blue hearing aids in. The background is yellow tie-dye.

As well as adult theatre, The Door will host Can Bears Ski? (Fri 9 & Sat 10 Feb) a charming production that shows how love and family can help children to overcome a difficult world.

Can Bears Ski? Is based on the book by poet Raymond Antrobus, a Ted Hughes Award-winner, who draws on his own experience as a deaf child in a hearing world.

With so much variety, The Rep Spring 2024 season is one not to miss!

Sukh Ojla, a young South Asian woman with short hair who is wearing a white jumper and gold hoop earrings. She is looking to the side and smiling. She is in front of artwork of an orange beach with the outline of palm trees.
Indigo Giant artwork. The outline of a face within a smudge of bright blue watercolour. Instead of hair, the face has trees and birds growing from it.
Ballet Black: The Waiting Game. Six dancers are in a line leaning into each other. In the front there is a dancer who is sat on a brown suitcase. They are wearing a large grey hat, waistcoat and suit trousers. Behind them are 5 dancers who are all wearing white see-through shirts and black shorts. They all have their hair tied back and are all leaning forward. The dancers are Marie Astrid Mence, Isabela Coracy, Cira Robinson, Sayaka Ichikawa, Jose Alves, Ebony Thomas, Alexander Fadyiro.
A old fashioned typewriter displayed on an orange background. The hands of a person typing are shown. The paper in the typewriter reads 'Discovery Showcase'.
Withnail and I' artwork. The words 'Withnail and I' are scrawled in capitals with a blotchy dark brown fountain pen onto a white piece of paper. The paper is stained with both dried and wet red wine. There is a cork on the paper which says 'By Bruce Robinson. Directed by Sean Foley'. To the left of the title is the handwritten 'we've gone on holiday by mistake'.