The £18m landmark building, located in the city’s historic Cathedral Quarter, opens in April and promises to deliver a jam-packed, diverse and extraordinary programme of events.
Containing two theatres, three art galleries, a dance studio, rehearsal space and a cafe-bar, the impressive venue will present the very best of local and international talent under one roof.
The MAC project is one of many signs of the resurgence of Belfast as a cultural hotspot and has received the support of a range of international artists.
Oscar-winning actress Meryl Streep has lent her support, saying: “The MAC really is an amazing gift for the people of Northern Ireland – more than a building; it´s about the art and the magic that happens inside.”
Star of the Irish Oscar-winning short film The Shore and internationally acclaimed Belfast-born actor, Ciaran Hinds, said: “The MAC encapsulates the dream of having a centre for the arts, dance, drama, music and art, right in the very heart of the city, and it is an extraordinary and very beautiful building.”
The MAC’s first season opens with Titanic (Scenes from the British Wreck Commissioner’s Inquiry, 1912), a play by Owen McCafferty, which is part of Northern Ireland’s NI2012 ‘Your Time, Our Place’ celebrations in 2012.
It is a courtroom drama full of intrigue, bravery and human frailty and coincides with the city’s Titanic Belfast Festival, a fusion of international scale events to mark the centenary of Titanic’s fateful maiden voyage.
At its opening the MAC’s climate controlled galleries will host paintings by L. S. Lowry and William Conor, as well as exhibitions by local film-maker Nicholas Keogh and Dublin artist Maria McKinney.
The programme of events for 2012 spans classic and contemporary music, drama, art and talks by artists and art lovers including Anthony d’Offay, one of the most significant art dealers and philanthropists in the world.
“The MAC will be home to all kinds of exhibitions, blockbuster performances, experimental works and endless goings-on,” says Gillian Mitchell Director of Programmes at the MAC.
“We are urging local people and visitors to Northern Ireland to come and be inspired.”
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