West Midlands announce intention to be National Centre for Musical Theatre in UK

A landmark report has been commissioned into establishing the UK’s first National Centre for Musical Theatre in the West Midlands.

Arts Council England, Birmingham City Council, Birmingham City University / Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, Birmingham Hippodrome Theatre Trust and West Midlands Combined Authority will partner to create a business case for a world-leading facility for musical theatre in the UK.

The five partners will work with local, regional and national stakeholders to develop a first-class proposition. This will be informed by a period of consultation with sector and regional partners, as well as examples of international excellence in this field. 

The belief is that Birmingham, as one of the youngest and most diverse cities in Europe, can build an international creative ecology around the art form.

This will stimulate economic growth, provide new employment opportunities for young people from all backgrounds, and help cement the UK’s position as a leader in a thriving international musical theatre market.

Darren Henley, chief executive, Arts Council England said: “The UK has a strong reputation for creating and producing musicals that delight audiences across the country and around the globe.

“Birmingham’s far-sighted plans for a new National Centre for Musical Theatre will help drive the growth of this important art form nationally and internationally, as well as offering the opportunity to nurture the next generation of creative talent in the West Midlands.” 

Musical Theatre is of the one of the most financially buoyant art forms in this country.

Musicals make up 10 per cent of performances across UK theatres, but account for 21 per cent of tickets sold and 25 per cent of revenue.

In the West End, musicals make up 51 per cent of performances and account for over 60 per cent of tickets sold and 61 per cent of revenue (c.£250m).

A National Centre for Musical Theatre would grow skills and training to help to fill the national industry skills gap whilst creating opportunities for young people from the region.

It would further enhance the West Midlands as an exciting location to live and work as an artist and create a new cultural destination for the region.

With Mercury Musical Developments and Musical Theatre Network both located in Birmingham, the partnership has a strong network of regional expertise to draw on.

West Midlands mayor Richard Parker (pictured) said: “Musical innovation is in the DNA of the West Midlands.

“From pioneering heavy metal bands like Black Sabbath to the multi-cultural Two Tone movement, our impact on music has been global. Even our greatest TV export, Peaky Blinders, is now a stage musical so I can't think of a better place to have a National Centre for Musical Theatre.

“We need to unleash and nurture the enormous talent we have in the West Midlands by providing the training opportunities local people need to land jobs in our growing creative sector. Having a musical theatre centre located here will help support that ambition.”

The partners include Birmingham Hippodrome and the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. Birmingham Hippodrome has recently set up the UK’s first venue-based department for New Musical Theatre, committed to creating opportunities for musical theatre talent from the across the UK.

The Royal Birmingham Conservatoire Acting School is one of the UK’s highest ranked courses, and this collaboration will see them look to create a dedicated musical theatre course.