Navigating the design of a 600-seat opera house

Abstract

Negotiation of a design for a 600-seat opera and chamber music hall presents challenges of dimension. Can the main floor audience enter under the parterre? What is the relationship of the singer to the closest audience members, leaving room for a full-size orchestra? Two full concept designs were carried to fully plausible outcomes to test these questions as well as the question of the resulting acoustic environment in order to arrive at decisions amongst the design team and user groups. The power of auralization and visualization tools was brought to bear on the decision making process, supplementing comprehensive benchmarking studies. While each constituent went into the process with moderately to significant biases, all entered the final discussions having arrived with an open mind about the optimal outcome for the unique circumstances of the project. Communication among the team using the medium of greatest familiarity for multiple constituents led to an outcome that has broad support from the entirety of the design team.