Southampton’s newest art venues open their doors next Friday (16th February), with an exciting range of events on offer.
The John Hansard Gallery and City Eye are moving permanently to the new Studio 144 complex in Guildhall Square, while Nuffield Southampton Theatres are opening a whole new premises, NST City, to operate alongside their campus space (now known as ‘NST Campus’).
“Southampton Celebrates” kicks off on the Friday and will run until 24th February, and aims to promote the venues to all ages and audiences across the city. The Friday evening starts at 6.15pm and will see Zoielogic Dance Group – now based within the new NST City building – perform a spectacular routine featuring 130 dancers from Southampton community. The night will conclude with a firework display.
On the Saturday, all venues are open for the public to explore, with NST City offering a look behind-the-scenes of their upcoming production, The Shadow Factory. Taster events include:
- Exhibitions at the John Hansard Gallery (all day)
- A Chinese lion dance at John Hansard (11am–11.30am)
- Family filmmaking experiences with City Eye (11am–5pm)
- Family activities with the ‘Wardrobe Ensemble’ at NST City (11am–3.30pm)
- A look at the City Eve Archives (11am–3pm)
- An exhibition on The Shadow Factory at NST City (11am–4pm)
- ‘An Ode To You’ performance poetry event at NST City (12–5pm)
- Performance from poet and playwright Inua Ellams at NST City (2pm–4pm)
There is also a Writers in Conversation with Paul McVeigh at John Hansard on Monday 19th February, and an Entropics workshop (organised by the University of Southampton English Department) on Wednesday 21st. The Shadow Factory – written by Howard Brenton and starring Anita Dobson and Lorna Fitzgerald – runs from Wednesday 7th February to Saturday 3rd March at NST City.
More information on “Southampton Celebrates” is available via Arts at University of Southampton.
Check back in a few days for The Edge‘s sneak peak at Southampton’s new art venues!
