25. David Bintley, Birmingham Royal Ballet

David Bintley CBE has been artistic director of Birmingham Royal Ballet for 12 years, having succeeded his mentor, Sir Peter Wright, in 1995.

Born in Huddersfield, he trained at the Royal Ballet School towards the end of a golden era associated with the partnership of Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev and the choreography of Frederick Ashton
and Kenneth MacMillan.

In 1976 he joined Sadler's Wells Royal Ballet (now Birmingham Royal Ballet) and quickly proved an outstanding character dancer, remembered in particular for his performances in the title role of
Petrushka, as Alain, and later Widow Simone in Ashton's La Fille mal gardŽe, Bottom in The Dream, and the Rake in The Rake's Progress.

His early attempts at choreography were encouraged by the company's director, Peter Wright, and he had already created pieces for it by the age of 18.

From 1986 to 1993 he moved from being resident choreographer for Sadler's Wells Royal Ballet to being resident choreographer at Covent Garden. When he left in 1993 to work freelance, seven different
companies round the world immediately commissioned new work from him.

Widely regarded as the chief heir to the English ballet tradition as defined by Ashton and McMillan, Bintley is noted for his range and versatility as a choreographer.

His works for Birmingham Royal Ballet have ranged from ambitious historic dramas like Arthur and Edward II (originally commissioned for Stuttgart Ballet) to popular comedies like Hobson's Choice and dazzling short entertainments like The Nutcracker Sweeties, set to Duke Ellington's reworking of Tchaikovsky.

However, his choreography does not dominate the BRB repertoire.

The ambitious Stravinsky project, for example, reflects the work of a wide range of choreographers and the American tradition, represented by choreographers like Balanchine, Robbins and Tharp, has been extensively explored in BRB programmes.

Bintley has also followed Peter Wright in actively encouraging choreographic talent from within the company.
A great champion of Birmingham and a sceptic of London-centricity, Bintley is also a season-ticket holder at Aston Villa.