Esplanade— Theatres on the Bay Performing Arts Centre. The centre, constructed at a cost of over $600 million, was opened with a 3- week gala festival that started on 12 October 2002. The idea of creating a centre for the performing arts in Singapore was mooted in the 1970s, but it was not until 1989, when the Advisory Council on Culture and the Arts, chaired by then Deputy Prime Minister Ong Teng Cheong, that details for the centre began to take shape.

Architects Michael Wilford and Partners (based in London), and DP Architects (based in Singapore), designed the Esplanade. The overall design comprises the theatre, concert hall, and outer building. The theatre and concert hall are encased under two superstructures made of double- glazed laminated glass and aluminium sunshades. The triangular aluminium sunshades on the cladding have prompted Singaporeans to affectionately dub the Esplanade ‘Durians’.

The two main venues, the theatre and concert hall, are accessed via the concourse.

The venues, as well as the concourse, are acoustically isolated from each other. The venues sit on pads made of rubber and steel. The rubber pads are also placed under the cladding structures. These pads help minimize vibration and external noise from the car park below and from inclement weather above.

The seats in the theatre are arranged in a horseshoe, in the style of traditional Italian opera houses. This ensures that everyone in the audience has a good view of the stage. The theatre has three stages.

A sprung floor, designed to prevent injuries to performers, may be deployed during dance performances. The theatre also has a fly tower that contains bars that facilitate the suspension of scenery, lighting, and even performers. The theatre has seen locally produced performances such as Forbidden City: Portrait of an Empress (Singapore Repertory Theatre Company) and international productions such as West Side Story (Sundance Productions).

The acoustics in the hall was designed by Russell Johnson of Artec Consultants Inc, USA. The acoustic characteristics in the hall can be adjusted to accommodate a range of musical performances from classical solo recitals to rock concerts. The reverberation chamber spans three floors and encircles the hall. Computer- controlled doors open or seal parts of the chamber to vary the reverberation quality. The ceiling has an acoustic canopy that allows musicians to hear themselves perform. The centrepiece of the hall is the pipe organ built by Johannes Klais Orgelbau of Germany. The Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) regularly performs in the hall.

Photo credit: The Esplanade Co. Ltd