Barbican Arts Centre
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The Barbican Arts Centre opened in 1982, after a long and at times painful gestation which dated right back to the area having been badly bombed during World War II. The Barbican is owned, funded and managed by the City of London, the third largest funder of the arts in the UK. It was built as 'the City's gift to the nation' at an historical capital cost of £161 million, equivalent to almost £400 million today.
Situated in the heart of the City of London, UK, in the Barbican Estate, it contains several different facilities.
The Barbican Centre was also voted "London's ugliest building" according to a BBC poll in September 2003. [link]
Performance halls and facilities
- Barbican Hall, a 1,950 seat concert hall, noted for its warm acoustics. It is the home of the London Symphony Orchestra
- Barbican Theatre, a 1,166 seat theatre.
- The Pit, a flexible 200-seat theatre venue.
- Barbican Art Gallery and the smaller horseshoe shaped, Curve.
- Barbican Cinema, 3 cinemas seating 288, 255 and 155 people.
- Informal performance spaces.
- 3 Restaurants.
- 7 Conference and 2 Trade Exhibition facilities.
Outside, its main focal point is the lake and its neighbouring terrace. The fly tower of the theatre has been surrounded by glass and made into a spectacular high-level conservatory. The Barbican Hall is noted for its attractive warm acoustic.
Until recently it was the London home of the Royal Shakespeare Company. It also stages a wide range of performances by visiting theatre and dance companies.
The centre was designed with a complex multi-level layout, making circulation difficult. Efforts have been made since the mid-1990's to improve signage and an internal bridge has been added linking the Silk Street foyer area with the lakeside foyer area. In 2005 work began on providing a more generous pedestrian entrance from Silk Street, which had previously been dominated by an entrance for vehicles.
The Museum of London is close by.
See also
External links
- [The centre's home page]
- [The history of the Barbican Estate]
- ["Good Old Barbican"] - an opinion piece from The Guardian newspaper
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