Auditorium Development – Refurbish or die?

David Staples questions whether theatres, concert halls and opera houses are doing enough to keep their buildings up to the standards that todays consumers have come to expect.

Visit a modern shopping centre and you will be confronted by marble, fountains, escalators, impressive food courts and a very high-quality environment. Contrast that with the Arndale Centres and shopping precincts of the 1960s and 70s. Retailing has moved on. Retailers and developers know that they have to offer the public a high-quality experience if they are to be attracted to a particular store or shopping mall. There is nothing philanthropic in this upgrading: it is simply a good business decision to attract the public and encourage them to spend.

Similarly restaurants  some may have classic interiors that do not change from decade to decade or even century to century, but others have to upgrade and enhance their surroundings to remain attractive to their diners. Airports are increasingly shopping centres with a couple of runways attached. Space for passengers is constantly being sacrificed in favour of a high-quality retail experience.

Even local authorities are starting to improve the streetscape  a new buzzword covering pavements, signs, lamp-posts, pedestrian crossings, etc. They now know that providing a good-quality environment for the public can cut down crime, improve safety, reassure the public and restore some charm and quality to the built environment.

Limited investment

But what about our theatres, concert halls and opera houses? Are they still providing the public with the quality environment and experience we increasingly take for granted in our everyday lives?

Well, obviously there have been some high profile, high quality and high-priced refurbishments of flagship venues: the Royal Opera House, London Coliseum, Royal Albert Hall and the current works on the Royal Festival Hall  an interestingly London-centric listing, largely funded by the National Lottery. The Theatres Trust recently surveyed the major West End theatres and estimates that some £250m needs to be spent on them to bring them up to an acceptable standard.

Britain has an appalling record of maintaining its stock of theatres. Money is always limited and frequently the priority is to put money into the creative activities on stage  presenting plays, concerts, dance, etc. Money is saved by deferring maintenance, and eventually the organisation runs out of time and the low-cost maintenance that has been deferred for years becomes very high-cost remedial work. The Royal Opera House and London Coliseum had become dire places with terrible working conditions before their recent refurbishments.

Why bother?

So why refurbish our stock of theatre buildings? An obvious reason is to keep them as attractive destinations for the public. As a frequent theatre visitor there are several theatres in the West End where I will simply not attempt to buy a drink at the interval: the process is too long and painful. Other venues across the country offer outdated and worn-out experiences for the public.

A second reason is changes in legislation. Is it still safe to operate your building and the systems in it? Health and safety legislation is rapidly changing and imposing ever more onerous but sensible requirements on owners and operators to protect their employees and visitors to the building. Health and safety issues were significant in the decision to renovate the Birmingham Rep in 1999. Habimah, the National Theatre of Israel has been condemned on many safety and health issues. After many extensions it will close in June 2006 for over a year to be brought up to modern standards.

Another aspect of legislation, as well as good public policy, is provision for disabled people. With an ageing and less able population does your building fulfil their needs?

The six rs
The solution for many arts venues is the six rs: refurbish, renovate, restore, revive, remodel, reconstruct. But what do they mean or imply?

Restore: Your community has a Grade I Listed Building designed by one of the great theatre architects: restoration of the building to its former glory and splendour is the route to pursue. The Georgian Theatre in Richmond, Yorkshire originally opened in 1788, reopened after 115 dark years in 1963 and opened for a third time in 2003 after its exquisite renovation. The more recent, and also Grade 1 listed, 1951 Royal Festival Hall is undergoing a major restoration of this superb example of post-war Festival of Britain architecture.

Refurbish, renovate, or revive: Words with overlapping meanings, they imply a need to revitalise a faded building whose amenities, decorations, etc. are worn out and need renewal. The Crucible Theatre in Sheffield opened in 1971 and is a good example of that wave of theatres from the 1960s and 70s that were built at modest cost and are now looking faded and in need of renewal.

Remodel or reconstruct: Not many people know that the Dunfermline Opera House was demolished after it outlived its purpose in Scotland. It was carefully packed and shipped to Sarasota in Florida where it was recreated as the Harold E and Esther M Mertz Theatre. It is now in nightly use as home to the Asolo Theatre Company. There comes a time when a theatre or concert hall may no longer fulfil the needs of its users or community. Can it be remodelled to create a new, vibrant building? The Odeon Cinema in Peterborough was imaginatively converted by local entrepreneur Peter Boizot into The Broadway and now presents a diverse programme ranging from panto to The Blues Brothers and films on the largest screen outside London.

Careful planning

So, imagine something prompts you to look carefully at your existing building: it could be increasing complaints from the public, a leaking roof, staff and artists concerns, or, even worse, a visit from the Health and Safety Executive. What next?

First, decide on your goals and vision for this refurbishment/renovation project. Very soon you will be swamped by architects, engineers, arts-funding bodies, consultants and business plans. It is all too easy to be overwhelmed with advice and lose sight of your aspirations.

A good refurbishment needs to be a combination of three elements  creativity, achievability and money. Theatre, music, dance, etc. are creative activities and the buildings that house them must exhibit similar creativity in their design, planning and equipment. There is no point in having the most wonderfully creative plan to renovate, restore or remodel your theatre if it is simply not achievable.

Finally, finance is obviously the key to a creative and achievable project. The goal? An opening night and following season in an enhanced building with new and bigger audiences.

David Staples is Managing Director for Theatre Projects Consultants.
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