One of the most challenging tasks we have faced on this project (and believe me, we have faced a few) was delivering the hall in a fit state for the Edinburgh International Festival. The photos were taken in May, about 10 weeks before the Festival was due to occupy the hall. I didn't want to show these prior to the Festival as they may have put some people off attending! Apart from the desire to have a sparklingly clean auditorium and good facilities for audiences, you have to get a Public Entertainment Licence, and to get that you have to pass stringent safety inspections. As a venue manager you get a bit concerned about things like missing stairwells, no electricity or running water, incomplete air conditioning systems, blocked doors, dust, and all sorts of other hazards. Anyway, I'll cut a very long story short and say that with well co-ordinated team approach we did it.
As ever with building projects it ran to the wire and contractors were still scampering around the hall with a couple of hours to go on the opening night. And to round it off, 2 fire officers turned up at 7pm on the dot (the time that the concert was due to start) for a spot check safety inspection. I think they got the message from the rather stessed look on my face and agreed to come back 15 minutes later once the concert was underway.
