Boambilly Temporary Playhouse
BDES3027 Architecture Studio 3B
Sydney Harbour Drama House
Semester 2, 2024
“I would like to acknowledge the Gadigal of the Eora Nation, the traditional custodians of this land and pay my respects to the Elders both past and present.”
Introduction to Project:
Precedent Studies:
The Site Boambilly: Boambilly Temporary Playhouse:
The Details: References:
Precedent Buildings: Appendix:
Introduction to Project:
When the Indigenous playwright Robert Merritt entered the now defunct National Black Theatre in Redfern for the première of his 1975 landmark play The Cake Man, he was manacled between two prison guards. 50 years on, Australia is still failing to reconcile the consequences of its colonial history that contributed to Merritt’s incarceration. Boambilly Temporary Theatre aims to bring Merritt’s work back into the national conversation, to work towards an equitable future for all Australians. The temporary nature of the theatre amplifies the engagement with the concepts of the play and an interaction with the harbour at large. A harbour that is in constant flux through the influence of the celestial bodies and climate change. The Boambilly Temporary Theatre acts as a registration of this flux.
Engagement With The Harbour
One of the city of Sydney’s greatest assets, and in many aspects makes it unique in the world, is its harbour. It plays host to many of the public facing events known the world over. Of the 5.3 million residents of Sydney - how many truly engage with the harbour? Only the few and very fortunate have access to it on a daily basis. As a public asset it must remain accessible and equitable for all, and Boambilly Temporary Playhouse aims to reconnect all Sydneysider’s with their harbour.
The inequality of access to the Sydney Harbour stems from a multitude of courses from the demographic shifts as heavy industry move away from the harbour’s edge; with their related jobs following suit, the gentrification of the inner city working class neighborhoods, to the hostile infrastructure that purposefully restricts access to the harbour; to those from the outer suburbs. One project may never be able to solve all of these ingrained issues, but this project aims to bring attention of these issues to the fore.
Need For A Theatre
At the beginning of any project, an Architect who wishes to act in a responsible manner should determine the actual need and if so what scale of built intervention is required in response of the brief. Through the mapping of Sydney’s existing theatres and an investigation of the habits and engagement of Sydneysider’s with the established theatre scene, it was deemed that the most appropriate response to the project brief was a temporary theatre. As Sydney struggles to maintain the number of its permanent theatre’s. The temporary nature of the Boambilly Temporary Playhouse is in direct response to this analysis.
Sydney Harbour is in a state of consent flux. From the ever present rhythm of the ebb and flood of the tide, to the changing level of the sea in response to climatic shifts. For millennia, the Gadigal people of the Eora nation lived with and responded to the shifts in sea levels. From the oral histories of the coming of Guwarra (the whale) as the rapid rise in sea level that flooded the Parramatta river valley to form what is now Sydney Harbour at the end of the last glacial maximum 14,500 years ago. During these period’s of change, it has always been humans adapting to the naturally occurring shifts in climate. However the change that we are bearing witness to now is in response to human impact on the environment. If we do not make the urgently required changes needed to protect our environments, by 2150 Boambilly will be lost to the rising sea levels. In recognition of this vulnerable state, that Boambilly and the harbour at large finds itself. Boambilly Temporary Playhouse exists at the mercy of the seal level, for a period of 29 days the built intervention will respond to the rhythms of the harbour until finally it will be inundated by the rising sea and lost to time.
Celestial Relationships
One of the daily rhythms at play in Sydney Harbour that largely goes unobserved is the daily dance of our celestial bodies. The tidal pattens of the harbour is a complex inter-related influence of the Sun, Moon, and Earths rotation, size and depth of the ocean that is ever present.
Boambilly Temporary Playhouse will bear witness to. The built intervention responds to the ebbs and floods of the harbour and act as a marker of the tidal shifts. These shifts then influence the programmatic response of the theatre changing from public to private modes.
The specificity of the project required a very specific performance. Through the research for my Architectural History 3 essay’s, became aware of the group of Indigenous Activists working towards agency within Redfern throughout the 1970’s. Their legacies include the Aboriginal Legal Service, Aboriginal Health Service and Aboriginal Housing Company responsible for the largest urban land rights claim in Australian history. I want to continue to explore the themes of my history essay’s into my graduate studio design. The National Black Theatre operated between 1972 to 1977, founded and supported by the Redfern Indigenous Activists. In 1975, the theatre staged the first performance of Robert Merritt’s ground breaking play The Cake Man. The first play written, published, and televised in Australia by an Indigenous playwright. This allowed for the themes of indignity, injustice and exploitation of life on the missions of Indigenous Peoples, to reach a wider audience than any other piece of theatre up until that time. Boambilly Temporary Playhouse offers a setting for truth telling through the medium of Merritt’s words in the quest to reconcile with the pain and damage inflicted upon Indigenous People from the colonisation of the lands now known as Australia.
Precedent Studies:
From early interrogations of the project brief I was aware that I wanted the project’s built intervention to be as minimal as possible. With this in mind when it came to my precedent studies, I looked outside of the A-typical theatre typologies. The Bruder Klaus Field Chapel is a work of architecture that explores the boundaries of the Architects role in creating spaces for performance. In the case of Bruder Klaus Field Chapel, a religious performance and the spaces as a performance unto itself. Zumthor’s skillful material exploration and interaction and control of lights, results in an elevation of its form and experience. Zumthor’s use of rammed concrete a material more akin to Roman era concrete than to its modern equivalent, requires a different construction method to the typical concrete method. The 24 layers, one layer per day result in stratification of the exterior, offering a clear registration of both material, timing and construction technique. This understanding offers an architectural poetic expression.
The concept of a built intervention as a work of theatre unto itself was explored further by Marc van Vliet’s de Streken. The way it interacts with it’s environment as a registration of the tidal rhythms of the Dutch mud flats. To the alignment of the solar axis to act as a physical registration of the summer solstice. de Streken inspired this projects exploration with the interaction of the rhythms of it’s environment and axis. The temporary nature of van Vliet’s work fostered the idea to explore the possibilities that this project could and should be a temporary intervention.
I saw this project not only as the culmination of the Bachelor of Design in Architecture but also of the opportunity to express my position on Architecture and my role within it. A position that has been moulded my experiences, my upbringing, and education. When experimenting with the temporal nature of this project, it allowed me to reflect upon previous work I had undertaken in BDES2024 Art Processes. And to explore further the concepts of how the temporary nature of object effects our perception of that object. In Fleeting Moment, I investigate whether the shift in materiality of a Lily changes how we experience and perceive a Lily. This shift from the temporary to the permanent is achieved through materials. The project intends to amplify the experience of not only the Architecture of the project but also the experience of the performance it is designed to house, not through a shift in material but through time. Inverting the typical typology of the permanent theatre to that of a temporary form.
The topography of the site had a profound bearing on selecting Boambilly for this project’s location. The clear registration of the sea levels in flux gave me an insight into what may have come before, and what the future of Boambilly will look like without significant action from all. The natural amphitheater with the history of the harbour playing out in front of you, with Boambilly sitting center stage. It was a fitting location for a theatre to be placed, to stage a story of equal importance. The beauty and fragility of the site spoke to the importance of a temporary intervention to have people of all background’s engage with the harbour and its unnoticed rhymes.
The final sighting for project’s built intervention came through studying the sites topography, the established circulation between the existing amenities, and the micro climate of Boambilly itself. With a building sited upon the water, understanding wave action and its influences would have great bearing on the success of the project. Wind driven wave pattens was one element that could be mitigated through a measured siting of the theatre. Using Boambilly itself to protect the theatre from dominate 9am north east wind and secondary 9am/3pm southerly wind. The South Head peninsular protects the theatre from dominate 3pm north easterly wind.
Found Amenities:
A continuation of the mindset that enabled the original National Black Theatre to use established buildings and found materials, to keep the built intervention to a minimum. This project uses the established infrastructure that Boambilly provides to minimise the footprint of the design. The existing public amenities will provide the required amenities for the audience, while the wharf and established foot paths provide the ingress and egress from the project. The resulting mindset enables the Boambilly Temporary Playhouse to exist with the smallest possible impact on its site and the environment at large.
Design Moves:
The initial design moves began with a comprehensive examination of the spatial requirements of the project brief. After a rationalisation of the brief to align with this project’s design ethos, the main auditorium and staging space was determined. This volume was further refined to accord to the structural grid that was defined by the proposed structural systems. This primary volume was divided by thirds to create a proportional order, that were then rotated to align to the axis that this project intends to emphasise. The volumes position was further refined by aligning with and informed by the project program.
The Details:
Structural System 1: Form work
The humble Quick-Stage formwork scaffolding used by concreters the world over to support suspended concrete floors during construction offers the ideal structural system to create the sub-support of the Boambilly Temporary Playhouse. The inherent nature of the construction method that the system was developed for, corresponds with the temporary nature of the theatre. The flexibility and material efficiency of the system paralleled with care and thoughtfulness through the design process, can produce an elegant and considered form. The choice of scaffolding contains a poetic that speaks to original National Black Theatre, that used found scaffolding to create the stage and seating at the repurposed Redfern building.
Structural System 2: Concrete
The interface between people and built elements within the inter-tidal range call for very specific requirements. The mass and waterproof nature (40MPa and above) of concrete out-weighed the adverse qualities of the material. While concrete as a material to be used within a temporary structure was counter-intuitive to the project’s design ethos, avn alternative material that was fit for purpose was not forthcoming, measures to mitigate concrete’s adverse environmental impact, through the use of cement alternatives and recycling of the concrete bases post life as a theatre. It represents the tight rope Architects walk everyday in the design process in the selection of materials that are environmentally ethical vs aesthetic.
Structural System 3: Tri Truss Modular Scaffolding
The themes of structural efficiency, found materials, and design for disassembly are continued through and into the third structural system. A system used in staging applications for lighting and sound rigs in theatre and music productions. The use of commonly found components all with custom elements to produce a building envelop that is fit for purpose and poetical, convey the temporal nature of the Boambilly Temporary Playhouse. The two scaffolding systems work with a common structural grid. With the Tri Truss system aligning to every second standard.
The interaction of the built form and tidal rhythms regulate the Boambilly Temporary Playhouse’s two modes of occupation. During the low tide the sail-cloth-covered fenestration are opened via a system of ropes and pulleys that interact with tidal float. This building mode is for public interaction. To have the building occupied as a viewing platform for the daily performance of everyday life of the harbour. On the flooding tide, the Building closes back down with the sail cloth covers closing down the building fenestrations. This shift the modes to a private space under the controlled conditions of the building for the private theatrical performance. The registration of the tidal rhythm through the built form allows for the all to unrecognised daily performance of the tide with the actors of this performance being the Sun, Earth and Moon.
“Two realities. [Pause]. And I’ve lost one. [Pause]. But I want it back … I need it back. [Pause]. Not yours … mine.”12
References:
1. Moore, D. (1992) Sydney Harbour from 20,000 feet - 1992.
2. 1974. Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islander peoples - education - Redfern Black Theatre, Sydney New south Wales, 1974
CATEGORY: photograph FORMAT: b&w negative STATUS: preservation material
3. Gemes, Juno 1985, Robert Merritt at home, 1985
4. Meyrick, J. (2018) Ruby and Sweet Williams in The Cake Man.
5. Ludwig, S. (2010) Bruder Klaus 3254, Wachendorf, 2010.
6. van Vliet, M. (2021) de Streken 2021.
7. Fleeting Moment, (2023) BDES3024 Art Process.
8. Tan, E. (2020) Shark Island, Sydney Harbour.
9. Glynn, J. (2023) Form Work.
10. Matsuoka, M. (1989) Church of Light in Ibaraki, Osaka.
11. Kahle Acoustics (2013) Casa da Música, Porto.
12. Merritt, R. (1975) The Cake Man.
Precedent Buildings:
Bolles+Wilson, New Luxor Theatre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 2001
Brit Anderson, Rosebery House, Highgate, Australia, 1997
Carmody Groarke, Studio East Dining, East London, United Kingdom, 2010
Carmody Groarke, Temporary Museum for Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s Hill House, Helensburgh, United Kingdom, 2016
Frei Otto, Four-Point Tent as a Music Pavilion of the Bundesgartenschau, Kassel, Germany, 1955
Glenn Murcutt, Mineral and Mining Museum, Broken Hill, Australia, Unbuilt
James Corner Field Operations – Diller Scofidio + Renfro, The High Line, New York, United States of America, 2009
Jorn Utzon, Can Lis, Mallorca, Spain, 1974
Kerstin Thompson, Bundanon Art Museum & Bridge, Bundanon, Australia, 2021
Peter Zumthor, Bruder Kluas Field Chapel, Wachendorf, Germany, 2007
Peter Zumthor, Thermal Bath at Vals, Vals, Switzerland, 1996
Peter Zumthor, Topograph of Terror, Berlin, Germany, Unbuilt
Renzo Piano Workshop + Cooper Robertson, Susan and John Hess Family Theatre and Gallery @ Whitney Museum, New York, United States of America, 2015
Richard Liplastrier, Dorothy, Pittwater, Australia, 1984
Richard Liplastrier, Lovett Bay, Pittwater, Australia, 1994
Sean Godsell, M Pavillion, Melbourne, Australia, 2014
Shigeru Ban, Curtain Wall House, Tokyo, Japan, 1995
Tadao Ando, Church of Light in Ibaraki, Osaka, Japan, 1989
Phase 1 Design Presentation:
Phase 2 Design Presentation:
