
3 minute read
Factory Fresh
John McGrath, Artistic Director and Chief Executive of Factory International and Manchester International Festival, tells all about the new venue’s debut.

A long time in the making, Factory International, a brand-new cultural space in the heart of Manchester, is set to open in June as the headquarters of the biannual Manchester International Festival (MIF).
exhibition of Yayoi Kusama’s inflatable sculptures will form a centrepiece of the festival and will be the first work to be presented in our new home. You, Me and the Balloons will take over the vast warehouse space, inviting audiences to take an exhilarating journey through Kusama's psychedelic creations. This will be the renowned Japanese contemporary artist’s largest ever immersive environment, featuring works that are over ten metres tall – including giant dolls, spectacular tendrilled landscapes and a vast constellation of polka-dot spheres and is indicative of the kind of creative ambition this new space makes possible.”

John
McGrath,
Artistic
Director
and Chief Executive of both Factory International and Manchester International Festival, explains what exactly makes this venue so special: “This new venue was born out of a festival of world-firsts, a festival of ambitious new works of scale and invention that premiere in Manchester before travelling the world, and the design of the building really speaks to that. Built with flexibility in mind, the building is based around large, open, adaptable spaces that can be constantly reconfigured, enabling artists to develop and create largescale artistic work of a kind not seen anywhere else in the world.”
Factory International begins a new era for MIF, allowing the festival to become more explosive than ever: “The new venue will of course begin a new chapter for the festival, opening up even more opportunities for artists to make their wildest dreams a reality. This year a major
The new venue will of course begin a new chapter for the festival, opening up even more opportunities for artists to make their wildest dreams a reality.”
MIF is only the beginning of the exciting events that are set to take place at the venue: “In October we are looking forward to presenting our official opening production Free Your Mind, a large-scale immersive performance based on The Matrix films presented across the building’s ultra-flexible spaces. This dramatic retelling through dance, music, and visual effects will bring together the visceral movement of Choreographer Kenrick ‘H2O’ Sandy with a powerful score from renowned Composer Michael ‘Mikey J’ Asante, world-leading Designer Es Devlin’s large-scale stage sculptures and the work of the acclaimed
Before having a venue to call its own, MIF has worked with many iconic Manchester venues, including the Manchester Jewish Museum: “It has been one of the many privileges of the festival to work with and take up residency in many of the city’s vibrant cultural spaces from the magnificently refurbished Manchester Central Library to the young people’s castle of curiosity that is Contact, from the Manchester Jewish Museum’s beautifully transformed synagogue which launched its award winning extension at the 2021 festival to the National Football Museum which will make its festival debut this summer.”

Factory International is also working on a range of training programmes designed to inspire the next generation and encourage future creators: “As well as presenting world-class work, we hope also to become a training ground for the next generation of creators. Our ambition through Factory International is to invite younger and upand-coming artists, particularly those most underrepresented, to aspire to scale and try things out. And through the Factory Academy, we are striving to become a major training centre for local people, equipping them with the skills needed for careers in the creative industries and helping to build the technicians, producers and other creative talent that will bring the future to life.
“We are currently working with six artists based in the North, all at pivotal stages in their career, to scale up their ambition through our Factory Fellows programme – providing insight into how we make work with artists. We have also offered ten musicians and music professionals financial and artistic support as part of our Factory Sounds programme. Factory Academy is already delivering a range of training opportunities including paid internships, training academies and work experience programmes. Upcoming initiatives include a Producer Pathways course created which will create 20 learning placements and ten living wage paid apprenticeship roles which will provide unrivalled hands-on access to industry experience, and Future Cultural Leaders, where students will work alongside industry leaders, receiving one-to-one support and mentoring to learn the skills needed to be the cultural leaders of tomorrow.”

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