'This building has the ability to smash things up and reset the agenda': Inside Aviva Studios, Manchester's new cultural landmark

“You always want these buildings to be ice breakers, you want them to just plough into something that seems rigid and behind flows all the artists that can come in with the tide - this building has the ability to smash things up and reset the agenda.”

Those are the words of Danny Boyle, whose new show ‘Free Your Mind’ - a large-scale, immersive performance based on The Matrix - will debut tonight (Wednesday) at Manchester’s new landmark cultural venue Aviva Studios.

The permanent home of Factory International, the vast new building officially opened its doors today (October 18) but it has been years in the making. Built on the site of the former Granada Studios, the extraordinary spaceship-like structure, visible from Quay Street and Liverpool Road, sits on the banks of the River Irwell and represents the largest investment in a national cultural project since the opening of the Tate Modern in 2000.

READ MORE: An extraordinary live show of The Matrix movie is taking shape in Manchester

READ MORE: Aviva Studios unveils opening events with Matrix-inspired dance, circus, and a colourful spaceship-like installation

Led by Manchester City Council - with the backing of £99.05m from Government and £7m National Lottery funding from Arts Council England - the building and Factory International, the organisation behind Manchester International Festival (MIF), has lofty ambitions.

John McGrath, Artistic Director and Chief Executive of Factory International, describes it as a “vast space that can be used be used in many different ways by artists” and represents the coming together of an “extraordinary coalition of people and organisations”.

Speaking at the building’s official launch on Wednesday morning, he reflected on how