This is a guide for planners, designers, and builders of theatre facilities. The guide will assist you in finding great resources on how to plan and design a new theatre facility. If you need more help, our librarians welcome any questions you may have regarding your search.
Our Online Catalogue
A great way to start your search is by accessing our online catalogue. To locate books particularly of interest to theatre planners, designers, and builders, try these suggested call numbers and subject headings:
Suggested Call Numbers (select Call Number button from the search drop-down menu on the main page):
- REF NA Designing and Building Theatres
- REF PN 2038 Theatre Technology and Design
Suggested Subject Headings (select Subject from drop-down menu):
- theatre architecture
- design and plans
- centers for the performing arts
*You can also use the above subject headings as Keywords. Just follow the procedure above but exchange Subject with Keyword. Your search results will be more extensive and inclusive; however, you may find some items in this type of search not directly related to your topic. Any title with your specified search word(s) in the description will appear among the search results.
Recommended Titles
Building Type Basics for Performing Arts Facilities by Hugh Hardy, c2006
An accessible guide to the essentials of designing performing arts facilities — including the underlying issues of financing, feasibility, and the diverse roles of the design and construction team, sponsor, banks, impresario, and manager. Complete with a wealth of descriptive floor plans, diagrams, photographs, and case studies, it features need-to-know information on design including such technical topics as lighting, acoustics, and materials.
The Theatre Handbook by Alberta Culture Facility Development
A facilities primer designed to provide a planning group of diverse interests and abilities with a common understanding of the principles of performing arts facility design, as well as a common language with which to converse. It represents an organized selection of existing theatrical knowledge pertaining to the construction of a new performing arts facility, offering expert advice and assisting in the understanding of design principles as they relate to a particular situation. It also provides enough technical and costing information to help a planning group make their major decisions early, in full view of the consequences, and while they still have control of the project.
Additional Internet Resources
Continue your online search by looking for websites relating to theatre planning and design. Type theatre “design and plans” in your favourite search engine. Remember to put design and plans in quotation marks to ensure the three words appear side-by-side in your search results. A variation of this search could be to change the spelling of theatre to theater or substitute design and plans with architecture. Be creative!
Suggested websites and documents:
Municipal Development of Cultural Spaces: Illuminating the Contributions of Municipal Governments to the Development of Cultural Spaces by Artspace North Society, 2005 Part 1 & Part 2
A review of established and emerging public galleries, studio theatres, and multi-use cultural spaces in communities across Canada. Contains 7 pages of valuable resources consulted to prepare the report.
