As designers, we look to inform the design process with an understanding of purpose and function before creating a concept. How will this building be used? Who will be using it? How can we create long-term value for our client? What precedents are there? This informed approach was taken in the design for East Central High School’s Performing Arts Center in San Antonio.
For more than 15 years, LPA has completed many projects for the East Central Independent School District (ECISD), and the Performing Arts Center is just one example of how a research-based, collaborative process can improve outcomes.Totaling 37,500 square feet, the building design includes a 1,000-seat auditorium with lobby and stage 6,800 square feet of theater program space with dressing rooms, costume/scene shop, full-scale rehearsal room, 3,250 square feet of choir space for an ensemble, sound/recording, uniform and office space as well as support areas such as concessions, restrooms and box office.
Inspired by the Arts
The design is inspired by the entire process of a theatrical performance production. At the project inception, LPA performed extensive research on the process of a theatrical production—from script writing and rehearsals to stage construction and performances. We designed the Performing Arts Center to display the timeline of the theatrical process.
The building is a literal reflection of this timeline, allowing the building to function as a teaching tool for the students and the community. At each phase in a production, the building displays careful curated and sequenced views in and out, simultaneously celebrating the process of a theater production and creating a “feedback loop” around the auditorium. This approach provides a public connection into each phase, announcing the dynamic act of theater production as just as important as the performance itself.
A Building with No Back
In the conceptual design phase, the integrated team conducted extensive site analysis to understand how the building was impacted by traffic flow, climate and the elements. In summary, this site had no natural “service zone”—a full chorus of circulation passed around each side of the building—LPA embraced the challenge of developing a “building with no back” by exposing it to both the campus and the community.
Though the performing arts center will be located on the school’s campus, it will be used by the entire district, and it is important that the building is recognized as a community resource.
Balancing Sun and Shade
East- and west-facing vertical fins and deep roof overhangs are thoughtfully positioned to mitigate the harsh South Texas sun and heat gain. Solar analysis was used to determine the appropriate location, spacing and depth of those elements in design. The emphasis on daylighting in key areas such as the lobby and rehearsal room will provide long-term cost savings in terms of a lower lighting load on the building.
Commitment to Cost-Saving
Being on budget and cost-effective is always part of our strategic approach to educational design. The careful organization of spaces around a focused circulation corridor yielded a building that was 9% more efficient than the projected square footage.
The auditorium itself directly benefited from the costs savings yielded, where top of the line acoustics and building technology are essential for future proofing the facility. We also thoughtfully used structurally-interrupted storefront instead of curtain wall to manage the cost of the full-height glass used throughout the space.
The Movement of Sound
The design team’s research into the science of acoustics directly shaped the auditorium interior. Acoustical diffusion and dispersion were needed in key areas. The accordion walls along the interior vary to reflect these acoustical necessities, reinforcing the idea that a building can be a teaching tool for the students.
The Performing Arts Center project at East Central High School is the final piece of a master plan for of the campus that has been implemented through two different bond issues over a 10-year period. The project is estimated to break ground this summer and will celebrate the dynamic art of theater production with the campus and community while showcasing innovative design solutions.
Mark Oppelt, Principal at LPA San Antonio, has provided project design and management expertise to more than 350 Texas K-12 schools, civic and religious project in the San Antonio.
Related Stories
| Nov 18, 2014
Fan of the High Line? Check out NYC's next public park plan (hint: it floats)
Backed by billionaire Barry Diller, the $170 million "floating park" is planned for the Hudson River, and will contain wooded areas and three performance venues.
| Nov 17, 2014
'Folded facade' proposal wins cultural arts center competition in South Korea
The winning scheme by Seoul-based Designcamp Moonpark features a dramatic folded facade that takes visual cues from the landscape.
| Oct 23, 2014
China's 'weird' buildings: President Xi Jinping wants no more of them
During a literary symposium in Beijing, Chinese President Xi Jinping urged architects, authors, actors, and other artists to produce work with "artistic and moral value."
| Oct 20, 2014
UK's best new building: Everyman Theatre wins RIBA Stirling Prize 2014
The new Everyman Theatre in Liverpool by Haworth Tompkins has won the coveted RIBA Stirling Prize 2014 for the best building of the year. Now in its 19th year, the RIBA Stirling Prize is the UK’s most prestigious architecture prize.
| Oct 16, 2014
Perkins+Will white paper examines alternatives to flame retardant building materials
The white paper includes a list of 193 flame retardants, including 29 discovered in building and household products, 50 found in the indoor environment, and 33 in human blood, milk, and tissues.
| Oct 15, 2014
Harvard launches ‘design-centric’ center for green buildings and cities
The impetus behind Harvard's Center for Green Buildings and Cities is what the design school’s dean, Mohsen Mostafavi, describes as a “rapidly urbanizing global economy,” in which cities are building new structures “on a massive scale.”
| Oct 12, 2014
AIA 2030 commitment: Five years on, are we any closer to net-zero?
This year marks the fifth anniversary of the American Institute of Architects’ effort to have architecture firms voluntarily pledge net-zero energy design for all their buildings by 2030.
| Oct 2, 2014
Budget busters: Report details 24 of the world's most obscenely over-budget construction projects
Montreal's Olympic Stadium and the Sydney Opera House are among the landmark projects to bust their budgets, according to a new interactive graph by Podio.
| Sep 24, 2014
Architecture billings see continued strength, led by institutional sector
On the heels of recording its strongest pace of growth since 2007, there continues to be an increasing level of demand for design services signaled in the latest Architecture Billings Index.