Bandaloop Dances on Kendall Square Building Facade
Dancers performed on the orange and blue exterior of 585 Kendall St. as The Platform, a new public arts space, opened in Cambridge.
Updated on Nov. 7, 2026 in Dance
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Bandaloop, a vertical dance company, performed on the facade of 585 Kendall St. during the building's opening on Thursday night. The building, the future site of Takeda's Cambridge research and development expansion, also houses The Platform, a public performing arts space on its first three floors.
Why it matters
The opening brings a new public performing arts venue to Kendall Square alongside a major life sciences expansion. The Platform was created through a partnership between building developer BioMed Realty and the nonprofit Global Arts Live, linking commercial research space with public arts access in Cambridge.
The Platform's 400-seat performance venue and smaller cabaret-style ground-floor stage give the space a fixed capacity for public events. BioMed Realty's 2018 purchase of the one-acre lot for $50.5 million preceded the project's development timeline, which remains ongoing.
The players
Bandaloop
Bandaloop is a vertical dance company known for performing aerial choreography on the exteriors of buildings and other architectural structures.
BioMed Realty
BioMed Realty is a commercial real estate company that develops and leases laboratory and life sciences space, and was acquired by Blackstone in 2020.
Global Arts Live
Global Arts Live is a nonprofit arts organization that co-created The Platform performing arts space with BioMed Realty.
Takeda
Takeda is a global pharmaceutical company that is expanding its research and development operations into the 585 Kendall St. building in Cambridge.
The details
Dancers in canary yellow costumes leaped and flipped along the building's facade, which contains more than 55,000 terra-cotta tiles in seven shades of orange and blue. The building was designed by CBT Architects and built by Suffolk Construction, and its ground floor includes about an acre of indoor and outdoor open space.
Timeline
2018: BioMed acquired the 585 Kendall St. lot for $50.5 million.
2020: Blackstone completed a $14.6 billion recapitalization of BioMed.
Thursday, November 5, 2026: The building opened with a Bandaloop performance Thursday night.
Saturday, November 7, 2026: Bandaloop performs again at noon and 3:00 p.m.
Next year (2027): Workers will start moving into the 16-story building.
Industry Dynamics
The building's blend of commercial lab space and a public performing arts venue reflects a broader pattern in Kendall Square, where life sciences development has increasingly been paired with public-facing amenities. The Platform's partnership model between a developer and a nonprofit arts organization shapes how the neighborhood's new office and lab buildings engage with the public.
The Platform's 400-seat venue and cabaret-style stage open public performance access to Kendall Square audiences in a space that previously had no dedicated arts venue. Saturday's Bandaloop performances at noon and 3:00 p.m. offer a free-to-view opportunity for people in the area.
The takeaway
The 585 Kendall St. project shows how a life sciences building can share public space with the neighborhood through performance and open areas. Residents and visitors can watch the building's vertical dance programming this weekend.
What happens next
Bandaloop is scheduled to perform again at noon and 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 7, 2026, and workers will begin moving into the building next year.
Further reading
For more on the performance scene, see Dance coverage.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Boston Globe.
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