David Bintley, CBE

Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...

, is a former English ballet dancer, the current artistic director of the Birmingham Royal Ballet

Birmingham Royal Ballet

Birmingham Royal Ballet is one of the three major ballet companies of the United Kingdom, alongside the Royal Ballet and the English National Ballet....

 and co-artistic director of the New National Theatre Tokyo ballet company.

About

Born in Huddersfield

Huddersfield

Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, Bintley trained professionally in classical ballet at the Royal Ballet School

Royal Ballet School

The Royal Ballet School is one of the most famous classical ballet schools in the world and is the associate school of the Royal Ballet, a leading international ballet company based at the Royal Opera House in London...

 in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

. While training at the school, some of his choreography was seen by Sir Frederick Ashton, founder choreographer and artistic director of The Royal Ballet. In 1976, Bintley was offered a contract to dance with the Sadler's Wells Theatre Ballet, which is known today as the Birmingham Royal Ballet. He received his first commission as a choreographer in 1978, creating the ballet The Outsider for that company. Later in 1985, he was appointed resident choreographer of the Royal Ballet at the Royal Opera House

Royal Opera House

The Royal Opera House is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply "Covent Garden", after a previous use of the site of the opera house's original construction in 1732. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The...

 in Covent Garden

Covent Garden

Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...

. He has subsequently created numerous works for the Royal Ballet, the Birmingham Royal Ballet and as an international guest choreographer. In 1995, he succeeded Sir Peter Wright as artistic director of Birmingham Royal Ballet.

Major Works

• Still Life at the Penguin Cafe
  Still Life at the Penguin Cafe
  Still Life at the Penguin Cafe is the name of a ballet choreographed by David Bintley and featuring music composed by Simon Jeffes, founder of the Penguin Cafe Orchestra. It is also the title of the accompanying album. Geoffrey Richardson co-wrote one of the pieces.The ballet's debut production...
  
  (1988)
• Hobson's choice (1989)
• Edward II
  Edward II (ballet)
  Edward II is a ballet with music by the English composer John McCabe.Commissioned by Stuttgart Ballet, with a narrative conceived by choreographer David Bintley, the ballet largely follows the plot of Christopher Marlowe's play of the same name, rather than the life of the real Edward...
  
  (1995)
• Carmina burana (1995)
• Cyrano (2007)
• E=mc² (2009)
• Cinderella (2010)