Music / News
Bristol Beacon reveal reopening date and first shows
Bristol Beacon will be “inviting all of our city’s communities” inside the refurbished venue as it gets ready to once again swing open its doors.
The official reopening date is now in the diary for the big reveal of brand new performance spaces including the 2,000-capacity Beacon Hall, the-500 capacity Lantern Hall and the brand new 200-capacity cellar.
The historic cellar will officially be known as the Weston Cellar thanks to funding from the Garfield Weston Foundation, which also helped fund the Weston Studio at the Bristol old Vic.
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November 30 is the reopening day, with the full reopening programme set to be announced later this year.
Some of the first musicians performing in the transformed venue will be This is the Kit, Sophie Ellis-Bextor and Penguin Cafe Orchestra, as well as comedians John Robins and Ross Noble.
The venue will also host the return of Simple Things, with festival co-founder Thomas Frost saying that “the reopening of Bristol Beacon is one of the most significant moments for the city and it will be great to be back at our spiritual home for our tenth edition”.
The Bristol Beacon has come in for criticism for its spiralling costs, with the total cost of the refurbishment coming to £131.9m with Bristol City Council’s contribution likely to be £83.9m – more than eight times the original estimate.
Chief executive Louise Mitchell says that she and her team are now “delighted to be able finally to confirm the reopening date”.
Mitchell said: “The team are busy putting the finishing touches to our opening season, where we will be showcasing a number of commissions and UK premieres, and inviting all of our city’s communities into the Beacon to explore the new spaces, celebrating creativity and inclusivity in a way that only Bristol can.
“In the meantime, we’re delighted to announce we’ll be welcoming back some fantastic artists and festivals and put our first tickets on sale.”
Main photo: Bristol Beacon
Read next:
- Rees defends escalating costs of Bristol Beacon revamp
- ‘We need an inquiry into the cost of refurbishing Bristol Beacon’
- ‘The saga of Bristol Beacon is a lesson in how not to invest in arts and culture’
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