Chapter Arts Centre is a diverse arts venue in Cardiff, housing the city’s only arthouse cinema among lots of creatively-inclined activities that include live performance, international art, workshops for all ages, and a large social space where you can eat, drink, chat or work.
Situated in Canton, West Cardiff, Chapter – as the regulars call it - opened in 1971 in a disused high school that was built in 1905. The centre has undergone lots of changes and expanded its audience over time, today welcoming around 800,000 visitors each year. Following a major redevelopment, the building won a Royal Institute of British Architects award in 2010. Today a few of the building's highlights includes 60+ rooms, solar panels, a café bar that’s decorated with a regularly changing mural, and plush red seating in the cinemas - there's even a star-lit ceiling in the smaller of two screens.
Open 7 days a week from 8.30am until the bar closes, there’s a sweet pick and mix of activities on every day at Chapter. Regular events include comedy nights, film screenings - often with Q&As - book clubs, yoga, martial arts, dance classes, sew-cials, choir practice and acting workshops. You can enjoy meals and snacks from breakfast through to dinner in the café, as well as hot drinks or something from the bar.
Look out for Chapter’s festivals that range from Car Art Bootique’s annual eclectic selection of entertainment to celebrations of beer, comedy, literature or guitar. Conferences and lectures are often part of the programme of events too, and they offer lots of flexible spaces to hire if you fancy hosting something yourself.
Chapter also has a community garden, where volunteers are welcomed to water, weed, or help out with the bees with weekly drop-in sessions and regular events. The centre also works with local schools and groups that head there to get their hands dirty. Chapter Community Garden is made with love with the vision and inspiration of a dedicated set of volunteers, Canton Community Gardens.
Take a look at Chapter's What's On section of the website or pick up a brochure during your visit for more info.
To further explore Cardiff, take a look at our picks of things to do and search our Cardiff accommodation recommendations.
