22/09/2026
We were delighted to be approached by the Royal Ballet and Opera's Learning and Participation team to work on the first iteration of their new school’s project The Big Ballet, celebrating storytelling through dance.
RBO Schools reaches over 200,000 children and 10,000 teachers across the UK each year, empowering teachers and inspiring young people through creative experiences in dance, singing and design. Research from RBO Schools’ dance programmes highlights the significant impact that creative, dance-led participation can have on children’s wellbeing, creativity, confidence and engagement with learning. These insights have helped shape The Big Ballet, ensuring that storytelling through dance is both artistically inspiring and accessible to children of all backgrounds and experiences.
From old oak trees in the depths of the Wild Wood, to the grandeur of Toad Hall, to the softness of butterflies dancing past windows, it has been joyful to bring the wider world to life in the virtual 3D realm. We loved collaborating with the wider team to expand the existing world of the Royal Opera House’s seminal production of the Wind in the Willows, directed and choreographed by Will Tuckett.
It was great to see it all come together in the Royal Opera House’s Clore studio, working alongside the Learning and Participation department and a team of exceptionally talented dancers as well as the team at Mountainway Pictures.
To extend the space defined by the props from the original production (designed by The Quays), we used a rear projection screen and commissioned a new window in collaboration with the team at Propworks. The video content design and 2D animation was led by PixelLux’s Creative Director, Nina Dunn, working alongside our Unreal Artist, Simran Kaur Matharu and on site we were supported by our production engineer, Jamie Waters.
We can’t wait to see how this project develops, bringing the work directly to schools across the country in the new year.
Choreography / Creative Direction: Will Tuckett (Olivier Award-winning Choreographer).
Royal Ballet dancers: Harris Bell, Tristan Ian-Massa, Rebecca Stewart, and Tom Whitehead.
Narration: Written by former Children’s Laureate Joseph Coelho, performed by acclaimed actor Ncuti Gatwa.
Music: Score by Martin Ward performed live by the award-winning Chroma Ensemble under West End Musical Director Andy Massey.
Design & Production: Stunning video/projections, costumes, and sets designed by leading Broadway and West End creatives Nina Dunn, Nicky Gillibrand, and the Quay Brothers.
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