ARCHITECTS CASE STUDY
TOM PATTERSON THEATRE
A STATE-OF-THE-ART VENUE
The new Tom Patterson Theatre at the Stratford Festival is a highly anticipated addition to the Canadian cultural landscape . Designed by Siamak Hariri , founding partner with Hariri Pontarini Architects , this shimmering , state-of-the-art venue embraces its riverside park setting .
Hariri said the festival ’ s ambitions set a high bar for the project , which the Toronto-based practice won in an international design competition . “ They wanted an exceptional building with new programs that would enhance the festival and this community for decades to come ,” said Hariri . “ We sought to create an emotional experience through architecture that complements the magic of transcendent works of theatrical performance .”
The 7,150sm ( 77,000sf ) theatre is situated on the banks of the Avon River in Stratford , Ontario . Vibrant transparency runs its entire length with a lustrous façade that ebbs and flows in step with the river . This organic , curvilinear form creates quiet folds and eddies of encounter across a sequence of carefully considered spaces that flow from one to another . Panoramic garden and river views dissolve the line between indoors and out in this LEED Gold registered design .
Set against the sinuous veil of the bronze mullioned curtain wall that defines the public rooms , the horseshoe-shaped theatre is wrapped in gently curving walls of sand cast brick with mortar smooth to the surface to resemble stone . Inside the wood-lined auditorium , 600 custom seats surround an elongated thrust stage , creating a theatrical setting of unparalleled intimacy and acoustic excellence .
Close collaboration with the festival ’ s set and technical designers optimized the versatile performance space to meet the demands of a repertory schedule where different shows can run on the same day . Curved walls and reflectors beneath catwalks support the finely-tuned acoustics in a room that can achieve total sound isolation as well as total darkness .
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