State Theatre Review

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STATE THEATRE CENTRERudolf Wentzel

In June 2005 the Minister for Culture and the Arts Sheila McHale launched a competitionfor the design of a new performing arts venue, the first to be built in Perth in over 30 years.Kerry Hill Architects were awarded the contract after winning a two stage designcompetition in which panellists debated the merits of over 40 entries submitted by localand international firms. The site of the new Theatre Centre was to be the corner of William

and Roe Streets inNorthbridge, in the PerthCultural Centre. Architectswere given the challenge ofdesigning a building thatwas clearly a landmark forthe Cultural Centre whilerespecting the historiccorner treatments and theWilliam Street streetscape.The project was seen fromthe beginning as anintegral part of a wider planto revitalise the PerthCultural Centre.

The competition brief calledfor two adjacent theatrehalls, but the architectschose to take a risk andstack the two halls on topof each other instead. Theresult was two theatrespaces each with aseparate mood bestowedby distinct material choices.

The larger, upstairs theatreseats 575 people while thebasement blackbox


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postmodern agglomeration that is the central TAFE, the theatre building seems positivelypolite. Not content to simply continue the william street elevation, it gently pays homage toit with its own reinterpretation of the veranda. Perhaps owing to the traditional roots oftheatre as artform, the building seems content to embrace a more reservedcontemporariness. The gold cylinders and timber elements project class and sophisticationwithout extending into the realm of the kitsch.

From the beginning, the brief charged the designers withcreating a civic space5, an ambitious task for a meretheatre. Strategies to encourage full activation of theCentre are a priority. reads the brief. The Theatre Centrewas to be a place where the citizens of Perth came toexpress their creativity and be impressed by that ofothers. It was to attract families and city workers whowant to spend time there [and] be a place where they canbe stimulated and inspired by a constantly changing

array of activities and experiences. The building wasalso required to be sustainable by virtue of its flexibility,by providing adaptible spaces that can accommodatemultiple uses and reasonable activity changes over time.

The theatre itself was clearly designed in concert with thetheatrical community. The wood panelling lining thetheatre was toned down at the behest of the artists so asnot to detract from the play, and the design was modifiedto enable extra service access to the backstage for ease

of set transportation. Engagement with the wider community on a day to day basis doesnot seem apparent, however, when visiting the Centre. If community consultation wasundertaken, it doesn't show.

The central courtyard seems clinicaland soulless. The public simply has noreason to venture there. The wholespace is taken up by black walls andcolumns, floored in brown pavers.There is not a single bollard for postingcommunity acts or local events, not a

message board, no drink fountain orwater feature. In fact it is hard toimagine a space less welcoming to thepublic. If inviting buskers, bands orlocal acts into the space was too muchof an undertaking, then some publicbenches could at least have been provided. Trees and plants are also conspicuouslyabsent. The courtyard needs to work as urban space as much as a performance space.6Writes Phill Goldswain in Architecture Australia. To this end, the decision not to install amature jacaranda in the courtyard may be rued.

5 Revitalising The Perth Cultural Centre, 2005,http://www.centrestagedesigncomp.dca.wa.gov.au/StageOneVision.asp

6 Philip Goldswain, State Theatre Centre By Kerry Hill Architects,Architecture Australia 100(2011)


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As an urban space, the Theatre Centre fails. It is hard to have a civic space when the mostbasic prerequisite of civic space, that there be some pedestrian flow, is not met. There isno adjacent cafe, no spilling over of any nearby activities into the central space as washoped by the designers. This is perhaps the fault of events outside the control of thearchitects. The building shines, on the other hand, as a purpose built venue. The drama

and spectacle of the theatre experience is consciously focused and intensified.Underground theatre at the venue is literally underground. The anticipation of a masterfulperformance is skilfully accentuated by the journey up the staircase. Kerry Hill Architectshave succeeded in capturing the sophistication we expect from theatre, producing acontemporary building that is elegant without being excessive, that is cultured yet notkitsch.


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Bibliography

Goldswain, Philip. Centrestage,Architecture Australia 95(2006): 25-28

Goldswain, Philip. State Theatre Centre By Kerry Hill Architects,Architecture Australia 100(2011)

Powell, Robert. Nuanced Materiality, The Architectural Review212(2002): 82

Wiley, John. Kerry Hill Architects,Architectural Design 77(2007): 120

President's Design Award, 2010, http://www.designsingapore.org/pda_public/gallery.aspx?sid=755

Revitalising The Perth Cultural Centre, 2005,http://www.centrestagedesigncomp.dca.wa.gov.au/StageOneVision.asp

Documents

State Theatre Review