Steven Chilton Architects designs "bamboo forest" theatre in China
by Andrew Manns | 12 Oct 2018
Steven Chilton Architects (SCA) have revealed their design for the Wuxi Show Theatre in Wuxi, China.
The firm, which has been shortlisted for this year’s World Architecture Festival Future Project Award, were inspired by the largest bamboo forest in China: the Sea of Bamboo Park in Yixing.
The 2,000-person capacity theatre uses tightly packed white columns and a canopy made from gold anodised aluminium louvers to simulate the appearance of dense undergrowth.
According to SCA, at night the "building envelop is illuminated from below, becoming an ethereal beacon, glimpsed between the forest of 'bamboo' columns, drawing spectators and audience in from across the lake and surrounding development".
Set to open in 2019, the Wuxi-based building will accommodate "The House of Dancing Water" a water show by Belgian stage director Franco Dragone.
Steven Chilton Architects Wuxi water show theatre bamboo
Thin white columns create the appearance of a dense forest. Credit: Courtesy of Steven Chilton Architects
SCA was inspired by the Sea of Bamboo Park in Yixing, the largest bamboo forest in China. Credit: Courtesy of Steven Chilton Architects
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