BOA Group celebrates a significant anniversary in 2026 - 15 years since its first performing arts academy was opened in Birmingham. Over that time, the school has expanded into three specialist academies, which nurture learning in the Creative, Digital and Performing Arts. Last week, at BOA’s well-equipped, city centre building, the staff and current students presented a showcase of work - reflecting on the past, celebrating the present, and looking to the future.  

The evening began with a celebration of the creative work which has been brought to life at BOA by the current cohort, across disciplines. The building’s ground floor became a pop-up exhibition of projects, with impressive examples of costume design, hair and makeup, and set design, alongside more traditional visual art creations. 

Exploring the exhibition, visitors caught a glimpse of BOA’s cross-pollination of creative arts, and saw how the young people at the academy are invited to explore different disciplines, giving them the opportunity to discover how the skills they are learning can be applied to their future careers.

Led by BOA students, the showcase continued with examples of Performing Arts - impressive vocal, physical theatre, acting and dance performances showed the breadth of performance which is taught at the academy, and gave a potted tour of some of the building’s studios and performance spaces. 

There followed a preview of works created by BOA’s budding filmmakers, who were tasked with creating short films in a variety of genres - the presented compilation of scenes from their films were high quality, and proved that the learners on BOA’s Digital Arts course had understood the assignment. The same can be said for the students working behind the scenes to bring the performances to life - BOA offers pathways which teach technical production skills.

The showcase concluded with an impressive, all-singing, all-dancing performance of Sit Down, You’re Rockin’ the Boat from Guys and Dolls. The evening’s entertainment was a testament to the variety of skills which must combine when working in the creative industries - and that BOA’s students are made well aware of the collaborative nature of this process.

BOA’s CEO, Kate Tague, then took the opportunity to reflect on the academy’s first 15 years, before outlining the strategic plan for the future - a focus on educational excellence, skills and employability, and inclusion and opportunity. 

Born from an ambitious idea - to create a school which provides creative training alongside all the traditional academic studies required for learners aged 14 to 19 - BOA has now expanded to offer three distinct academies, specialising in Creative Arts, Digital Arts and Performing Arts. 

With different ‘pathways’ of education on offer, BOA’s attendees are promised practical skills in conjunction with classroom-based learning, with the aim to set them up for future employability, whether they explore further education or step straight into the world of work. 

Part of the academy’s unique offering is in the creative and industry partnerships which are developed and maintained to enhance the learners’ studies. The student representatives of the filmmaking pathway excitedly explained that they had gained skills working with established directors, and had attended a premiere for a professional film in which they were credited. 

Past students had recorded messages, revealing where their creative careers had taken them after building its foundations at BOA. On a local scale, headteachers from two Birmingham schools gave testimony about the success of drama workshops led by BOA students as part of the academy’s community outreach. The schools representatives were impressed with their own pupils’ increased confidence and social skills - equally evident in the performances by the talented young people who were exhibiting their skills at BOA that evening. 

The ethos of BOA is rooted in nurturing the futures of the attending young people, and in allowing its students to discover who they are, and lay the foundations for a bright and fulfilling career which embraces their potential. As Kate Tague added, ‘talent is everywhere, opportunity is not’ - in the upcoming years, BOA seems determined to provide its learners with that opportunity.

To find out more about BOA Group and explore the courses and pathways on offer, visit the website.