- Title
- The design of a new opera house for central, Port Elizabeth
- Creator
- Chilton, Marc John
- Subject
- Theaters -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth -- Designs and plans Centers for the performing arts -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth
- Subject
- Theater architecture -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth
- Date Issued
- 2015
- Date
- 2015
- Type
- Thesis
- Type
- Masters
- Type
- MA
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/10948/15356
- Identifier
- vital:28224
- Description
- Urban decentralization and inner city decay is a ubiquitous phenomenon of social and economic circumstance. The rise of sub-urban sprawl around new centres has encouraged urban degeneration and produced unsustainable cities, particularly in South Africa. Consequently, the loss of cultural assets in decaying historic centres, specifi cally in Port Elizabeth, reveals issues pertinent to loss of place and heritage. In combatting urban degeneration, the utilization of culture and the arts has proven to be a powerful rejuvenation strategy. The vision of the Mandela Bay Development Agency, and similar successful global precedents, suggest that a cultural precinct could effectively tackle urban decay in the historic core. This premise guides the proposal.The principal aim of this treatise is the design of a new Opera House acting as a catalyst for the proposed cultural district, based on the inner-city rejuvenation of Central. This aim is achieved by several objectives, which are explored in an effort to unveil potential and appropriate design responses: An investigation of the Opera House typology, which uncovers its dignity, vitality and signifi cance within past and present cities; An exploration of context, which reveals the opportunities to transform identity and urban cultural practise; Research into technical, spatial and physical demands of the program provide depth and root the design responses in reality. As a result, the Opera House sits as a gateway building into the precinct, as well as a cultural and physical landmark within the city. A duality of expression presents both a contrast and self-similarity in the historic context, simultaneously rooting the building in place while conveying a unique character.
- Format
- ix, 147 pages
- Format
- Publisher
- Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
- Publisher
- Faculty of Arts
- Language
- English
- Rights
- Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
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