Edinburgh’s Queen’s Hall unveils plans for £3m glass-fronted makeover

Edinburgh’s Queen’s Hall concert venue has revealed plans for a £3 million makeover that will include a striking new glass-fronted entrance.The project at the South Clerk Street site is designed by architects Mill Design and will also include a brand new cafe-bar, box office and concourses.The plans are aimed at tackling perceptions that the venue is closed even when a concert is on, including a plan to lit it up using new “lanterns” after dark.Natural daylight will also be allowed to flood in by opening up of blanked-off windows and with the creation of the new glazed entrance into the building.The changes to the front of the building are expected to transform “dark and uninviting” foyer spaces and stairwells and allow the Queen’s Hall to expand its corporate hospitality facilities.Audiences will also be able to look out onto South Clerk Street from a new first-floor “gallery” where a third, pop-up, bar could be created for certain events.More comfortable seating is expected to be installed in the pews of the historic auditorium, but will hopefully be able to be removed for “standing” concerts for the first time.Video screens will also be installed to allow audiences better views of shows without altering listed features of the building, which is due to celebrate its 40th anniversary as a concert venue in 2019. A long-term vision, released to supporters of the venue, said the proposed changes would “breathe new life” into the venue while ensuring that the “essential character” of the auditorium is unaltered.A major fundraising campaign is now due to get underway later this year to finance the scheme that is aimed at securing what is considered to be one of the capital’s flagship concert halls’ long-term future.