- Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts
-
Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts General information Type Performing arts center Architectural style Structural Expressionism Location Kansas City, Missouri Coordinates 39°05′37″N 94°35′13″W / 39.0936981°N 94.5868242°W Construction started October 6, 2006 Completed Fall 2011 Inaugurated September 16, 2011 Cost $415 million Technical details Floor area 13 acres (53,000 m2) Design and construction Architect Moshe Safdie Other designers Theatre Projects[1] Website www.kauffmancenter.org The Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts is a newly inaugurated performing arts center in downtown Kansas City, Missouri, USA, at 16th and Broadway near the Power & Light District, the Sprint Center and the Crossroads Arts District. Its construction was a major part of the ongoing redevelopment of downtown Kansas City.
The Center was created as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Unlike some other major civic construction projects, no taxpayer funds went into its construction.[2] The City of Kansas City, however, built and operates a parking garage at the Center.[2]
It is performance home to the Kansas City Symphony, the Lyric Opera of Kansas City, and the Kansas City Ballet which in the past performed at the Lyric Theatre (Kansas City, Missouri), eight blocks north of the center.
Contents
Construction
Ground was broken on October 6, 2006, and the Kauffman Center held its grand opening on September 16, 17 and 18, 2011.[2] The Center itself is an approximately 285,000 square foot (26,500 m2) facility with two sophisticated performance venues: the 1,800-seat proscenium-style Muriel Kauffman Theatre and 1,600-seat concert Helzberg Hall. The Kauffman Center covers 13 acres (53,000 m2), including landscaped grounds over a 1,000-space underground parking garage.[2] The technical requirements and exacting standards required of a facility like the Kauffman Center made it one of the most complex structures in the world to design and build. The cost of the project was approximately $413 million, including a $40 million operating endowment.
Designers and Builder
The Kauffman Center was designed by lead architect Moshe Safdie,[3] acoustician Yasuhisa Toyota,[4] theater consultant Richard Pilbrow,[1] and engineering firm Arup.[5] Local firm BNIM was the executive architect. Lead contractor was J.E. Dunn Construction Group[6] of Kansas City.
Architecture
The structure of the Kauffman Center is formed by a series of undulating vertical segments of a circle, forming the northern container of the Muriel Kauffman Theatre's backstage, and Helzberg Hall. They form an ascending, segmented, gently curving, crown to the building. From the crest, the roof descends in a curve following the geometry of a torus of light cables, metal and glass structure toward the South. The tensile forces of the suspended glass roof of the foyer are counteracted by a series of cables tying down the structure to anchors at the entrance terrace. The curved, segmented northern walls are sheathed with stainless steel and punctuated by perpendicular, acid-etched, limestone-colored, pre-cast concrete walls. The theater facades are sheathed with beechwood panels forming continuous, curved, stacked balconies. The various lounges form sculptural shapes visible under the glass foyer structure.[7]
Performance Facilities
The Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts houses two performance halls:[2]
- The Muriel Kauffman Theatre is an 1,800-seat proscenium-style theater for general theatrical performances, ballet and opera.[2]
- The Helzberg Hall is a 1,600-seat concert hall.[2] It features vineyard-style seating on all four sides of the stage. It also contains a 75-stop, 102-rank pipe organ built by the firm Casavant Frères in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec, Canada.[8]
The two venues are joined by the Brandmeyer Great Hall with an expansive view to the south. The hall serves as a lobby for patrons on performance nights and is also available for special events.
See also
External links
References
- ^ a b Theatre Projects
- ^ a b c d e f g Visit KC - Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts
- ^ Moshe Safdie & Associates
- ^ Nagata Acoustics
- ^ Arup
- ^ J.E. Dunn
- ^ http://www.arcspace.com/architects/Safdie/kauffman/kauffman.html
- ^ "The Son of All Pipe Organs," Kansas City Star, May 20, 2007
The Kansas City Star • Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts • Freight House • Monroe Hotel • Stuart Hall Building • TWA Corporate Headquarters' Building • Western Auto BuildingCategories:- Performing arts centers in Missouri
- Culture of Kansas City, Missouri
- Buildings and structures in Kansas City, Missouri
- Buildings and structures under construction in the United States
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
