save the date

25 January 2010

The wait is over. The team at mac and sampad are delighted to announce that the centre will be opening its doors on 1 May 2010. After two years of hard work, and a £15m expansion and refurbishment project the centre will be unveiled over May Bank Holiday Weekend with shows and performances, and plenty of free  activities to encourage visitors to explore the dynamic spaces within the new building

The original buildings, developed in the sixties, have been re-imagined as a totally integrated centre with new spaces embracing and enhancing existing, refurbished spaces. New spaces include a purpose designed gallery, a first for mac, creating opportunities to maximise the commissioning of work by leading national and international visual artists, craft makers and performance artists.

The theatre has been completely stripped out allowing the team to replace plant and specialist equipment, replace seating - increasing capacity and ensure the space is flexible for an even wider range of events and activities. A brand new performing arts studio has also been equipped for rehearsal, theatre, dance making and performance with retractable seating for almost 150 people.

With a thorough refurbishment of existing visual arts and performing arts studios there has also been a significant increase in studio spaces. In particular, the addition of a dedicated visual and audio media studio complete with capacity for live capture and transmission to and from any other space in the wifi enabled building, the arts centre has been brought right up to date. Accessibility has been a core mac value since it first opened its doors and physical accessibility was a real challenge. From the new access pedestrian bridge to passenger lift access throughout and a new central concourse connecting all parts of the building, the arts centre is finally fully accessible to everyone.

Highlights over the opening weekend include the grand finale of The City Sings by Helen Ottaway, a new anthem developed in celebration of mac’s re-opening, performances by Misty’s Big Adventure and Vijay Kishore, whilst sampad present Janavak, a folk dance group from Ahmedabad. In addition, there will be guided tours around the building, a variety of workshops, audio trails as part of the Amplifying the Map project, DJs and much more.

Dorothy Wilson, Chief Executive at mac said: “We want everyone to make sure they save the date, over ten years in the making, the Building Project has created a dynamic and exciting arts centre that offers vastly improved spaces for audiences and artists alike, I can’t wait to show people around on May Bank Holiday Weekend.”