The Homecoming Centre Cape Town — formerly known as The Fugard Theatre — is one of Cape Town’s most historically and culturally significant arts and events venues, situated at 15 M59 (15 Buitenkant Street), District Six, two blocks from the original District Six Museum. A multi-purpose eventing and education space that is “an amalgamation of arts, performance, learning & community,” the centre is housed across 5 interconnected nineteenth and twentieth-century warehouse buildings with a remnant neo-Gothic Congregational Church as its centrepiece — a structure once known to Capetonians as the Sacks Futeran textile and soft goods warehouse, purchased by the District Six Museum in 2002 with a grant from Atlantic Philanthropies and a generous price reduction from then-owner Martin Futeran. The venue features purposeful spaces including the Star Theatre (up to 320 seated), the gothic-themed Avalon Auditorium (up to 120 seated), the Bits ‘n Pieces galleries, Tafel, Workshop spaces, a Rooftop, and an on-site café run by Truly Love Coffee. Each space “has its own story to tell and, like District Six itself, celebrates the rich culture and history before it.”

From the Fugard Theatre to the Homecoming Centre: A History

The building’s recent history is a story of theatre, philanthropy, and homecoming. Opened in February 2010 as The Fugard Theatre, the venue was named after South African playwright Athol Fugard by its founder, producer Eric Abraham. Following the Laurence Olivier Award-winning revival of The Magic Flute, starring South African performers from Mark Dornford-May’s Isango Portobello, Abraham wanted to create a space in Cape Town to house South African talent — underwriting the construction and developing it with Dornford-May and Mannie Manim, with Rennie Scurr Adendorff renovating the National Heritage-listed neo-Gothic Congregational Church building.

The Fugard Theatre operated from 2010 to March 2021, when it closed and was handed over to the District Six Museum by Eric Abraham. The theatre reopened in 2022 as the District Six Homecoming Centre, with the Fugard’s archive moving online (www.thefugard.com). The original theatre’s main capacity figures — 320 in the Main Theatre and 120 in the Sigrid Rausing Studio — carry forward into the venue’s current Star Theatre and Avalon Auditorium configurations.

The Buildings: From Sacks Futeran Warehouse to Museum Annex

Long before it became a theatre, 15 Buitenkant Street was known to Capetonians as the Sacks Futeran textile and soft goods warehouse. In 2002, the District Six Museum was able to purchase the building thanks to a grant from Atlantic Philanthropies, with the then-owner Mr Martin Futeran offering a substantial reduction on the purchase price — a gesture that put the building within the Museum’s financial reach.

The building is made up of 5 interconnected buildings — nineteenth and twentieth century warehouses with a remnant portion of an old Gothic-style Congregational Church as its centrepiece. Located just two blocks from the original Museum building (25A Buitenkant Street, in a former Methodist Church), and symbolically positioned at the edge of the area nominated as a National Heritage Site, the Homecoming Centre extends the Museum’s footprint into a complex that serves as the base for most of the Museum’s programmes — workshops, launches, and other activities — and as the centre of its administration.

The Star Theatre: 320 Seated, Full Technical Capacity

The Star Theatre is a beautifully appointed theatre that can host up to 320 pax seated with outstanding amenities and technical capacity. It is suited to:

• Theatrical productions
• Live music
• Live streams and hybrid presentations
• Screenings
• Product launches

This is the venue’s flagship space — the direct successor to the Fugard’s Main Theatre — retaining the professional production infrastructure that a decade of theatre programming established.

The Avalon Auditorium: A Gothic-Themed Space for 120

The Avalon Auditorium is a gothic-themed auditorium that can hold up to 120 pax seated, situated on the first floor of the Homecoming Centre. It is ideal for:

• Intimate talks
• Movie screenings
• Comedy
• Music performances
• Panel discussions

The Avalon’s gothic character is a direct architectural inheritance from the Congregational Church remnant at the centre of the building complex — giving the space a visual drama that few Cape Town auditoriums can match.

Bits ‘n Pieces Galleries, Tafel, Workshop, and Rooftop

Beyond the two main theatre spaces, the Homecoming Centre includes:

Bits ‘n Pieces Galleries — exhibition spaces for art, history, and community storytelling, in keeping with the District Six Museum’s mission of preserving the memory and culture of the District Six community displaced under apartheid’s Group Areas Act.

Tafel — a hall space available for events and gatherings.

Workshop — flexible workshop and meeting spaces.

Rooftop — an outdoor events space.

Truly Love Coffee — the on-site café, run by the Truly Love Coffee team, providing a daily café presence within the heritage complex.

Programming: Film Screenings, Panels, and Community Events

The venue is equipped to host film screenings and other forms of public dialogues. Recent programming illustrates the breadth of the Homecoming Centre’s cultural calendar:

• The Illusion of Distance (Sapho Wulana, 2023) — an 11-minute documentary about an 80-year-old man’s search for his childhood friend, both separated by the Group Areas Act
• Human Rights Day programme (March, focused on children’s rights, in partnership with Children’s Resource Centre, Women Who Move Souls, Ikhufu, and Reclaim the City)
• Junior Movie Club — a partnership between Encounters Documentary Film Festival and the District Six Museum, funded by the Provincial Government of the Western Cape
• Salon Kewpie panel discussions — in collaboration with the GALA Queer Archive, exploring the Kewpie Collection’s legacies
• District Six Museum & Koesister.com Market — a community market promoting local entrepreneurs, with the “strong community spirit in and around the District Six Museum” specifically noted

Accessibility

The Homecoming Centre is wheelchair accessible — a ramp at one of the entrances and a wheelchair hoist are available, along with a ramp enabling movement between different levels on the ground floor.

Location and Contact Information

The Homecoming Centre is at 15 M59 (15 Buitenkant Street), District Six, Cape Town, Western Cape, 7925 — at the corner of Caledon and Buitenkant Streets, Zonnebloem, two blocks from the original District Six Museum building.

Tel: 021 466 7200 | 071 852 5286
Email: hc*@**************co.za

For event bookings, programme schedules, and venue hire enquiries, visit The Homecoming Centre’s official website.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is the seating capacity of the Star Theatre?
A: The Star Theatre can host up to 320 people seated. It features outstanding amenities and full technical capacity, making it ideal for theatrical productions, live music, screenings, and product launches.

Q: What was the Homecoming Centre previously known as?
A: The venue was formerly known as The Fugard Theatre. It operated as The Fugard Theatre from February 2010 to March 2021, when it was handed over to the District Six Museum and reopened in 2022 as the District Six Homecoming Centre.

Q: How many people can the Avalon Auditorium accommodate?
A: The Avalon Auditorium can hold up to 120 people seated. This gothic-themed auditorium on the first floor is ideal for intimate talks, movie screenings, comedy, music performances, and panel discussions.

Q: Is the Homecoming Centre wheelchair accessible?
A: Yes, the Homecoming Centre is wheelchair accessible. A ramp at one of the entrances and a wheelchair hoist are available, along with a ramp enabling movement between different levels on the ground floor.

Q: Where exactly is the Homecoming Centre located in Cape Town?
A: The Homecoming Centre is located at 15 Buitenkant Street, District Six, Cape Town, Western Cape, 7925. It sits at the corner of Caledon and Buitenkant Streets in Zonnebloem, just two blocks from the original District Six Museum building.

Q: What additional spaces are available at the Homecoming Centre besides the two theatres?
A: Beyond the Star Theatre and Avalon Auditorium, the centre includes Bits ‘n Pieces Galleries for exhibitions, Tafel hall space, Workshop meeting spaces, a Rooftop outdoor events area, and an on-site café run by Truly Love Coffee.

Q: How many buildings make up the Homecoming Centre complex?
A: The Homecoming Centre is made up of 5 interconnected buildings. These are nineteenth and twentieth century warehouses with a remnant portion of an old Gothic-style Congregational Church as its centrepiece, formerly known as the Sacks Futeran textile warehouse.

Q: What type of events and programming does the Homecoming Centre host?
A: The centre hosts a diverse range of cultural programming including film screenings, panel discussions, community markets, theatrical productions, and educational workshops. Recent events have included documentary screenings, Human Rights Day programmes, the Junior Movie Club, and the District Six Museum & Koesister.com Market.

Explore more cultural and heritage venues in Cape Town through our Cape Town event venues directory, or browse all Western Cape event venue listings for venues across the province.