Bengt Sjostrom Starlight Theatre
BENGT SJOSTROM STARLIGHT THEATRE
Studio Gang
ARCHITECTS
Studio Gang
LOCATION
Rockford, IL, United States
CATEGORY
Theater
PROJECT YEAR
2003
Text description provided by architect.
Rock Valley College wanted to develop a new regional facility for the performing arts at Starlight Theatre to replace an existing outdoor venue.
Expanded facilities and a roof enclosure were needed so that performances could go on without the threat of rainouts.
At the same time, there was a strong desire to maintain the sense of being outdoors. Encompassing over 135,000 S.F., the new theatre and lawn seating maintains 100% accessible
Pathways and strong visual connections to the surrounding campus. Under the folded, origami-like roof, an intimate social setting is created with a porous boundary to the landscape.
The central theatre space forms an unexpected vertical axis to the sky; an observatory to the stars through a kinetic roof that opens in fair weather. Starlight has become a popular regional destination since its opening in 2003.
Working with a modest budget, the strategy was to design a building that could be constructed in phases over three years to allow the College to maintain their summer performance schedule. PHASE 1 included the expanded seating bowl that seats 1100, ticket building, toilet rooms, sculpted landscape and illuminated terraces.
PHASE 2 included the copper-clad proscenium, its rigging and the 30' x 60' translucent sliding stage doors. PHASE 3 included the faceted roof structure of wood and steel. The kinetic center sections open upward like the petals of a flower in a helical order so that each roof petal overlaps its neighbor.
