THEATER AND THE ARTS
DESIGNING FOR THE ARTS
Although Think! maintains a varied architectural practice, the design of spaces for the performing arts has always been an important part of what we do. For us, theaters are unique spaces for social interchange, intellectual engagement and emotional encounter, not to mention pure entertainment. We derive great satisfaction from designing spaces that optimize the audience / performer relationship, provide state-of-the-art technical infrastructure and enhance the experience for audience, performer and staff.
Think!’s theater design practice is based on the foundation of principal Marty Kapell’s prior career as a theater professional. Working in a variety of roles, Marty worked with numerous theater, dance and music companies of national and international reputation across the country and abroad, gaining valuable experience and understanding of what makes great theaters work.
Marty Kapell
Principal marty@think-arc.com (646) 688-5898 x 201
Jack Esterson Principal jack@think-arc.com (646) 688-5898 x 203
JEROME ROBBINS THEATER, BARYSHNIKOV ARTS CENTER, NY
The Jerome Robbins Theater is a state-of-the-art performance venue in Manhattan. The theater design involved a complete retrofit of an existing 250 seat theater within the Baryshnikov complex to create a high-tech performance space flexible enough to accommodate dance, drama and musical events.
Constrained by the existing concrete box, Think! addressed the circulation and egress issues and integrated complex technical requirements into an innovative space. The design included inserting a new floating mezzanine to bring the total capacity to 299. These features, along with the limited color and material palette have created a space that enhances the connection between audience and performer.
DUANE L JONES RECITAL HALL, SUNY OLD WESTBURY
The Duane L. Jones Recital Hall is one of the major performance and presentation venues on the campus of State University of New York at Old Westbury. At 400 seats the 6,700 sq ft renovated space provides a new home for events ranging from dance and theater performance to academic activities such as lectures and ceremonies.
The Recital Hall was a strangely asymmetrical concrete and sheetrock construction that created an out-of-kilter relationship between the audience and performers on stage.
Without decreasing the seating count, Think!’s design reshaped the space inserting a curving wood wall that improved the focus of the venue towards the stage, reestablished the room’s symmetry, enhanced its acoustics to performance standards and created a warm and aesthetically unique space within an otherwise severe institutional building. A new retractable screen, catwalk system, control booth and lighting system were integrated into the design to provide flexible technical support allowing it to function both as a performance and academic space.
PRATT INSTITUTE, DEPARTMENT OF FILM AND VIDEO
Pratt Institute’s state-of-the-art 15,000 sq ft Department of Film and Video Department features 3,000 sq ft of soundstage space including an infinity green screen, a 96-seat screening room, a sound recording and mixing studio, and two high-end post production suites. The facility also includes classrooms, edit suites and faculty offices.
A unique series of custom perforated metal panels wrap around the entrance lobby and envelop rooms requiring sound-proofing and darkness. A floating bridge connects classrooms and offices on the second floor. Interstitial spaces throughout serve as informal social areas for students intended to foster a vibrant and collaborative filmmaking environment.
HUDSON FORUM, HUDSON, NY
Working within the shell of a 1930’s cinema, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Think! is designing a new 400+ seat proscenium theater complete with front of house, rehearsal spaces and production facilities.
The design includes the reintroduction of balcony seating that was removed when the theater was converted into a tennis center in the 1960s. Retractable orchestra seating allows the main theater to become a large multi-purpose space when used in conjunction with the stage area.
TABAS AUDITORIUM, BANK STREET COLLEGE
A complete renovation and upgrade of an existing academic auditorium into a state-of-the-art music and dramatic performance venue for this prestigious school. The project incorporated all new floor, wall and ceiling finishes, audio-visual and lighting systems, new seating and projection booth and acoustical treatments. Using a modest palette of materials (including Home Depot bamboo floor for the main architectural ceiling element) the space was transformed into a lively and modern space at the heart of the institution.
NITEHAWK CINEMA, BROOKLYN, NY
The transformation of the Pavilion into the Nitehawk Cinema reduced the number of screens from 9 to 7 to allow for the insertion of a large commercial kitchen capable of serving the 650 seat theaters for over 1,200 meals on a busy weekend night. Two bars and a lounge have been opened up by exposing the structure and the original brick walls of the historic Sanders Theater. These serve as a counterpoint to the new design interventions.
STRONGBOX THEATER, EAST ROCKAWAY, NY
The Strongbox Theater is a renovation of an existing bank and two adjacent buildings totaling 5,306 sq ft, for a new use as a performing arts and event space. A new addition (816 sq ft) will be provided in the rear of the main building to support the new use while a new vestibule will engage with the commercial street and connect the three existing structures.
HOFSTRA UNIVERSITY, PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
This new 55,000 sq ft performing arts building on the Hofstra University campus is home to the school’s theater and music programs. The building includes a flexible black box theater with scenic shop and support areas, orchestral rehearsal spaces and faculty offices. The building was designed to distinctly express each of these components and great effort was made to acoustically isolate each from the other.
37 ARTS, NEW YORK, NY
The 37 Arts complex is a 60,000 sq ft performing arts building located on the west side of midtown Manhattan. The building includes three theaters of varying size; 400 seats, 200 seats and a flexible “black box” space, as well as rehearsal space, offices and support spaces.
THEATRE ROW, FACADE AND SIGNAGE STUDIES
BROOKLYN ACADEMY OF MUSIC, BROOKLYN, NY
Think! was responsible for an extensive multi-year upgrade of BAM's historic Peter Jay Sharp building and the nearby Harvey Theater. Renovations included infrastructure and back-ofhouse improvements as well as significant historic restoration of the Howard Gilman Opera House.
DELACORTE THEATER, CENTRAL PARK, NY
Marty Kapell was responsible for comprehensive upgrades to the Delacorte Theater in Central Park for the Public Theater. The upgrades included rebuilding the stage to increase its size and access from seating vomitories; creation of a new understage tunnel connecting back stage to the underseating actor crossovers; creating new storage and utility spaces under the seating structure; reconfiguration of the theater Box Office; upgrade of backstage facilities including dressing rooms and rest rooms; upgrades to entrances and seating for improved disabled accessibility and upgrades to front-of-house lighting positions.
FREDERICK LOEWE THEATRE, HUNTER COLLEGE, NY
HARLEM STAGE GATEHOUSE, HARLEM, NY
KUPFERBERG CENTER FOR THE ARTS, CUNY
Think! was appointed to renovate and bring cohesion to five disparate performing arts venues at CUNY’s Queens College and to create a unified arts precinct for the campus. Through an integrated and phased renovation and expansion of each building Think! designed a series of large scale architectural transformations that included new glass entry pavilions. In addition, a common palette of modern materials that vary slightly at each venue, highly visible signage and environmental graphics and a unifying landscaped design all contribute to a new audience experience and create an identifiable cultural heart for the campus.
The venues include The Colden Auditorium, the Goldstein Theater, the Colden Amphitheater, the LeFrak Recital Hall/Aaron Copeland School of Music and the Godwin Ternbach Museum.
ABOUT THINK!
Think! Architecture + Design is a Brooklyn based practice established in 2013 with the goal of providing our clients not just with superiorly designed projects but to deliver them in a way that works better for them and our team.
As the name implies, the work we do is thoughtful. Our work strives for success, beauty and satisfaction, not as the starting point of a design, but as the result of a long and focused process of investigation and discovery. By searching for the underlying issues embedded in each project, and through an openness to the widest range of possibilities, we endeavor to craft design solutions that result in a unique and intelligent resolution of need, desire, function and circumstance.
As a firm we are generalist and we’ve been fortunate to have had the opportunity to work on theaters, galleries, higher education buildings, schools, offices, hospitals and houses among many other things. These varied experiences have allowed us to specialize in the design process itself rather than focusing on any one type of program or building – applying the wide range of our diverse experience to the wide range of projects that have come our way. Being generalist gives us the freedom to work with questions rather than the answers of an expert. It allows for the openness to possibility that eschews assumptions and fixed knowledge and searches for meaning and understanding, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.
Think! is currently comprised of 23 professionals with a high proportion of experienced senior staff. All Think! projects are developed using Building Information Modeling [BIM] software, which we also require of our consultants, to achieve the highest level of coordination and quality control.
As we design compelling architecture we always keep our clients’ vision and mission in the forefront of our thinking, while our day-to-day decision making is guided by pragmatic considerations and budgetary restraint. With every project we endeavor to design projects that are just right.
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