West Kowloon Cultural District to top out Freespace

The West Kowloon Cultural District Authority (WKCDA) is pleased to announce the topping out of Freespace, the new Black Box theatre located in the heart of the Art Park, where visitors will be able to immerse themselves in the new artistic experiences to be offered and be inspired by a wide variety of innovative programmes across all genres.
 

Designed by DLN and West 8 and ACLA, Freespace includes a theatre with a capacity of 450 audience seated to 900 standing with a flexible seating arrangement. Freespace will also serve an adjacent outdoor stage area designed for open-air performances of music, dance, art exhibition, film screeninsg and other activities for up to 10,000 people. There is also a foyer where live music can be staged in a bar and cafe environment and a multi-purpose hall. Construction of Freespace formally started in October 2016 and is progressing on time and on budget.
 

Officiating at the topping-out ceremony today included WKCDA Board Member Wan Man-yee, WKCDA Board Member and Chairman of Performing Arts Committee; Duncan Pescod, Chief Executive Officer; Dr William Chan, Chief Operating Officer; Louis Yu, Executive Director of Performing Arts; Jeremy Stowe, Director of Project Control; Dennis Lau, Chairman and Managing Director of DLN; Rupert Leung, Managing Director of Arcadis; Tomm Van Dyke, Director of ACLA; as well as Patrick Lee, Managing Director of Construction Division and C T Chan, Executive Director of SFK.
 

“The topping out of Freespace marks yet another important milestone in the development of the West Kowloon Cultural District (WKCD). The orchestrated efforts and support of the designers, contractors, partners and friends have been instrumental in bringing the project to this important point,” said Duncan Pescod, Chief Executive Officer of WKCDA. “As one of the key venues in the WKCD, we look forward to Freespace opening in 2019, when it will begin to stage and deliver a wide spectrum of art and cultural activities for our visitors from Hong Kong and all over the World.”
 

Louis Yu, Executive Director of Performing Arts, WKCDA said, “Freespace has two major roles to play – serving as an incubator for creativity and cultural exchange for aspiring artists; as well as helping us develop a new generation of audiences. By presenting diverse music, dance and theatre programmes, we hope Freespace will bring the unique Art Park in WKCDA a sensational art environment both indoor and outdoor.”
 

Remarks

About West Kowloon Cultural District
Located on Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour, the West Kowloon Cultural District is one of the largest cultural projects in the world. Its vision is to create a vibrant new cultural quarter for Hong Kong. With a complex of theatres, performance spaces, and M+, the West Kowloon Cultural District will produce and host world-class exhibitions, performances, and cultural events, as well as provide 23 hectares of public open space, including a two-kilometre waterfront promenade.