An Inspiring Masterpiece

• Key Figures
• From 10,000 to 40,000 Spectators
• 40 Events Per Year
• $408 Million Of Investment
• 4 Years Of Work

Implement the creativity and ideas of an artist into a telescopic stand

Le Channel is a popular and uncommon arts venue in Calais, Northern France. Established in 1983 as a center of cultural development, it has evolved over the years, and was recognized as a nationally renowned stage by the Minister of Culture in 1991.

The Venue

In search of a site worthy of its artistic line, Le Channel settled on the site of the old slaughterhouses of the city in 2007. The artist François Delarozière, famous for his giant mechanical puppets such as the dragon horse Long Ma and the giant spider Kumo Ni, and the architect Patrick Bouchain created the unique aestheticism of the place.

Today, Le Channel includes 8 auditoriums with a total of 1,400 seats, a library, a restaurant and even accommodations for artists. With a budget of 3.5 million euros, the venue offers more than 160 performances per year, from theater and dance shows to more atypical events.

In December 2015 an unfortunate accident interrupted a show located in the main hall of the site. The partial collapse of the previous stand injured 8 people including 3 seriously wounded.

Bone-Shaped railings and metallic arabesques

In 2016, the decision was made to replace the tiered seating (from another company) with a mobile and retractable seating system. Given the requirements, the project was expected to be complex. Following the accident, the first challenge was security. The new stand had to make spectators and employees feel safe and offer quality guarantees. It also needed to be available for the start of the new cultural season, leaving little time for design, fabrication and installation.

The last requirement was the ability to honor the design entrusted to François Delarozière. The new platform had to blend into the aesthetics of the site. The site director, Francis Peduzzi, was particularly worried: "François wished to dress a tribune realized by another company. I was afraid it was not consistent."

Seating with meticulously crafted details

An art nouveau design

Horn-Shaped leather bench

Selected for its long experience and the quality of its telescopic systems, MASTER Industrie relied on its expertise in outstanding projects.

The huge retractable stand, with a capacity of 480 seats, measures over 26 feet high (8 meters) and moves by 164 feet (50 meters) in the hall, with the help of collision detection systems. To allow a configuration with 2000 standing places, the first 3 rows are retractable.

The stand perfectly aligns with the aesthetics of the place, reminiscent of the industrial atmosphere of slaughterhouses. The design of the back of the benches reveals horns and the stair railing represents bones. The aluminum arabesques of the guard rails give an art-nouveau aspect to the whole. And a reassuring solid oak floor greets the audience.

The precious equipment, kept secret until its inauguration, made its effect on the visitors. For the last cultural seasons, the stand has been the pride of the site director.

The stand from its back perspective