THE SHOW goes on for a Leamington based dance-circus troupe after crumbling concrete nearly scuppered its festive performance.
Motionhouse was set to perform its family show Starchitects Save Santa at the Midlands Arts Centre this Christmas until reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) was found in the main theatre.
The theatre has had to be temporarily closed as a result.
The ‘life expired’ concrete, which has been detected in schools, theatres, libraries and many other public buildings up and down the country, was found in isolated sections of the old roof of the theatre.
Widely used from the 1960s through to the 1990s, RAAC could collapse with little or no notice.
There have been several sudden collapses of RAAC roof panels that appeared to be in good condition recently, escalating safety concerns that have been rumbling on for years.
As a result, the dance troupe feared its Christmas show would have to be cancelled but with determination and innovative thinking, both organisations came together to transform the art gallery at MAC into a purpose-built theatre space.
With Santa set to come to town after all, Motionhouse even brought in a 30 foot high Christmas tree to make the theatre space extra festive.
Starchitects Save Santa is a fun, adventurous story that features jaw-dropping dance-circus acrobatics and digital projections.
The show follows the tale of a group of children called the Starchitects, as they blast off on an action filled adventure to save Santa, who has crash-landed on the moon.
The show runs at MAC Birmingham until December 30.
Motionhouse creates full-length productions for theatre touring and for outdoor spaces, festivals and large-scale performance events.
