Project Outline: Theater Collaboration

Architecture and theater have a surprising amount of commonality when explored on a theoretical level. Ideas of narrative, experience, and sense of place, both emotional and physical, are central to both.  Both can act as symbols of their time and place.

To explore these commonalities, we will work directly with a playwright to design a space for a play, while he writes a play for a space. Rather than one responding to a finished product from the other, the two processes, designing and writing, will take place simultaneously. A continuous exchange of ideas and information will allow us to develop a product that is unique in its complete holistic exploration of concepts common to both theater and architecture.

The play will explore the ideas of intimacy, comfort, and the line between public and private. The first and most obvious hurdle from a design standpoint is how to tempt someone into such a space, and then from the plays perspective, how to hold them there until the concepts are fully explored by the space and the play. Learning how to tackle these challenges on a small scale will better prepare us to deal with similar issues in later work.

Their exists an intellectual challenge of direct collaboration in which neither party is the “client” or “boss.” How the lines of responsibility and control are drawn will be a fascinating experience and the documentation of this could potentially be a worthwhile experience in its own right.

The independent study will be based on conducting design research through a cross disciplinary dialogue. In the discussion and collaboration with a playwright, standards or customary methods of our known design experience will change. Approaching the design process through methods of a constant exchange of built and theoretical discussions and questions, it is hoped that a unique process of design will produce a unique result.

Our goal is to be able to develop an understanding and experience of a collaborative, holistic design process. In working in tandem with a playwright, the standard methods of design will come into question, allowing for an exploration unique to my educational experience.

The development, realization, and documentation of the microstructure theater space and corresponding play will provide a set of tangible results as physical objects, lending themselves to a critique and commentary on our process of discovery and comprehension. Taking part in a process that requires collaboration, discussion, review, and guidance, the project will constantly cause us to reflect on decisions made, and with tangible results at hand, rethink actions and thoughts.