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Oxford Road’s Contact Theatre is officially reopening following £6m transformation
Contact is BACK, and it’s looking better than ever before…
Following its closure in 2018, Oxford Road’s iconic Contact Theatre is officially reopening its doors following a massive £6 million building transformation.
Having established itself back in 1972, Contact has long been a staple part of Manchester’s theatre scene, and has provided a stage for an abundance of budding artists and performers over the years – and now, it’s officially making its long-awaited comeback.
The newly refurbished Contact is returning with a whole host of exciting new facilities under its belt, such as new and improved performance spaces, a purpose-built recording studio for young people’s music projects, a unique health and science development space created in partnership with Wellcome Trust, new offices for artists and cultural organisations to hire, a new and improved public bar and free work and social spaces.
Adrian Lambert
Adrian Lambert
Contact has also secured a partnership with Manchester’s Indian street food icons, Chaat Cart, as well as a number of other exciting new ventures that are yet to be unveiled.
On the theatrical side of things, the theatre’s performance programme will be kicking off in October with Contact Young Company’s Everything All of the Time, a physical and visual journey through a new world, directed by Contact’s Artistic Director, Matt Fenton. Following that, ERGON Theatre will present The Wicked Problem, an immersive performance where audiences will act as the jury in the world’s first ecocide trial.
Mika Onyx-Johnson’s Pink Lemonade is also on the bill, combining original beats, poetry and movement in an explosive autobiographical journey of sexuality, identity and self-discovery. Dibby Theatre and theatre-maker and star of the hit Channel 4 series, It’s a Sin, Nathaniel Hall will present First Time, an award-winning autobiographical show about growing up positive in a negative world.
The Black Pride Manchester Vogue Ball, a collaboration by Contact and House of Ghetto will be hosted in December by the legendary Rikki Beadle-Blair at music venue Gorilla. Contact will also be home to Dick Whittington and his Cat, Eight-Freestyle’s modern, upbeat telling of the classic rags-to-riches story.
Bronwen Sharp
Graham Clayton-Chance
Additional events, shows and exhibitions on the bill include Sisterhood by Speakers Corner Art Director Neesha Tusli Champaneria and photographer Vivek Vadoliya, Come to my Mum’s by Afreena Islam-Wright and Anthology of Joy by The Museum of Half Truths.
Matt Fenton, Chief Executive and Artistic Director at Contact, said on the reopening: “We are overjoyed to be reopening Contact to the public after two years of building works and the challenges of the global pandemic.
“We believe young people deserve the very best resources to create and imagine, and over the last year our new building has been full of early career artists making use of our brilliant new spaces. We have also renewed our vision and mission to reflect the new reality facing our communities, and to ensure all young people are empowered by the arts and creativity.”
For more information, tickets, show times and general updates, head over to the official Contact website and Instagram page.
The full programme listing is as follows:
Everything All of the Time
Wednesday October 6th – Saturday October 9th 2021
Sisterhood
Monday September 27th – Monday December 6th 2021
Open exhibition
Anthology of Joy
Friday October 8th – Saturday October 23rd 2021
Open exhibition
Black Gold Arts Festival
Tuesday october 19th – Friday October 29th 2021
Ergon: The Wicked Problem
Wednesday November 3rd – Saturday November 6th 2021
Pink Lemonade
Tuesday November 23rd – Saturday November 27th 2021
First Time
Tuesday November 30th – Saturday December 4th 2021
House of Ghetto presents The Black Pride Manchester Vogue Ball
Thu December 18th 2021
Dick Whittington and his Amazing Cat
Saturday December 11th 2021 – Monday January 3rd 2022
Queer Contact
Friday February 11th – Saturday February 19th 2022
News News News
Saturday March 5th 2022
The Bread We Break
Thursday March 24th – Thursday March 31st 2022
Frankenstein: How to Create a Monster
Monday May 9th – Saturday May 14th 2022
The Glad Game
Monday May 16th – Tuesday May 17th 2022