A unique project in the American theater community, this new installation brings together two state-of-the-art theaters, the company's first dedicated rehearsal space, offices, an educational and community space, on-site workshops for sets, props and costumes, eight guest artist apartments, three-level outdoor terraces and an all-day cafe / bar, all in an attractive neighborhood between downtown Fayetteville Square and the University of Arkansas campus.
"Thanks to the support of the Walton Family Foundation's Design Excellence Program for the creation of excellent public buildings, we were able to work with our 'dream team' of architects and theater designers at Marvel & Charcoalblue", said Martin Miller, general manager of Theater Squared. “Our community loves the way this place is connected with the city center, in an accessible but innovative organic materiality, transparency towards the street and an ethic of openness to all. "
Built by Baldwin & Shell, the theater sees its two volumes wrapped in architectural concrete. The main stage is designed for perfect sound insulation, and the art spaces innovatively imagined by Marvel Architects and Charcoalblue, far from being concealed, actually protrude from the facade. The studio, the rehearsal space and the main stage are all clearly visible from the street, so that no matter where the observer is, it becomes clear to them that the vocation of the building is to create and to live an intense theatrical experience. The new theater was therefore designed to be perfectly silent, with 24-inch walls and spaces between steel and concrete that prevent vibrations from spreading. Even the air conditioning system has been designed to be completely silent. The stage and seats in the West Theater have been designed so that a person speaking at a normal volume on stage can be fully audible from any seat in the theater, including from the balcony.
Thought out for sustainability, the project even exceeds national standards with reused building materials, full LED lights, furniture made from on-site trees, and improved services. Behind the building, the outdoor patio serving the new artist-only apartments is constructed from bricks salvaged from a 150-year-old structure that once stood near the old Fayetteville depot. Concrete cast between Arkansas pine planks and Kebony Shou Sugi Ban modified wood, charred by Delta Millworks, form the facade of the building. After the concrete was poured, the pine was reused as an interior finish in the theater and the Spring rehearsal room.
With the new Theater Squared building as its primary cultural asset, the Town of Fayetteville also received a Design Excellence grant to develop a series of open spaces within a cultural corridor. interactive area of nearly 5 hectares, thus creating a fully integrated artistic district for the community.