A city centre arts venue will finally re-open its doors in October after a multimillion-pound makeover and rebranding.
The former Kala Sangam in Little Germany will become Bradford Arts Centre when it relaunches on October 8.
Based in a Grade II listed building on Church Bank, the arts centre closed in late 2023 to allow for the refurbishment.
When the venue reopens it will be completely transformed, with a new theatre, studio space and art installations.
Founded in 1993, Kala Sangam had been based in the former Post Office building St Peter’s House since 2008.
Much of the venue was limited to the upper floors of the grand building, making access difficult.
Now the centre will be spread out across more of the building, with better access from street level.
The £7.9m refurbishment project is supported by the Department for Media, Culture and Sport through the Arts Council England administered Cultural Development Fund, The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Garfield Weston Foundation, Foyle Foundation and Bradford Council.
The organisation said the venue has been renamed “to represent the city and be open to all.”
The modernised building will feature a 170-seat theatre, five purpose-built rehearsal studios, four meeting rooms, a conference venue, office space for creative businesses, and a new home for BCB Radio.
When it re-opens it will be the only centre in the North of England offering free performance studio space alongside tailored, one-to-one support for artists.
Three new commissioned artworks by Bradford-based artists have been installed in the new building. Razwan Ul-Haq worked with the staff team to develop a new piece of calligraphy, ‘Bradford Symphony No 8’, using tinctures made from the bricks of the building itself.
Turbynes (Rosie Freeman and Marf Keane) have created a new soundscape incorporating materials from Bradford Arts Centre’s 30-year archive, reflecting on the history and life of the building, and Eve Wright, a final-year student from Bradford College, has created a sculpture.
A series of artworks created as part of the Arts and Heritage Community Project with members of the u3a and Womenzone community groups will be displayed throughout the building.
Marie O’Reilly, Interim Chair, Bradford Arts Centre Board, said: “We want Bradford Arts Centre to be a place where everything is possible and everyone is welcome to come in – whether it is to join a Bollywood dance class, meet up, explore the building or devise your next performance artwork.”
Alex Croft, CEO, Bradford Arts Centre, said: “After eight years of hard work, planning and construction, I genuinely can’t wait to throw the doors of Bradford Arts Centre open this autumn. I hope that it means as much to the artists and communities of Bradford as it does to our staff team and founders.”
By: Chris Young, LDRS