Press room

Inspired by the Barbican’s international arts programme, a curated mix of livestreams, podcasts, playlists, films, videos, talks and articles enables audiences to continue to enjoy the Centre’s rich and varied programme from home or on the go during its temporary closure and beyond.

Digital content is available via the Barbican’s website through Read, Watch & Listen, Cinema on Demand, Concerts on Demand, Live from the Barbican and its social channels. In addition, podcasts can also be accessed by subscribing to the Nothing Concrete podcast via Acast, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

Highlights of the Barbican’s current and upcoming digital content include:  

• A digital residency with the Australian Chamber Orchestra, featuring an entirely free programme of concerts, supported by a Barbican-curated collection of podcasts, photography, videos and conversations (1-3 December 2020)
   
• For the duration of the latest lockdown in England, concerts as part of the Live from the Barbican autumn series are now available On Demand, including performances from Sir Bryn Terfel, Nubya Garcia, Erland Cooper, The Divine Comedy, Emmy the Great, Richard Dawson, SEED Ensemble, The Kanneh-Mason Family, Ian Bostridge and Dame Sarah Connolly, Shabaka Hutchings as well as Barbican Associate Orchestra BBC Symphony Orchestra and Barbican Associate Ensemble Britten Sinfonia
   
• We Cover the Universe by Akin, performed by Rachel Lincoln and Remmie Milner, is a sensory online show for the under-fives, parents/carers and extended families, available via Zoom from Thu 10 December
   
• Barbican Artistic Associates Cheek by Jowl launch their second podcast series, Not True, But Useful…, featuring conversations with Artistic Directors Declan Donnellan and Nick Ormerod
   
• Barbican Guildhall Creative Learning launches its Open Lab programme to commission eight artists to produce new socially engaged work
   
• A new short film and soundscape, titled Kamala: a Lotus, produced by artist Timalka Kalubowila, exploring the mental health crisis faced by young people due to the ongoing pandemic
   
• On Fri 27 November, the Barbican will unveil It All Comes Down, a free online group exhibition featuring newly created works from 13 emerging visual artists on Barbican Guildhall Creative Learning’s Young Visual Arts Group programme
   
• Young Barbican Night, a special evening of streamed online performances and music, hosted by Queer House Party, celebrating the Barbican’s latest exhibition, Michael Clark: Cosmic Dancer (Sat 28 November)
   
• New Spotify playlists from three of the Barbican Cinema’s Emerging Curators, accompanying their screenings in December
   
• An interview with the directors Natasha Merkulova and Aleksey Chupov, about their latest film The Man Who Surprised Everyone (Russia 2018), which also screens on Cinema on Demand
   
• An extended run of the critically acclaimed Billie (UK 2019, Dir. James Erskine), a biopic of the troubled jazz singer Billie Holiday on Cinema on Demand.

The Barbican believes in creating space for people and ideas to connect through its international arts programme, community events and learning activity. To keep its programme accessible to everyone, and to keep investing in the artists it works with, the Barbican needs to raise more than 60% of its income through ticket sales, commercial activities and fundraising every year. Donations can be made here: barbican.org.uk/support-us