Japanese inflatable concert hall heads to Switzerland for the first time

It can hold up to 300 people and takes just a few hours to set up: the world’s first inflatable concert hall, Ark Nova, is heading to Switzerland for the first time. + Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox It looks like a giant balloon made of shiny purple plastic. When fully inflated, the Ark Nova concert hall stands 18 metres tall. Its outer shell is made from fabric just six millimetres thick – two layers fused together, with air pumped in between to give it shape. In theory, the Ark Nova can be fully inflated in just ten minutes. But to avoid putting stress on the delicate material, the team takes several hours to let the air in gradually. There’s no metal framework holding it up; the structure is stabilised by an inward-facing, air-filled arm. The Ark Nova has been assembled four times to date – each time in a Japanese city. But this September, it’s heading to the Lucerne Festival, marking something of a homecoming. Back in 2011, it was Michael Häfliger ...