University of Warwick throws open the doors to its newest building for FAB Fest
17 May 2022
Where could you learn the choreography from Bridgerton, try your hand at stage combat and witness the skill and thrill of aerial acrobatics? All this and more will be on offer as part of FAB Fest – an event celebrating the University of Warwick’s brand new Faculty of Arts Building (FAB), taking place on Friday 20 May.
The official opening ceremony will happen at 12 noon, with speeches from Professor Christine Ennew, Provost of the University of Warwick, and Professor Penny Roberts, Chair of the Faculty of Arts. At 12.30pm FAB Fest will kick off, featuring a whole host of activities to celebrate arts and creativity on campus. There will be student performances and a range of workshops and drop-in events until 5pm, with live music performances continuing into the evening.
The £57.5m eight storey building became operational in December. It is the new home to all the departments and research centres across arts and humanities and it is designed to encourage interdisciplinary collaboration and teaching excellence.
Professor Penny Roberts, Chair of the Faculty of Arts, said: “It will be wonderful to throw open the doors of our magnificent new building and showcase the breadth and depth of the work that we do at Warwick. We are looking forward to seeing students, past and present, colleagues, guests and the local community filling our wonderful new space and engaging with art and culture here on campus.”
Dr David Coates, Assistant Professor and Faculty of Arts Curator, has organised the event. He said: “This won’t be your average ribbon cutting ceremony. We’ll hear welcome words from screen director and former student, Lawrence Till. Poet Raymond Antrobus will perform his specially commissioned poem, which is inscribed on the walls of the building, and then we will enjoy short performances to celebrate the work of every department. It will be a spectacle and a celebration and we look forward to welcoming people onto campus to enjoy this moment with us.”
The running order for FAB Fest includes:
Stage Combat Workshops: Touch gloves and take a corner! It's time for a rumble at Warwick. Enjoy a drop-in workshop from Squire Stage Combat and test your mettle against your opponent.
Antiquities Room Showcase: Show and Tell: Come and explore the University of Warwick’s Antiquities Room to discover more about our ancient artefact collection.
Bridgerton Dance Workshop: Be led in dance by Dr Heidi Ashton (Cultural and Media Policy Studies) who worked on series one of Bridgerton assisting in the development and style of the dances.
Ceramics Talk with Matthew Raw: Matthew created the ceramic wall art on the front of the new building, with a little help from the children of Coventry. Come and hear all about it.
Delphic Tree Ceremony: The trees outside the new building are grown from seeds from the Sanctuary of Delphi in Greece, have been gifted to the University by the Greek Press Association UK in recognition of the work of Professor Michael Scott, himself an honorary citizen of Delphi. Michael will be present to say a few words.
Plus aerial acrobatics, poetry workshops, afternoon tea on the lawn, modern languages taster sessions, family history classes, roman cookery demonstrations, escape rooms, lino cutting workshops, pole dancing, live music and much more.
FAB Fest takes place at the University of Warwick’s Faculty of Arts Building on Central Campus from 12noon and is free to attend. For a full list of events and to register your interest visit:
https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/news/fabfest/activityschedule/
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For press information:
Andrea Cullis
Media Relations Manager
University of Warwick
Contact:
Tel: 07825314874
For press information:
Andrea Cullis
Media Relations Manager
University of Warwick
Contact:
Tel: 07825314874