16m venue planned for Hackney

A new 16m music venue is being developed for east London with input from Dolphin, Architecture for the Arts, lighting specialist Light and Design, and interior designer Peter Mance.

The Central Hall Trust, the body behind the Hackney site development, appointed Dolphin to come up with a name and identity. The group won a proposals pitch against Blast and Visible Edge.

The venue is in the old Methodist Central Hall and adjacent buildings, which will house three performance spaces, one with a 1880 capacity, as well as rehearsal rooms and bars. Paul Jenkins, architect at Architecture for the Arts, is leading the project.

The identity will be completed in January, with the venue scheduled to open in October 1999.