We’ll present an ambitious programme of original creative work, music and special events by leading artists from across the globe. Our venue is ultra-flexible and offers audiences the opportunity to see a huge range of art forms – from dance productions, theatre, music, visual arts and spoken word to digital art and more.

Our public spaces, from our foyers to our outdoor areas, will host family-friendly events, pop-up food stalls, music, workshops and markets – many of them free.

Yes, we have a licence for alcohol sales (and regulated entertainment) until midnight, for the outdoor areas of the venue we’ll manage.

This has been extended to 02:00 on 12 weekends per year – three of these weekends were during Manchester International Festival 2023.

Any activity running past 23:00 will require an event management plan to be submitted to the council licensing team and other key stakeholders.

A lot of the activation of our outdoor areas will take place during the daytime – including activities like food stalls, family-friendly events and free outdoor markets. It’ll also be a key hub and focal point for the biennial Manchester International Festival returning in Summer 2025.

At the moment, no events have been programmed to run through the night.

Most of our programming will run within our core operating hours which will be Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 to 23:00. We’ll operate outside these hours occasionally to accommodate event activity, as required (subject to licence).

For example, we chose to have extended opening hours for the You, Me and the Balloons exhibition in Summer 2023 to allow more people to see the exhibition on particularly popular dates.

The venue’s acoustic design ensures there is no noise bleed from events in the main event space.

A noise management plan will be in place for any event within our public and outdoor spaces to ensure noise levels are managed.

All events will be managed and stewarded. Audiences will be dispersed along key routes of Quay Street and Liverpool Road and across the footbridge over the River Irwell. An audience dispersal plan as part of an overall crowd management plan will be in place. Information about routes to arrive at Aviva Studios will be provided to eventgoers. Stewards and signage will inform audiences to keep noise levels down and to avoid causing disturbance as they leave.

Manchester City Council are currently looking at increasing the provision of coach parking facilities in the area, and we’ll work with them to develop the transport management plan for the venue and surrounding area.

Maintenance will be carried out by the St John’s Management Company, which has responsibility for management across the St. John’s estate (similar to the current management of Spinningfields).