mac birmingham re-opened just over a year ago – and since then has proved that it’s bigger and better than ever before, continuing its long-standing tradition of providing arts for all.
In the 12 months following mac birmingham’s hugely successful opening weekend in May last year, mac birmingham welcomed 850,000 visitors to hundreds of performances, film screenings, courses and free arts activities, as well as 8 free exhibitions. This is a remarkable 69% increase on its last year of trading.
mac birmingham is continuing to provide a vital platform for the people of Birmingham to access the arts, with 68% of attenders coming from across the city. It attracts 22% of its visitors from Black and Minority Ethnic backgrounds and 35% are children or young people. The scope of mac birmingham’s artistic programme appeals to a wide range of people and its team are committed to developing arts appreciation amongst groups who might not feel the arts are for them.
mac birmingham has recently completed a five-year appointment as Arts Champion for Hodge Hill where, statistically, most householders aren’t likely to engage with the arts. The project allowed people living there to see the benefits of the arts and has led to a rise in arts activity in the area and in people from Hodge Hill visiting mac birmingham. The arts centre is now embarking on a new Arts Champion position in Yardley where it looks forward to encouraging more communities to experience the arts.
Now approaching its 50th birthday, mac birmingham is more than just a venue for performances, screenings and exhibitions – it has a long history of developing talent. The centre now has more space – two additional performance studios, a new gallery, increased conference and meeting rooms and increased and enhanced public facilities. As a result, mac birmingham is now offering more opportunities than ever before to support artists in the region. mac birmingham is also continuing to develop closer relationships with the artistic community, locally and nationally, having provided 800 hours of support for 900 artists in kind, at a value of £125,000 over the last year.
Since mac birmingham opened in 1962, it has played a part in establishing the careers of many well-known names, including actor Adrian Lester, film director Mike Leigh and actor, writer and presenter Tony Robinson.
Dorothy Wilson MBE, Chief Executive and Artistic Director comments, “mac birmingham is a gateway connecting people with the arts. Our strengths are in providing space and support for emerging and evolving artists, and in removing barriers to encourage participation for new arts attenders. Our open access ethos means keeping our prices within reach and our artistic product diverse whilst maintaining high quality. mac birmingham is genuinely for everyone.
With nearly 50 years of creative impact on the West Midlands region and far beyond, mac birmingham continues to move beyond the boundaries of convention; an artistic innovator, a hub of international creativity and perhaps most importantly, a truly accessible connection to culture.”
Between May 2010 and May 2011 mac birmingham provided:
548 performances in dance, drama, music, comedy and spoken word
8 free exhibitions
754 film screenings
831 courses and workshops
183 free arts activities*
800 hours of support to artists making work at mac birmingham
Nearly 7000 hours of commercial hires
*30,000 attenders/participants
