Midlands Arts Centre - Mac

Join us for a BSL Tour of The Sun Never Sets by Matthew Krishanu at MAC on Thu 28 Feb at 1pm - see the paintings and gain insight into the exhibition with deaf artist Olivier Jamin. Book your place: http://ow.ly/db2z30nND3I BID Services British Deaf Assoc DeafCulturalCentre deafPLUS_Birmingham

Clint Eastwood is doing his thing as The Mule on our big screen tonight and into next week... Is it classic Clint? Come and see what you think as he stars alongside Bradley Cooper in this crime drama about an octogenarian drug runner. https://youtu.be/N_QksSzK7sI

The Royal Photographic Society is bringing its International Photography Exhibition 161 to MAC!
It'll be in our First Floor Gallery, free entry, Tue-Sun, from 30 March - 12 May. See 100 beautiful, strong images from 54 contemporary international photographers. The only chance to catch this exhibition in the Midlands!
... See more info and related events here: https://macbirmingham.co.uk/…/internati onal-photography-exh…
Images: Tatuaje, Kristin Bedford; Joe and Duke, Peter Zelewski; Keep Moving, Sebastian Delgado; Maddens Wind Farm, Catherine Hyland
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We're bringing you not one, but TWO sessions of First Bite Festival on Sat 2 Mar
Showcasing an eclectic collection of extracts and new ideas from some of the most exciting theatre makers working across the region!
Tickets: http://bit.ly/2Vhz7J9

Just 5 spaces left on this free talk and tour at 6pm today - book your place and join artist Matthew Krishanu as he discusses his exhibition, The Sun Never Sets.

Handsworth Self Portrait: 40 Years On is on here 23 March-2 June.
See original photographs from 1979 in this exhibition by Derek Bishton, Brian Homer & John Reardon. Nice piece here on Creative Boom http://ow.ly/kwoy30nMuLy

*** Home of Metal and artist Ben Venom need your band T-shirts! ***

There are still a few tickets left for Shlomo's Beatbox Adventure for Kids on Friday - a show for all ages, come and join in the fun as Shlomo makes all kinds of music using just his mouth and a mic and teaches the next generation how to beatbox! https://youtu.be/Fjo2Q1PKqKs

https://updatebrum.co.uk/…/handsworth-s elf-portrait-40-yea…/

A fan of Netflix series Stranger Things? Ghostbusters? The otherworldly in general? You'll love I Ain't Afraid Of No Ghost!
Join us for a nostalgic trip back to the 80s and a comic exploration of a childhood haunting on Wed 27 Feb, where nothing is quite what it seems - all wrapped up in some formidable fashions, stuffed with sweet treats and set to a cheese-tastic chart-topping soundtrack.
Recommended for adults and adventurous children aged 9+
... Tickets: http://bit.ly/2SVikht
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Did you know there's an Artist Talk and Tour with Matthew Krishanu this Thursday at 6pm? He'll be telling us all about the inspiration behind his beautiful exhibition, The Sun Never Sets, in our first floor gallery. It's free - just book your place here: https://macbirmingham.co.uk/…/artist-ta lk-and-tour-with-mat…

We are thrilled to announce that Anna Berry will be working with us as our DASH Curatorial Resident. An incredibly gifted artist, we can't wait to work with Anna as she develops her curation skills in the next year. Watch this space! DASH See more: http://ow.ly/wbMQ30nKANT

Happy half term! Need some extra ideas of things to do? We've got plenty! There's beatboxing, creative writing, dancing, singing, crafting and all sorts to see, make and do here at MAC - check out the highlights: https://macbirmingham.co.uk/february-half -term #halfterm #families #birmingham #events

We're recruiting for a Head of Development. If you're a highly effective communicator with a successful track record of fundraising and donor development in the not-for-profit or cultural sector, see more and apply here: https://macbirmingham.co.uk/…/work…/j obs/head-of-development

Guests at our Culture Club this morning had a private viewing of The Sun Never Sets by Matthew Krishanu - and a talk from the artist himself! Culture Club is part of our Celebrating Age programme for people aged 65+ Find out more about the next event here: https://macbirmingham.co.uk/…/culture-c lub-expressive-water…

We can't wait! https://macbirmingham.co.uk/…/shlomos-b eatbox-adventure-for…

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - The Toronto Star
"Mesmerizing" - The LA Times
"Brilliant" - The New York Times
... Expanded from a Haruki Murakami short story, Burning is the latest film from Korean director Lee Chang-dong.
A tense, haunting multiple-character study, Burning accumulates a series of unanswered questions and unspoken motivations to conjure a totalizing mood of uncertainty and quietly bends the contours of the thriller genre to brilliant effect.
On till Wednesday: https://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/burning
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Fancy catching JAck Barry live? Well, he's here this Friday! https://youtu.be/kwFTANZerBc
Tickets: https://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/jack-ba rry-tango

mac is an awesome place for arts, film, culture and hanging out! (ps. they do a great fish finger sandwich!)

Wonderful place with a very diverse arts base and audience about to lose 70% of its council funding. I hope it will survive. Saw Ziggy Stardust at the cinema here and relived old memories.

Went to see Nick Helm last night. Was so sick, (that means good, you bunch of oldies). Parking was fine, getting there was fine. Also cool how 2 people fainted at the same time in his show, which he took very professionally. 10/10 would come again!

Went to see Bonfire Radicals supporting the Destroyers. Brilliant evening. Charming door staff and bar staff. Area looking lovely with hanging brollies and mad, footstomping, bodyshaking, crazy dance inducing musical performance from both bands- Destroyers of course, but the 'Radicals' a worthy warm up to them. Loved it �.

Visited the MAC Theatre 🎭 at the weekend excellent venue our seats were very comfortable & had a great view of the stage will definitely go again 😊

Toby Ford is a maestro MC. 'Singo' where karaoke meets bingo was a fab event, laughed all night. Would totally recommend it and be up for another round � �.

The staff was really nice and helpful, we went to the upfront Comedy had sure a good time.

The staff are so helpful here it really makes the visit such a great experience. Large corporates should go to wacth MAC staff for tips on positive customer experience. They are just the best and go out of their way to help their customers

I have seen 2 productions here with my granddaughter and both have been excellent and inspiring. They are pitched just right for children and I know it’s sparking a new dimension in my granddaughters experience of life that will stay with her for life. Such a great organisation. I will be attending many more productions. Keep up the good work- you are the best!

My son attended an animation/art course there and it was brilliant. We Will be booking another course soon.

Lovely place. Took our little girl to a ballet workshop and to our surprise the was a craft and art exhibition with in the centre. We thought it was a great place to hold it.

Love it here been called no by since before it was refurbished. Nice for drinks and food friendly staff nice bar

I like this place a lot. I have seen a few films here. Maybe should explore more of what they have to offer. I watched Call Me By Your Name last night. I enjoyed it very much. Not sure if this was released at all main cinema groups. This is why I like the MAC. They show films for everybody's taste.

I arrived at lunchtime to find the Mac, very busy in the cafeteria, even so all the free tables were clean & tidy, the staff were very efficient, the Mac met the needs of my disability apart from the outside seating which was too low, having said that my visit to the Mac was very pleasant, & I wouldn’t hesitate to go there again.

Great venue and great gig but beware the newly introduced parking charges with hardly any signage. My first trip, live in Leeds, didn't see any indication of pay and display on the way in and now have a ticket to pay. Signage is by the park entrance, on the opposite side to where we parked and facing away from the entrance. Park on the other side and use the path to go into the MAC and there is nothing. Cheers Birmingham City Council for that lovely welcome!

Great evening, lovely venue - open air - something different and also a very modern building. 2nd time at the venue amazing artists and lovely atmosphere.

Going to The Mac is the new thing I do with my son (4) since we watched the fantastic play 'The Bear'. He finds it quite difficult to sit still but was enraptured by the show. He also loved 'Shark in the Park' a few weeks ago, great singing/audience participation (though it was too loud, think they'd got the sound/microphones up too much and my ears were ringing!) Went to Morgan and West yesterday. My son enjoyed it but it was probably a bit too 'talky' for him at times. I would have liked more obvious visual tricks/magic because he is young and didn't understand word-play etc. Looking forward to 'Wow said the owl' as we love the book even though it's aimed for younger children. Overall, it's such great value and tragic that they're losing so much funding. My only suggestion (from a completely selfish point of view) is to have more workshops for younger children as most are for 6+. Though maybe that means they're more focused as young children find that difficult! Plus the equipment in the parks is really good too so you can make a good morning/afternoon of it. It's really encouraged me to try different things :-)

Fantastic !

The holiday courses are amazing, great tutors, super resources! My two rascals especially enjoyed the emoj workshop with Chris Hamilton , he was a real inspiration to my daughter 💯

Excellent place of arts, community and inclusion. I love coming to MAC and bringing my pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities.

Called in twice today, cream tea was lovely and brilliant value for money. Staff were very polite and helpful.

Attended the event 'Birmingham is Funny: Singo' and it was great fun. Bingo meets karaoke, need I say more! You can sing along with the crowd or step up to the microphone if you want to really rock it. I would definitely come again if you put on another one!

Always lovely at The MAC. Great fun for all the family and a great place to meet friends. x

cracking little venue. bar could do with more staff serving though as the queue did get quite big at times.

Saw "Me" puppet performance with the family, just the right length of time for a small child.



Has a few drinks and cakes after in the cafe, which was really busy but a bit slow. Made it hard for the staff to keep up.

Popped in yesterday for a lunchtime bowl of soup, spicy sweet potato very nice served with some rustic bread....best bit though waiting in the queue alongside Ronnie Wood and his wife and babies. Made my day.

Nice, quite, serene, beautiful, great cafe, good for inspiration with the overlooking park, great courses, worth a visit for art and music lovers

I have to admit I've only been to the Mac once (years ago), but it's a nice place to sit and have a coffee and cake. Some of the prices of the cakes were a little steep but I enjoyed my chocolate brownie and mocha. It's a stop off as you walk around the park, there's plenty of seating inside, and a few outside too. Probably go again in a few weeks time. �

Great afternoon using the theatre to put on a Am- Dram panto performance.

Bit of a shock about new car park charges though... think if you're going to charge for car parking then you should offer more car security against thieves as there are many posters in the car park about car crime.. What does the car park charge actually offer the customer?

A easy place to get to, not ready to park. However a very clean , friendly place to visit �� ��.

We visited the Mac for an event called Upfront Comedy. This was amazing as always and we had a good time.

However the Mac main toilets were out of order and we were told to use one toilet upstairs. The bar was short staffed so there was not time to get a drink after waiting to use the one toilet in the 15 minute interlude due to the long queues.

The staff told us there were other toilets but did point any of these out when it mattered.

I think the staff or management of the Mac did not make any efforts to cater for a full event and this let the venue down.

I hope this information will be taken on board.

Very strange (and long) history of Birmingham film shown prior to our expected film yesterday. People were getting up and leaving or asking if they were in the right place. Very odd and disconcerting!!!

Love the place,great stuff going on but the some staff/volunteer staff ignored me when I asked for help or were just cold/unwelcoming on arriving for a workshop which made me feel awful.

I've worked as paid & unpaid event/customer services team member for many years for day job so found this behaviour unprofessional.Sorry.

Had a great night at the Mac, 3 of us went to see Ricky Cool & the in crowd. A brilliant music event from start to finish. The only downside was the venue itself; poor signs to indicate where the toilets are for both men and women, plus why are all they all down stairs? I believe there's at least half a dozen disabled/ baby changing facilities on the ground floor but non for other patrons. Perhaps I just couldn't locate them. The signs to the bar area, again are poor from the main theatre/auditorium and with so few staff on duty for a sell out show was unhelpful. Also access to the main theatre was delayed for a unknown reason before the bands performance, no explanation was given by the numerous staff walking around, and upon asking was informed sorry it's our fault, and that was it. Whilst these are small niggles and haven't detracted from a otherwise brilliant night; I do think they could and should have been considered when the MAC was redesigned.

First time at the Mac last night n travelled from Northampton to see the show. Angie le Mar was the headline act and our main attraction but she was disappointingly cut short mid way through her appearance which we found very unprofessional of the organisers. She wasn't even given the time to finish her piece. Don't they know or even care who she is, an absolute legend. Sorry Angie. We loved you and will always love you to the max. Stay strong x��x

Attended a showing of WOW: SAID THE OWL today which was amazing and the staff allowing access to and from the Foyle Studio were friendly..however I have 3 criticisms 1) the price was high for a 35 minute show, 2) unlike almost every other venue in existence carers do not go free or get any price reduction when accompanying a disabled guest 3) despite notifying MAC in advance of my daughters ASD and SLD we still had to queue like everyone else (and I also made ourselves known at reception/information desk upon arrival and was told no special access arrangements were possible) whereas another similarly disabled patron of similar age to my daughter was able to bypass the queue which did result in quite a bit of sensory overload for her in the buildup to the show..



Hope this feedback will help others and the MAC when reviewing access arrangements for disabled patrons of all ages for performances..

Went to meet my grandson for his Birthday after being stuck in traffic. Arrived very stressed out but glad we had arrived. Went to the cafe purchased 3 hot chocolates and some chips for the grandchildren. Asked if we could eat the spider man cake that I had brought with me ( I also had my own plates knife and serviettes) was told not allowed to as a charity. So after my long drive we had to go outside in the rain and try and light the candle which took several attempts and sing happy birthday and eat Cake in the rain. Very disappointed plus on the way out saw a women sitting with her children eating a packed lunch that she had obviously not purchased in the cafe. What a shame ruined a little boys 4 the birthday with his nan.

I love coming to the Mac and as I live close we come pretty much every weekend. A little disappointed that yesterday, as we waited for the Mac to open; I asked at the Red Bridge doors if my 2 year old could use the toilet. He was desperate and as he has just started toilet training I didn’t want him to have an accident.

I went to the doors at 8.51am (9 mins before opening) and was told he couldn’t use the toilet. I understand that there is a policy but there were staff all around who could have made sure we didn’t wonder around the place.

I am actually shocked that a place which is welcoming to families wouldn’t allow my 2 year old in 9 minutes early so he didn’t have to wet himself!!!

We travelled from Rugby to see Circus Raj today, giving ourselves plenty of time to get there and park( 2hrs).. What we discovered was a scene of utter chaos, nowhere to park, no information, all nearby side streets closed to non residents.. if you dont want people to drive to your events then tell them before hand.. People were dumping their cars on double yellow lines, blocking main routes into the city ... was this an extraordinary event or are all large events at the Mac this chaotic? My review obviously only covers the craziness of the parking situation, we never even got close to the venue itself so have no idea what its like. Boooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Turned up at 2.25 today to see the circus at 3pm, car park full, side roads closed, its 3.30 now and we can't park anywhere so after travelling here for an hour, then spending an hour trying to park we're now going to spend another hour getting home, have to hand to to you Mac the kids have had a great time. If you're going to put on events provide the public means of getting near your event. I'll be getting in touch about a ticket refund,so disappointing �

Customers with limited English will really struggle with the courses.



This is not ideal as an adult education short course for those who find English is not a first language.



Administration team appauling when trying to rectify errors.