Sadler's Wells opens up dance in Stratford
We are delighted that Britannia Morton, Chief Operating Officer at Sadler's Wells, will be at Future Cities Forum in April to talk about the dance house's plans to open a new, mid-scale venue in Stratford, East London - part of a new cultural and education district in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, which will also include the BBC, UAL's London College of Fashion, UCL and the V&A in partnership with the Smithsonian Institution.
Britannia has been working as a senior leader in the cultural sector for twenty years, managing visitor experience and operations. Before joining Sadler's Wells, she led operational teams at the Southbank Centre, Barbican, Royal Albert Hall and English National Opera.
Architects Allies and Morrison who are responsible for the master plan of the development 'Stratford Waterfront' describe it as 'the largest cultural investment in London since the Festival of Britain and the Southbank'.
Britannia will join Chief Executive Elaine Bedell of the Southbank Centre at our 8th April forum at Goldsmtihs' Hall, City of London, along with V&A Deputy Director, Tim Reeve and Director of the Museum of London, Sharon Ament.
Stratford Waterfront will be a new neighbourhood where the V&A is building a new museum enabling the public to view important archives and the work of staff behind the scenes. Sadler's Wells will have a 500 seat theatre on site with live performances taking place in locations around the new buildings throughout the year.
The cultural district will create a significant number of new homes, retail space and high quality public realm. The buildings occupy a position along the River Lea on the Olympic Park's eastern edge and according to Allies and Morrison ' embrace the concept of casting, whether it be concrete, glass, metal, brick or ceramic, reflecting East London's industrial past.'
Sadler's Wells has 'a recognisable saw-tooth roofline and is a robust building of natural coloured brick and cast clay tiles, metal windows and concrete structure', the architects state. The largest building on the site is the London College of Fashion, conceived as a 21st century hub for 'making'.