Charles W. Eisemann Center for Performing Arts
Richardson, Tex.
RTKL Associates

This performing arts center jump-starts a city’s cultural focus

© Charles Davis Smith

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This regional performing arts center, located in the heart of a high-tech telecom corridor, contains three primary spaces. A 1,550-seat hall, suitable for symphonic, drama and dance performances, represents the main venue. Its interior architectural treatment, with wood-clad walls sculpted according to acoustical requirements, reflects the restrained and elegant character required for such a space. The depth of the stage allows for the presence of an orchestra pit and lift, trap space, a wood-sprung floor, and adjacent piano storage. A second venue seats 350 and is flexible in character, accommodating chamber music as well as smaller productions. Its exposed catwalks, free-floating acoustical clouds, and overall architectural treatment reinforce the notion of flexibility and dynamism of the space. Lastly, a multipurpose hall seating up to 240 patrons provides a space for smaller gatherings.

A dramatic lobby, mediating among the performance spaces and the adjacent public plaza, connects the venues on three levels. A 42-foot-high, glass wall encloses the south and southwest sides of the lobby, drawing into the building the intense light and long vistas of the prairie. Exposed cast-in-place concrete, clear glass, limestone walls, terrazzo floors, and natural wood give this public building an appropriate sense of openness and permanence.

As a cultural focus of the telecom corridor, the Eisemann Center is served by a new DART light rail station and is surrounded by a two-acre public plaza featuring hotel, office, residential, and mixed-use buildings.

Formal name of Project:
Charles W. Eisemann Center for Performing Arts

Location:
Richardson, Tex.

Gross square footage:
116,000 sq. ft.

Total construction cost:
$43 million

Owner:
City of Richardson

Architect:
RTKL Associates
1717 Pacific Avenue
Dallas, TX 75201
(214) 871-8877 main
(214) 871-7023 fax
www.rtkl.com