Barbican announces January - April 2022 Theatre and Dance Programme

The Barbican today announces its 2022 Theatre and Dance programme, from January to April. Tickets go on sale to Principal Patrons and Barbican Patrons today, to Barbican Members Plus on Thursday 28 October, to Barbican Members on Friday 29 October and on general sale from Monday 1 November 2021.

Toni Racklin, Head of Theatre and Dance at the Barbican said: "We're so pleased to announce the return of our international performances as part of the Theatre and Dance programme at the Barbican in 2022. We're thrilled to welcome back our friends at London International Mime Festival, who bring four shows to our stages, and to welcome back our Artistic Associate, Boy Blue, and regular, Ballet Black. Belarus Free Theatre perform on our stage for the first time in a highly anticipated new production, and Barbican Theatre Open Lab alumni, The PappyShow, also appear in two of our venues for the first time. From family-friendly performances to a late-night party for the over 18s, there's something to suit all tastes this spring and we look forward to audiences joining us for this exciting array of productions."

Whilst the RSC's The Comedy of Errors continues in the Theatre, 2021 ends with the Barbican co-commission of First Light by UK-based theatre artists Daniel Naddafy and Marty Langthorne. This enthralling world premiere is an immersive, intimate experience that explores the wonders of sensory development in early childhood.

The Theatre and Dance programme's online offer continues as the inimitable Taylor Mac from the USA turns festive traditions on their head with the cathartic Holiday Sauce... Booster! in the run up to Christmas.

London International Mime Festival 2022 returns to kick-off the new year with four shows at the Barbican. In the Theatre, Compagnie 111 returns with aSH, a piece by French theatre director Aurélien Bory for Indian performer Shantala Shivalingappa which completes Bory's trilogy of large-scale solos for female dancers. This is followed by Interiors, from one of Scotland's foremost theatre companies Vanishing Point. This internationally acclaimed production is inspired by Nobel Prize winner Maurice Maeterlinck's classic play, Interior. In The Pit UK-based Thick & Tight make their Barbican debut with Short & Sweet - a thoroughly modern variety show of nine new works including a preview of a Japanese Noh theatre-inspired piece. Following this is the UK premiere of Stellaire by French company Stereoptik - a handmade mini-spectacle using paper, chalk, charcoal, sand, silhouettes and projection to tell an enchanting tale of astral romance.

Barbican Theatre Open Lab alumni The PappyShow bring two performances to the Barbican. First is their Pit Party - two joyous evenings of physical theatre, music and fun celebrating inclusivity. The following month, this playful theatre ensemble performs their award-winning production of BOYS in Silk Street Theatre. The show has been created in response to ideas of British masculinity and sees a 10-strong cast dive headfirst into the experiences of being a man.

Barbican Artistic Associate Boy Blue returns to the Theatre with their biennial showcase, A Night with Boy Blue, hosted by Michael 'Mikey J' Asante and Kenrick 'H2O' Sandy. These performances mark the company's 21st birthday in 2022 and assemble the entire company from the youngest pupils to professional dancers. After Saturday's performance, over 18s are invited to dance the night away until late at the BSI Jam: Beats, Streets & Inspiration - After Party in the Barbican foyer.

One of the world's bravest theatre companies, Belarus Free Theatre, brings a visceral, psychological drama to the Theatre, which depicts a future dystopian super-state in which individual rights have given way to control. This UK premiere and Barbican co-commission is based on a novel by Alhierd Bacharevic - now banned in Belarus - about the dangers of ignoring the onset of authoritarianism.

Celebrating their 20th anniversary, Cassa Pancho's Ballet Black debut an outstanding double bill in the Theatre with new work by South African choreographer Gregory Maqoma, co-commissioned by the Barbican, and score by Boy Blue co-artistic director Michael 'Mikey J' Asante, and a new ballet directed by Cassa Pancho, featuring choreography by the artists of Ballet Black.