The company plans to convert the property to a five-screen cinema with bar and café.
The building that has been the base for Rambert Dance Company for more than 40 years will continue to be a home for the arts when independent cinema chain Picturehouse takes it over later this year. A full planning application has been submitted to convert the property from its current use to a cinema facility with five screens, a bar and café. The years that the dance company has occupied the building will be commemorated when the new cinema opens, as Picturehouse is keen to celebrate the building’s heritage by exhibiting posters and photography to pay tribute to Rambert’s connection with the site.
The exchange of contracts for the sale is a significant step in Rambert’s plans to move from its current home on Chiswick High Road in West London to a new purpose-built headquarters on the South Bank later this year. In return for a commitment to providing a significant community dance programme in the local area, and for a peppercorn rent of one pair of ballet shoes a year, a plot of land has been made available to Rambert by Coin Street Community Builders, one of the UK’s leading social enterprises. The new building’s design, operation and programme of education and outreach activities will aim to set new standards for public engagement with contemporary dance.