The beautiful game

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In this pioneering piece, fans of Aston Villa and Birmingham City, united to share their surprising, funny, heartbreaking stories on stage at Birmingham Repertory Theatre.

Following the success of a co-production with the National Theatre of Jeremy Deller’s award-winning We’re Here Because We’re Here, The Birmingham Repertory Theatre commissioned acclaimed French director Mohamed El Khatib for the second show in their Furnace series.

El Khatib explored all aspects of fandom – from friendships formed to partners left behind in a participatory theatre piece for theatre and football fans alike, looking at why ‘the beautiful game’ is just so beautiful. The live show was filmed and a series of interviews with fans was shown online and in football grounds across the region.