Take a glimpse at Manchester’s new ‘Factory’

It’s been announced today that Factory, the ambitious new arts and theatre centre to be run by Manchester International Festival, has been granted planning approval by Manchester City Council, with construction likely to begin in the spring.

Scheduled to open in 2020, The Factory will be a permanent new home for the biennial Manchester International Festival, but the new venue also promises year-round programming and access to a broad range of art forms and cultural experiences – including dance, theatre, music, opera, visual arts, spoken word, popular culture and innovative contemporary work incorporating multiple media and technologies. “Artists from across the world will be invited to create new work in the building’s extraordinary spaces,” reads the announcement.

Responsibility for delivering this year-round programming falls to Mark Ball, who’s currently Artistic Director of London theatre festival LIFT. From June, Ball joins MIF as Associate Artistic Director to focus on creation and delivery of the Factory programme, and the new role will see him working closely with John McGrath, MIF’s new artistic director, to “create a unified artistic vision for the venue and the festival.”

“I have been a huge admirer of Mark’s vision as a producer and programmer since his early days at Fierce Festival,” said McGrath, “and it has been inspiring to see his extraordinary achievements at LIFT. I can’t imagine a better person to join MIF at this key moment in its history, and to ensure an exceptional, international programme of work at Factory.”

Ball calls Factory “undoubtedly the most exciting and ambitious new cultural space in the country.” The new £110m venue will be at the heart of the new St. John's neighbourhood, which is being developed on the site of the former Granada TV Studios on the bank of the River Irwell. “Over the next few years I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work alongside John and the team at MIF,” adds Ball, “and with some of Manchester's and the world’s most brilliant artists and organisations to help make unforgettable, joyful and exceptional art.”

For Richard Leese, Leader of Manchester City Council, Factory will be “the key to unlocking a wealth of new cultural opportunities in the city for audiences and arts practitioners, and also to massive economic gain for Manchester and the wider region. Factory isn't going to just transform this unused corner of the city centre, it's going to further transform the way we see the world, and the way the world sees Manchester."

Take look at the gallery above showing the first images from Office for Metropolitan Architecture, the world-leading architects leading the project, depicting what Factory might look like when it's constructed.

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MIF takes place at various venues across Manchester 29 Jun-16 Jul

For more information on MIF, keep an eye on theskinny.co.uk/festivals/uk-festivals