Birmingham Royal Ballet

In 1653 the 14-year-old Louis XIV of France danced the role of Apollo the sun god in Le Ballet de la Nuit, and earned himself forever the soubriquet the Sun King. In The King Dances, David Bintley re-imagines the very beginnings of ballet, when men were quite literally, the kings of dance.

In Carmina burana, the first ballet Bintley created for the Company as Director, an encounter with the mind-blowing Goddess Fortuna deals three seminarians a major lesson in the fickle nature of fate. Compelled to abandon their sacred studies to pursue a more sensual approach to life, forbidden pleasures and physical temptations quickly become the young men’s most eager areas of revision. Soon the young celebrants are soaring with passion, love and alcohol.

Carmina burana is a thrilling, large-scale production, danced to Carl Orff’s dramatic and emotionally charged choral music, for which the Royal Ballet Sinfonia are joined by Birmingham’s Ex Cathedra. Inspired by the satirical writings of medieval priests, Orff’s rousing choral tour de force is a feast in its own right. Bintley’s breathtaking choreography ensures an unforgettable experience that has been astonishing and delighting audiences for nearly 20 years.