BBC announces autumn season of Sunday night performances

The BBC has unveiled a season of Sunday night performances and more to be broadcast and released on BBC iPlayer.

Sophie Fiennes will direct a screen version of Ralph Fiennes’ Four Quartets, which ran in the West End and on tour last year. The show sees Fiennes performing T S Elliot’s seminal piece, which he committed to learning in full during the Covid lockdowns before the production was conceived.

The channel will broadcast the RSC and Birmingham Rep adaptation of Tartuffe, which is running at the venue next month, as well as Shakespeare’s Globe’s production of Twelfth Night with Michelle Terry playing Viola, as well as The Play What I Wrote with Tom Hiddleston.

The series will also see continued episodes of BBC Young Musician, BBC Young Jazz Musician, as well as two productions from award-winning dance company Ballet Black.

The BBC will partner with The Space to create a new production especially for Carlos Acosta’s Birmingham Royal Ballet – a new version of Don Quixote.

A new series announced is titled “The Read” – a series of creative performance readings of iconic British novels, directed by exciting emerging talent.

Suzy Klein, head of Arts and Classical Music TV at the BBC said: “We are immensely proud of the Sunday Night Performance programme since its inception in March of this year, and audiences have enjoyed some of very best that Britain’s cultural powerhouses have to offer.

“I am delighted to continue to champion and support the performing arts across the UK, and showcase great performances across theatre, classical music, jazz, dance and spoken word, every Sunday night throughout the year. As people across the country face tough choices around their finances, we want to bring them the best of British performance from around the UK – giving audiences the best seat in the house, for free.”

Dates for all performances are to be confirmed.

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