Celestial vision: Birmingham Royal Ballet dance Will Tuckett’s Lazuli Sky
Credit: Johan Persson
A couple of months ago, the choreographer Will Tuckett was lamenting the fate that befell British dance for so much of 2020. Then, he added: “Artists will make art, however, that finds its way through. It’s like having a leak – artists are like having bad plumbing, in that they will always find the smallest crack.”
Was he right? For at least half of 2020, no amount of optimism or ingenuity could mask the fact that live dance – one of the jewels in this country’s cultural crown – had ceased to exist. Forced to distance themselves, dancers nationwide fought desperately in their kitchens and bedrooms to keep muscles toned, tendons long and technique strong, using anything from a dining table to the family moggy as a barre.