Drama queens: the latest theatre projects
Text by Alun Lennon
19.08.20
Theatre design asks architects to consider a number of questions, one of the most important of which is the relationship between performer and audience. Here, we raise the curtain on five new projects that provide some cogent answers.
Luigi Valente + Mauro Di Bona have transformed the former Saint Rocco’s church in Rotello, Italy, into a theatre and multi-purpose hall. Photo: Stefano Pedretti
Luigi Valente + Mauro Di Bona have transformed the former Saint Rocco’s church in Rotello, Italy, into a theatre and multi-purpose hall. Photo: Stefano Pedretti
×As with most other cultural activities that are designed to be enjoyed communally, visits to the theatre have, in recent times, been – no pun intended – dramatically reduced. And while it may be hard to imagine sitting together in such enclosed spaces for a while, we, nonetheless, present five innovative new theatre projects from across the globe, each in their own way worthy of a standing ovation.
01
Zuidplein Theatre
Rotterdam, Netherlands
Project by De Zwarte Hond
Zuidplein Theatre forms part of Hart van Zuid, a region-wide public-private partnership development focused around the Zuidplein and the Ahoy events complex. Zuidplein Theatre is the second project to be completed.
Photos: Scagliola Brakkee
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02
Wuxi Taihu Show Theatre
Jiangsu Province, China
Project by SCA | Steven Chilton Architects
Located close to Lake Taihu in Wuxi, Jiangsu Province, China, the Wuxi Taihu Show Theatre concept was inspired by the Sea of Bamboo Park in Yixing, the largest bamboo forest in China. The 2000 seat theatre has been designed to house a permanent water show by Franco Dragone
Photos: Kris Provoost
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03
Coca-Cola Stage at the Alliance Theatre
Atlanta, United States
Project by Trahan Architects
From concept to construction the Alliance Theatre project demonstrates innovation through collaboration between Artist, Architect, & Fabricator. The result is a series of beautiful steam-bent millwork guardrails and balconies that merge handcraft with mass production.
Photos: Leonid Furmansky
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04
Plywood Theatre
Saint Petersburg, Russian Federation
Project by Archattacka
The Plywood Theatre is a theatre inside a theatre, a game with space, beyond the boundaries of so-called ‘common sense’. Installed inside the main building of the Bolshoi Drama Theatre in March of 2019, it celebrates the 100th anniversary of the theatre.
Photos: S. Misenko
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05
Restoration and transformation of St. Rocco’s church into a theatre
Rotello, Italy
Project by Luigi Valente + Mauro Di Bona
The aim of the project was the functional restoration of the former Saint Rocco’s church for cultural purposes – transforming it into a permanent theatre and a multi-purpose hall.
Photos: Stefano Pedretti
© Architonic
