Residents of ‘s-Hertogenbosch, a municipality in the southern Netherlands, voted in favor of Amsterdam-based UNStudio’s design proposal for a new theater that will replace an existing, 1970s-era theater in Den Bosch, the colloquial name of this 141,000-person city.
The design, called Theater on the Parade, received 57% of 2,681 votes cast online, beating out Rotterdam-based Ector Hoogstad Architects’ more classical, brick-structured proposal. (The city also surveyed 5,000 residents.) The public’s vote, which was open to all local residents over 12 years old and ran through June 7, counted toward 50% of the municipality’s final decision.
The two finalists had been selected by a panel of judges.
UNStudio’s design for the 10,731-sm (115,500-sf) building integrates the theater’s four separate but connected volumes into its adjacent surroundings, which include a public square and St. John’s Cathedral. ArchDaily reports that the theater’s two auditoriums will feature natural stone facades, while the four-level, 19-meter-high public foyers will be wrapped in glass so the entire building becomes a natural extension of the square. The larger auditorium will be sunken slightly so as not to obscure the sightlines of the cathedral.
“Ideas surrounding sensation and cultural expression form the conceptual basis of the design,” explained Ben van Berkel, Founder and Principal of UNStudio.
Construction is scheduled to begin in 2017, and the project is scheduled for completion by 2020. No cost estimates were released.
The larger auditorium will seat 950 and is designed with walls covered with wooden lamellas for enhanced acoustics. The smaller, 420-seat auditorium, called Paradezaal, will be a flexible space and retractable seating to accommodate different kinds of events.
Related Stories
| Jul 23, 2014
Architecture Billings Index up nearly a point in June
AIA reported the June ABI score was 53.5, up from a mark of 52.6 in May.
| Jul 21, 2014
Economists ponder uneven recovery, weigh benefits of big infrastructure [2014 Giants 300 Report]
According to expert forecasters, multifamily projects, the Panama Canal expansion, and the petroleum industry’s “shale gale” could be saving graces for commercial AEC firms seeking growth opportunities in an economy that’s provided its share of recent disappointments.
| Jul 18, 2014
Contractors warm up to new technologies, invent new management schemes [2014 Giants 300 Report]
“UAV.” “LATISTA.” “CMST.” If BD+C Giants 300 contractors have anything to say about it, these new terms may someday be as well known as “BIM” or “LEED.” Here’s a sampling of what Giant GCs and CMs are doing by way of technological and managerial innovation.
| Jul 18, 2014
Top Construction Management Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Jacobs, Barton Malow, Hill International top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest construction management and project management firms in the United States.
| Jul 18, 2014
Top Contractors [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Turner, Whiting-Turner, Skanska top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest contractors in the United States.
| Jul 18, 2014
Engineering firms look to bolster growth through new services, technology [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Following solid revenue growth in 2013, the majority of U.S.-based engineering and engineering/architecture firms expect more of the same this year, according to BD+C’s 2014 Giants 300 report.
| Jul 18, 2014
Top Engineering/Architecture Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Jacobs, AECOM, Parsons Brinckerhoff top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest engineering/architecture firms in the United States.
| Jul 18, 2014
Top Engineering Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Fluor, Arup, Day & Zimmermann top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest engineering firms in the United States.
| Jul 18, 2014
Top Architecture Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Gensler, Perkins+Will, NBBJ top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest architecture firms in the United States.
| Jul 18, 2014
2014 Giants 300 Report
Building Design+Construction magazine's annual ranking the nation's largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S.
