The Lighthouse (Poole)

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Lighthouse logo

Lighthouse is the largest arts centre in the United Kingdom outside London with a 669 seat theatre, 1,500 seat concert hall, 150 seat studio, 105 seat cinema, an Image Lab/media suite, a large gallery for photography and digital art, a restaurant and three function rooms.

Formerly the Poole Arts Centre, which opened in 1979, the venue closed in May, 2002 for an £8.5 million radical refurbishment. This was paid for by Arts Council Lottery Awards, the Borough of Poole and through donations. It reopened as Lighthouse, Poole Centre for the Arts in October 2002.

[edit] Programming and types of shows

Lighthouse provides a wide ranging program, including:

Theatre

Mid-scale musical tours (such as Fame and Blood Brothers)
Opera (annually from English Touring Opera)
Dance (both contemporary and classical)
Ballet
Plays (ranging from classics such as Romeo and Juilet, An Inspector Calls to more modern day 'kitchen sink dramas')
Pantomime (Cinderella for 2006/7 starring Bobby Crush, Peter Duncan & Brian Cant)

Concert Hall

Weekly performances on Wednesday nights from the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
World music
Rock gigs (including Oasis, Kings of Leon, Doves, Fun Loving Criminals)
Jazz

Studio

Small scale children's theatre
Small scale adult theatre

Cinema

Eclectic mix of world cinema, and recent releases normally presented 4–8 weeks after general release.

[edit] Location

Lighthouse is situated just outside the main shopping centre / high street in Poole, Dorset. However it is only a short walk from the centre of town.

The venue is easily accessible by public transport (10 minute walk from Poole railway station (for trains to London Waterloo, Southampton, Winchester and Weymouth, amongst others) and is opposite Poole bus station for local services across the town and into Bournemouth, Christchurch, Salisbury and Swanage) and also by the road network, within reasonable travel time from such towns as Dorchester, Weymouth, Yeovil, Salisbury, Christchurch, Bournemouth, Lymington, Southampton and Blandford.