A NEW CANVAS FOR MUSIC
VENUE IS SET TO OPEN IN CITY-CENTRE DEVELOPMENT
WITH gigs still crossed out on the calendar for the foreseeable future, Manchester’s music scene has taken a heavy hit from the coronavirus crisis. Gorilla and The Deaf Institute teetered on the brink of closure before being saved last month, and Band on the Wall has had to lay off 26 people after what they described as ‘the biggest crisis in our history’ forced them to shut in order to bring forward previously-planned renovation work.
But there are still promising signs of confidence in the sector as plans for a brand new live music venue in the city are revealed.
Canvas Manchester is set to open in the new Circle Square development off Oxford Road next year, subject to planning permission.
Launched by BeSixth, who run East London venues The Pickle Factory and Oval Space, the 400-capacity basement venue will host a bi-weekly gig and club programme alongside events including health and wellbeing sessions, social activism, networking and workshops. Above it will be a ground floor restaurant, Canvas Kitchen, seating 100 people and open to the public from 7am to 4am every day, and a ‘unique and affordable’ members’ lounge, Canvas Club.
BeSixth said Manchester was the natural choice for its first foray outside the capital, as the second most popular region for music tourists in the UK - attracting more than 1.3 million gig goers in 2019.
Chairman Dean James said: “With Canvas Manchester we want to introduce a brand new lifestyle concept that will bring people together and offer something new and exciting to those living and working in the city.
“I think people in Manchester understand that we are going to get through this pandemic, we’re going to get back on our feet and the city is going to get back on its feet.
“With its people, a rich and diverse cultural scene, Manchester was always going to be the first city we said yes to when we decided to invest outside of London but we didn’t think we would find anything like the site at Circle Square.”
Located in Manchester’s university heartland, the new Circle Square residential, commercial and leisure development is a joint venture between Bruntwood SciTech and Vita Group.
It will include a new 5.7 acre public park, Symphony Park, which will also host live music, theatre and other arts and cultural events.
Tom Renn, managing director at Bruntwood SciTech, said: “Our ambition for Circle Square was always to create a destination - a place that would bring people together morning, day and night and a place that would become part of the fabric of the city. Somewhere tourists and innovators would see as a must-visit when coming to Manchester.
“With a cluster of over 40 digital and tech businesses, an incredible collection of indie retail and social dining operators at Hatch and with Manchester’s newest outdoor event space Symphony Park, we are starting to see the neighbourhood develop at a pace never seen before in a new neighbourhood in Manchester.
“Canvas Manchester is another step change for Circle Square. The commitment from BeSixth to move this forward is both a nod to Manchester’s rich history and is a sign of confidence in our city’s future cultural scene.
“The live music industry has understandably suffered as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, but where better to drive its resurgence than in the city that thinks a table is for dancing on?”