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New Beijing Performing Arts Center rises from its historic waterside site with curtain-like forms
A new performing arts complex designed by Perkins&Will, in partnership with Schmidt Hammer Lassen, has opened in Beijing. Located in the citys southeast district, Tongzhou, the Beijing Performing Arts Center sits along the banks of the Grand Canal, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, anchoring a recently designated cultural district, which also includes a museum, a library, and extensive parklands.Image: Zhu YumengThe roughly 1.3 million-square-foot complex comprises an opera house, a theater, and a concert hall, along with a multipurpose hall and an outdoor stage.Image:Zhu YumengImage:Zhu YumengIts design recalls the sites history as a commercial shipping and storage hub by referencing the rooflines of the storehouses that formerly populated the area and the sails of traditional canal boats. The forms also evoke a theater curtain parting at the start of a performance.Image: Zhu YumengThe Centers structures are unified through a broad, elevated platform that can be accessed from ...