Eleazer and Trahan approached Pliessnig with the idea. “Matthias immediately saw how the room was an immersive experience and was interested in collaborating on the project,” Eleazer says. “Visualizing the room formed from wood strips got back to the origin of the wooden bowl and solved all the complex geometries.”
To determine project feasibility, Pliessnig made 13 physical full-scale mockups of selected architectural features. He cut stock and steam bent the wooden strips in various sizes. The ideal medium was 1/2-inch by 1/2-inch strands of rift sawn oak derived from fallen trees.
Trahan’s research uncovered historic Southern homes and creole cottages with spiral staircase handrails crafted from pie-wedge-shaped sections of wood. Eleazer developed a detail of the handrails in a computer model. He then asked Pliessnig to explore the idea of making the handrails and the sections where the front lattice rises up over to the backside lattice out of steam-bent wedges of oak.
Another challenge came in the form of the balcony’s front. Making the balcony out of open slats would create transparency so people could see each other. But they discovered that to meet acoustic needs, the team would have had to add insulation, which would destroy the appearance of the wooden forms. Pliessnig invented a unique curved balcony where the undulations that curve forward are solid strips of wood but where the undulations cup back, the slats are open. The innovative pattern fixed the acoustic issue.
“We had many intensive moments trying to solve all these problems,” Eleazer remembers. “We were working together to combine acoustics, art and architecture. Matthias is a true co-designer of aspects of the room. He infused the project with incredible intelligence and artistry.”
PROCESS OF DISCOVERY
Millwork fabrication for the project, however, required a new addition to the team. Trahan Architects brought in CW Keller Associates, and its crew used a world-class process of digital imaging to map out every strip of wood into a computer. CW Keller members happened to be doing an internship on augmented reality at the time and they experimented with the process through 3D laser projection so each piece could be made by the millworkers.
The process was accurate, cost-effective and produced no waste because the team basically “drew lines in the air” rather than forming models that would ultimately need to be discarded. The final project includes more than 100,000 linear feet of millwork.
“We didn’t know how we would achieve the end result, and we learned as the process evolved. It was a perfect reflection of the work we did with Matthias,” Eleazer says. “In construction, it can be harder to innovate because of the legal and financing realities. As a result, a fabricator had never applied this cutting-edge technology to the real-world application of construction in this way.”
The renovation of the Coca-Cola Stage delivers a space that is inclusive, visually striking and a rich, tactile experience for patrons. Eleazer appreciates that creating something unique from scratch is much more difficult, but he encourages his profession to find new ways of inventing architecture.
“Have strength in your conviction because the idea that’s driving you and driving the project is a very powerful thing,” he affirms. “The idea is not invalidated if you don’t know how to do it. Keep the idea, keep asking questions and you’ll figure it out.”
PHOTOS: LEONID FURMANSKY
Retrofit Team
ARCHITECT: Trahan Architects
- Victor F. “Trey” Trahan, FAIA
- Leigh Breslau
- Scott Melançon, AIA
- Brad McWhirter, AIA
- Robbie Eleazer, AIA
- James Babin, AIA
- Conway Pedron, AIA
- Ayesha Husain
- Sarah Hussaini
- Wenyun Qian, AIA
- Andrew Fu
STEAM-BENT WOOD DESIGNER: Matthias Pliessnig
ARCHITECTURAL MILLWORK FABRICATOR: CW Keller Associates
STRUCTURAL ENGINEER: Uzun+Case
CONSULTANT: Theatre Projects Consultants
ACOUSTIC CONSULTANT: Talaske
LIGHTING DESIGNER: FMS
Materials
THEATER SEATING: Series Seating
ACOUSTIC PANELS: Novawall with Facing Fabric from Maharam
THEATER CURTAINS: Rose Brand
LIFE-SAFETY DEVICES: Concealite
EXIT SIGNS: LELU by Architectural Safety Components
CEILING PANELS: Celebration Snap-in Metal Panels by USG
LIGHTING: Aculux
CERAMIC TILE: Florida Tile Inc.
WOOD DOORS: SingCore
DOOR HARDWARE: TK Collection by 12th Avenue Iron