Theatre Design & Technology - Winter 2005 - 14

Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts
CANADIAN OPERA COMPANY
Richard Bradshaw General & Artistic Director
Julian Sleath Technical Director
Architect
Acoustician
Theatre Consultant
Associate Acousticians/
Sound Systems

Diamond and Schmitt, Toronto
Sound Space Design, London
Fisher Dachs, New York
Aercoustics, Toronto
Wilson Ihrig, Oakland
Engineering Harmonics, Toronto

DIMENSIONS
Proscenium opening
Stage depth
Stage width
Height to grid
Trapable area
Auditorium depth

52´-0˝ x 39´-4˝ (width x height)
102´-4˝
182´-5˝ (side wall to side wall)
110´-3˝
46´-9˝ x 24´-7˝
107´-10˝

EQUIPMENT
Counterweight lines
Dimmers
Automated lighting
Lighting console
Sound mixer

86
886 @ 2.4kW, 57 @ 6kW, 6 @ 12kW
10 Vari*Lite VL1000
Strand 550i
Yamaha DM2000

December 2004. A view from one of the balcony levels looking
toward the stage. Photo by Julian Sleath.

of acoustics has progressed, the deficiencies
have been detailed with increasing precision.
The hostile acoustics were a particular problem for an opera company that had become
one of the largest on the continent and had
ambitions to attain international stature. Over
the decades, millions of dollars have been
spent on studies and treatments that have substantially improved the acoustical characteristics of the room. Nevertheless, there is only so
much improvement that can be made, and that
improvement stops far short of turning the
Hummingbird Centre into an ideal opera
house.
By the late seventies, the ballet and opera
companies each felt the need to consolidate its
activities into one "home." They decided to cooperate to build a single venue to serve both of their
needs. However, the building of a new symphony hall monopolized arts capital for several
years, and the recession of the early eighties
caused a further delay.

Finally, in 1984, the site at the corner of
Bay and Wellesley Streets was chosen for the
Ballet Opera House. It was decided that the
companies would play in repertory, with the
opera playing one night and the ballet the next.
This would be less taxing on the performers,
and create longer runs to allow word-of-mouth to
build. The implications of this decision for the
cost of technical and support facilities would
turn out to be quite considerable.
The program evolved, with plans for a
large four-square stage layout, highly mechanized stage lift and rigging systems, large office
and rehearsal complexes, and complete duplication of dressing rooms to handle the demands of daily rep. By 1990, the mounting
demands of the program had pushed the price
to over $250 million for the 2,000-seat house,
and costs continued to rise. Planning costs
were approaching $500,000 per month.
Demolition had started that spring, and opening night was set for October 1994. The pro-

vincial government donated the land, and by
September of 1990 all governments had committed funding.
But a looming recession was becoming apparent, and several public building projects had
suffered catastrophic cost overruns, saddling the
provincial government with large debts, and a
skeptical public watched the ballooning estimates for the Ballet Opera House with increasing alarm. A provincial election that fall
brought in a government that was left-leaning
and arts-friendly, but cash-strapped. Within
weeks, the province pulled its funding for the
project, and the federal and municipal governments followed suit. With $22.5 million already
spent on planning and design, and before a
single bucket of concrete had been poured,
the Ballet Opera House was dead.
Eventually the dust cleared, the tears
dried, the innocent were properly scolded,
and the guilty no doubt rewarded. The National
Ballet of Canada and the Canadian Opera ComTD & T

W I N T E R

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Winter 2005