U.K. venue operator Academy Music Group (AMG) will open its new site in Birmingham, England this Fall with shows already confirmed by rapper Dizzee Rascal and alt-rock acts Bloc Party and the Maccabees.
The venue, the new O2 Academy Birmingham, was formerly the 45,000sq foot Dome nightclub on the Midlands city’s Bristol St. It will open in September to replace the current O2 Academy Birmingham on Dale End, due for demolition later this year as part of a mixed-use development. The Dale End site opened in November 2000 — at present, the final live show scheduled there is by U.K. alternative act Cornershop on July 31.
“Birmingham was the first city I chose outside of London eight years ago to expand the Academy brand,” AMG CEO John Northcote said in a statement. “In that time, the existing site in Dale End has welcomed the likes of Coldplay, Arctic Monkeys, The Prodigy and some 4,000 plus gigs with over 3 million music fans through the doors.”
AMG claims the cost of the refurbishment and conversion of the former Dome site is £5 million (8.2 million). The new site will have an overall building capacity of 3,859, and as with its predecessor, will contain three venues; the main 3,009-capacity auditorium plus the O2 Academy 2 Birmingham (600) and O2 Academy 3 Birmingham (250).
According to O2 Academy Birmingham GM Andy MacDonald, “Having varying capacities means we are perfectly positioned to support new acts on their first live dates. In 2008, MGMT played all three of our venues within just nine months.”
London-based AMG’s shareholders include Live Nation, SJM Concerts and Metropolis Music.
