Project Description
Located at the southern end of campus, Auburn University’s new Performing Arts Center together with the Julie Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art defines the Cultural Arts District and establishes the southern gateway to campus.
The performing arts center is organized around two primary venues; a 1,200 seat multi-purpose performance hall and a 250-seat flexible venue. These two venues are linked with a transparent multi-story lobby oriented towards the art museum and major campus entry. Efficient back-of-house programming and design adjacencies allow these critical support spaces to serve both venues, while still serving the performer’s important pre/post-performance needs.
The 1,200-seat multi-purpose hall has been designed with natural, variable acoustics, orchestra pit/lift, adjustable proscenium, with a stage (and stagehouse) to accommodate a full range of performers from a small ensemble or dance troupe, to a full symphony orchestra and chorus, to touring Broadway shows.
The second venue is intended to serve a variety of needs from rehearsal space, banqueting/event space (working in concert with the lobby and outdoor “porch”), and of course, performance space. The second venue will not only facilitate the technical needs of a multi-media experimental theatre, but also has the additional feature of operable “hanger-type” doors that allow for performers to play to an outdoor “lawn” with a capacity of over 2,500 concert goers. The bidding for Site Development will begin in July 2017 with full bidding to follow in September 2017 for an estimated completion of the project in the Fall of 2019. The project is designed to achieve LEED Silver Certification.