The International Dance Festival Birmingham (IDFB) is currently being held in the city for the third time. Produced by DanceXchange and Birmingham Hippodrome, IDFB is a four-week festival bringing great dance to venues and public spaces across Birmingham and the West Midlands.
IDFB is offering many exciting performances but there is one particular event we would like to draw your attention to:
On Wednesday, 16 May, at 9.30 pm there will be an outdoor performance of Wings of Desire in Victoria Square. It is inspired by Wim Wenders’ celebrated 1987 film.
Considered by many to be his masterpiece, Wings of Desire is set in pre-unification Berlin and tells the powerful story of a divided city inhabitated by people suffering from the modern condition and trying to find happiness in their everyday lives. They are watched over by angels who see the passing of time and try to relieve human suffering.
The German title “Der Himmel über Berlin” (The heavenly skies above Berlin) tries to capture this better than the English translation.
Stylishly clad in dark overcoats, these invisible messengers of God are disenchanted with human history and their own limited capability to ease people’s anxieties. They are removed from the city and only see the world in black and white.
But colours burst onto the screen when angel Damiel (played by Bruno Ganz who demonstrated his incredible versatility as an actor by moving from playing an angel in Wenders’ film to incorporating Adolf Hitler in the internationally successful “The Downfall” (Der Untergang) in 2004) falls in love with a melancholic trapeze artist and decides to become human to live with her.
This exciting adaptation will form the IDFB’s spectacular finale, featuring Australia’s world famous CIRCA, Britain’s urban 2Faced Dance Company, interactive performance experts seeper and starring internationally-renowned DJ, film and TV star Goldie.
And the best thing: IT IS FREE! No need to book tickets, just turn up on the night and be amazed!
But there’s more: For those of you who have never seen Wenders’ visually stunning original there is a chance to see this cinematic masterpiece at the Electric Cinema in a matinee performance on Sunday, 13 May at 2.30pm.
Experience German at Aston University 