Into the Light: Pioneers of Black British Ballet has been hailed as a “game-changer” as it heads to its final venues next month.

Funded by a £245,500 grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the project has brought together archive photography, film, newspaper articles and posters alongside original video and audio interviews to trace the history of Black British ballet from the 1940s to the present day.

The exhibition is based on the research of Dr Sandie Bourne, a dancer, choreographer and academic specialising in the historic under-representation of Black artists in British ballet institutions. It has been accompanied by an exciting programme of performances and creative engagement, including Island Movements, an original Windrush-themed ballet, plus dance, writing and photography workshops, panel discussions, and a virtual exhibition by Birmingham Open Media, featuring a motion-capture ballet performance. 

The initiative has toured 29 libraries and delivered over 170 activities nationwide since its launch in October last year in Stockport and Redbridge. It is currently being hosted by North Lincolnshire and Suffolk libraries and its final stops will be in North Yorkshire and Buckinghamshire library services next month. Since launching, an estimated 80,000 people have attended the exhibition and activity programme. Demand has been so strong that additional libraries beyond the original tour have requested to host the exhibition.

Marsha Lowe, Director of Oxygen Arts, said:

“We have travelled the country over the past year, taking our dancers and their stories to communities in libraries all over England. We’ve had a fantastic response from families, schoolchildren and the public at large who have responded to their stories so strongly. We are incredibly grateful to Libraries Connected for delivering such an amazing group of libraries and to the Heritage Fund for making this all possible.”

Stuart McLeod, Director of England - London & South at The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said:

“We’re proud to support Into the Light: Pioneers of Black British Ballet, a project that shines a spotlight on the remarkable contributions of Black dancers to British ballet. Thanks to National Lottery players, this touring exhibition has reached tens of thousands of people, inspiring new conversations and sharing the unique stories.”

Isobel Hunter MBE, Chief Executive of Libraries Connected, said:

“Public libraries offered the perfect stage for this game-changing project. It was a privilege to celebrate the brilliance of Black British ballet dancers and to see their legacies resonate so powerfully with audiences. Not only has this been a hugely successful project in its own right, it also provides a model for future touring projects on all kinds of themes.”

Kelly Saini Badwal, chair of the Black British Ballet project board for Libraries Connected, said:

“Chairing the Black British Ballet programme, funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, has been both a passion and a privilege. I discovered the incredible stories of our pioneering Black dancers and their journeys - the struggles, the discrimination and their determination to succeed has left me feeling both humbled and inspired. Working through libraries meant we could bring those stories to a large and diverse audience, giving us the opportunity to celebrate and capture this amazing part of British cultural heritage.”

The Black British Ballet project was funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, Paul Hamlyn Foundation, Arts Council England, the former Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities’ Windrush Day Fund and the Black Funding Network. It was delivered in partnership with English National Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet, The Royal Ballet, Royal Academy of Dance, Dance Theatre of Harlem and Central School of Ballet, Kidbrooke Community Hub and Libraries Connected.