Contact Theatre Reimagined

Contact is a theatre, arts venue and registered charity in Manchester that provides creative opportunities, programmes and projects for young people, aged 13 to 30. Over the last year I have been involved on an ongoing voluntary basis in the decision-making process ahead of the major expansion and re-design of the Contact building. During this process, I met with Sheppard Robson, (the architectural and interior design practice behind the refurbishment), as well as the staff at Contact, to discuss the design proposals. As a student who was within the target age group and someone with design experience, my feedback was used to help inform the design choices.

Now closed for the renovation, Contact is scheduled to re-open to the public in 2019. There are many additions and changes planned, including new performance spaces, new offices, a recording studio for music projects, an arts and health development space and a café/bar. It is expected that these additions and modifications will increase the range and number of creative opportunities offered to young people in Manchester by providing more space and better facilities. It is also hoped that the re-design will strengthen Contact’s financial situation whilst reducing the buildings environmental footprint.

With plans to both improve access to the building and its visibility from the road, the redevelopment should also increase public awareness of Contact and get the company more recognition and visitors. The buildings frontage was discussed in the design meetings at some length. To me, changing the buildings facade seemed especially necessary as, whilst aesthetically eye-catching, the building is set back off the road and there is little signage to tempt in passers by. The buildings exterior is especially striking, with nine roof levels and clusters of towering H shaped chimney pots. These unusual architectural elements are surprisingly practical, as they are part of an elaborate ventilation system. However, this industrial facade is confusing and uninviting, with some people even telling Contact that they initially mistook the building for a factory and others saying they thought it was a prison. I particularly supported the idea that the café/bar should have a more visible presence from the road by replacing a large amount of the front wall with glazing.

Entrance to Contact Theatre, Oxford Rd, Manchester.

There was some tension in the design process between the desire to modernise the space whilst preserving the buildings distinctiveness. Prior to the re-design, the interior of Contact was extremely bold and bright, with black and purple checked floors throughout, walls painted in orange, yellow and purple and columns painted in metallic silver. Many described this interior style as garish and outdated, but others saw this loud decor style as being intrinsic to Contact’s brand identity. Ultimately, the decision was made to keep one feature orange wall that followed a large curved staircase, whilst neutralising the colour scheme elsewhere in the building. It was hoped that this would make the building appear more sophisticated, modern and light without entirely changing its identity.

As an aspiring interior designer, being actively involved in Contact’s redevelopment project was interesting and I feel that I learnt a lot from the process. I enjoyed working in an interdisciplinary environment, alongside staff from Sheppard Robson and Contact, and the young people who are part of the theatre community there. On reflection, I feel that we all learnt from each other and combined our knowledge and opinions to come up with a great design scheme. However, with the benefit of hindsight I think that the design pitch was rather narrow, presenting ideas to be agreed rather than seeking alternatives.