Nicosia Bandabuliya Campus
The ARUCAD Nicosia Bandabuliya Campus is a distinctive university campus located in the historic centre of Nicosia’s Walled City. It hosts the educational, rehearsal, creative production and performance activities of the Faculty of Music and Performing Arts.
The campus brings together stages, studios, laboratories and rehearsal spaces that support the theoretical and practical education of the Acting, Modern Dance and Sound Arts Design departments. In addition to attending classes, students develop individual and collaborative projects and undertake work in concert production, theatre, dance, sound and interdisciplinary performance in an environment that reflects professional working conditions.
Historic Building and Transformation Project
The Bandabuliya Campus was created through the restoration and adaptive reuse of Nicosia’s former Wholesale Market, a building with an important place in the city’s commercial and social memory.
One section of the building had previously been converted into a stage by the Nicosia Turkish Municipality and returned to the city’s cultural life. Later, as part of the Uray Street Revitalisation Project carried out in cooperation between ARUCAD and the Nicosia Turkish Municipality, the Bandabuliya Stage was renewed and the unused sections of the historic structure were restored and transformed into the ARUCAD Faculty of Music and Performing Arts.
The architectural design was undertaken by Architect Tunç Adanır. The project preserved the building’s stonework, historic character and cultural memory while adapting it to contemporary educational, rehearsal, performance and creative production requirements.
Through this transformation, a building that once witnessed Nicosia’s commercial history has become an active university campus serving students’ creative work and the cultural and artistic life of the city.
Academic Departments
The Bandabuliya Campus is home to the following departments within ARUCAD’s Faculty of Music and Performing Arts:
Acting
Contemporary Dance
Sound Arts Design
Courses and collaborative projects undertaken across these departments create an interdisciplinary educational environment that brings together acting, movement, dance, music, sound, stage practice and digital production.
Bandabuliya Stage – Black Box
The Bandabuliya Stage is a professional Black Box venue used for theatre, contemporary dance, concerts, student performances, presentations and interdisciplinary stage projects.
Its flexible layout can be adapted to different performance formats and audience arrangements. Integrated sound and lighting systems support live music, theatre, dance, movement and experimental performance practices.
Shared with the Nicosia Turkish Municipality Theatre, the stage enables students to experience a professional performance environment during their education. Students can participate in every stage of the process, including rehearsal, technical preparation, staging and presenting their work to an audience.
The Bandabuliya Stage also hosts concerts, festivals, guest artist events and cultural and artistic programmes open to the public.
Performance and Dance Studios
The campus includes four performance studios used for acting, movement and modern dance. These spaces support body and movement studies, acting exercises, choreography, rehearsal, improvisation and performance development.
The studios are used for scheduled courses and for the preparation of students’ individual and collaborative projects. Students can rehearse for end-of-semester productions, stage projects and other public performances in these spaces.
Sound Production Laboratory
The Sound Production Laboratory at the Bandabuliya Campus is used for computer-assisted sound editing, sound design and digital sound production.
Using digital audio software, students undertake sound editing, sequencing, montage, effects creation, mixing and the combination of multiple sound layers. The laboratory supports the production of sound for stage performances, dance projects, digital games, films, animation and other audiovisual work.
Students can adapt the sounds they produce to the narrative, atmospheric and technical requirements of different artistic and digital projects. The laboratory primarily supports the computer-based practical courses and project work of Sound Arts Design students. Students from other departments may also use it for the sound editing and design stages of interdisciplinary projects.
The Sound Studio used for professional recording is located at the ARUCAD Main Campus.
Interdisciplinary Studios and Rehearsal Spaces
The campus contains three interdisciplinary studios, together with multi-purpose rehearsal and creative production spaces. These facilities enable students from different departments to develop collaborative projects, conduct group rehearsals, test ideas and prepare their work for the stage.
The studios may be used for workshops, student presentations, creative research, small-scale performances and projects that bring together different artistic disciplines.
Common Areas and Campus Life
The Bandabuliya Campus includes more than classrooms and rehearsal spaces. It also provides shared areas and a cafeteria where students can relax between classes, work together and socialise.
Academic staff offices are located within the same campus. This arrangement makes it easier for students to communicate with their lecturers and receive academic guidance during projects, rehearsals and creative production outside scheduled class hours.
Agora Open Stage
Located at the rear of the Bandabuliya Campus, Agora Open Stage is an outdoor event space that complements the campus’s indoor stages and studios. Suitable for music, dance, theatre and interdisciplinary performances, the stage enables students to share their work with audiences in an open-air setting.
Agora Open Stage provides a meeting place where students can present creative work developed during their studies and collaborate on events across departments. Set within the campus’s historic surroundings, it extends artistic activity beyond classrooms and studios and contributes to the cultural and social life of the campus.
Bandabuliya Cafe and Social Space
Located on ARUCAD’s Nicosia Bandabuliya Campus, Bandabuliya Cafe is a social space where students can take a break between classes, rehearsals and workshops, meet friends and spend time together. Complementing the campus’s learning and creative environment, the cafe brings students from different departments together and helps them maintain connections beyond their classes.
Students can purchase sandwiches, snacks and drinks from the cafe. As a meeting point in everyday campus life, Bandabuliya Cafe offers a relaxed setting where students can exchange ideas, discuss collaborative projects and socialise.
Cultural and Artistic Activities
The Bandabuliya Campus is actively used for concerts, theatre and dance performances, student productions, festivals, workshops, talks and interdisciplinary artistic events.
The campus enables ARUCAD students to present their work to an audience while also providing a cultural and creative environment open to local and international artists and artistic communities. In this way, university education is directly connected with the public and cultural life of Nicosia’s Walled City.
Location, Access and Transportation
Address: Uray Street No. 14, Walled City, Nicosia
Telephone: +90 (392) 650 65 55
Email: info@arucad.edu.tr
ARUCAD provides students with a free shuttle service between the Kyrenia Main Campus and the Nicosia Bandabuliya Campus. Shuttle times are arranged according to course schedules and the requirements of each academic semester and are published on the University website and through official announcement channels.
The architectural report prepared for the transformation project is available in Turkish and can be downloaded below:
New Bandabuliya
Old Bandabuliya
