22 - Arts centres and studio theatres

Abstract

The term arts center is not a very precise one; it is applied to a range of hybrid enterprises, which may include performing arts, exhibitions and educational activities such as classes in the arts and crafts. Some arts centers are purely professional, for example, the Barbican in London, but most are community-based and include both amateur and professional artists and performers. Unless it originated as a theater, the performance space is likely to be of the drama-studio type, adaptable, fairly small, say two or three hundred seats, and without much concession to comfort. An austere character with the entire works showing is all a part of the image of the studio theater. The great advantage of an arts centre is that it provides a meeting place for people interested in many different aspects of the arts. However, these multifarious activities are not always compatible. There are a number of criteria to be met in a successful studio theater depending upon the activities for which it is to be used and the policy of the company using it. These include height, floor, sightlines, storage, circulation and access, seating, lighting, and sound. A stage-lighting system is probably best handled by installing a grid over the entire area from which lanterns can be suspended where needed. Ideally the grid should be accessible from lighting galleries above it or integrated with it.