Thursday, 29 Sep 2011
Image – a guide to the performing arts brochure
Performing arts
The performing arts is one of the largest and most diverse sectors in the UK creative industries, with players ranging from large commercial organisations to micro-businesses.
The UK is known internationally for the presentation of professional performance, including theatre, stand-up comedy, live literature, musicals, opera, classical music, dance and ballet, hip-hop, street performances, carnival and circus. London, in particular, is a world leader in this field, offering over 200 events every day.
Innovative UK talent performs across the globe. Large-scale UK musicals such as Les Misérables, Phantom of the Opera, Billy Elliot and Mamma Mia, to name just a few, have been seen live by millions of people worldwide, winning multiple awards, while UK dramatic productions often go on to enjoy successful runs on Broadway.
UK stage actors, directors, producers and playwrights are regular recipients of prestigious international awards. UK talent, shone, for example, at the 2011 Tony Awards, with National Theatre production War Horse winning all five prizes it was nominated for - including Best Play and Best Director - and Britain's Mark Rylance winning Best Actor for his role in Jerusalem - his second Tony in three years.
Much of the UK’s expertise in this sector is nurtured in its wide range of world-class institutions for performance art education and training. Attracting students from all over the globe, they produce not only the performers, directors and choreographers who provide the core of the UK’s creative offer, but also train the stage managers, technicians and project managers that enable their vision.
Great international performers and productions frequently come to the UK, attracted not only by the country’s strong historic traditions in the performing arts, but also by its increasing use of creative industry techniques and digital technology and its status as a breeding ground for new performance work.
UK performing arts organisations are constantly forging and reinforcing relationships with their counterparts around the world. Similarly, UK artists regularly collaborate with international peers.
The sector is also exporting its skills and experience in the design and construction of cutting-edge venues and production facilities. The UK has seen an unprecedented investment in new, often iconic, performing arts buildings and hardware in recent years.
As a result, there is a generation of CEOs, project managers, designers and architects in the UK that offers expertise in developing and delivering such facilities. Many of them are now taking on advisory roles and winning contracts around the world.