Diller Scofidio + Renfro is renovating Frank Lloyd Wright’s Kalita Humphreys Theater in Dallas, Texas.

“The renovation project will include a master plan for the nine-acre Kalita Humphreys site, which will include new theatre spaces and a connection to the Katy Trail,” according to ArchDaily.

Kalita Humphreys Theater is one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s last projects and the only completed freestanding theatre designed by Wright, which is designated as a historic landmark.

Mark Lamster, architecture critic at the Dallas Morning News, writes that the announcement comes with a “combination of optimism, trepidation and vigilance.”

The statement by Dallas Theater Centre (a longtime tenant of the city-owned building) reads; “The building has been home to DTC since its opening in 1959, and the renovation efforts aim to preserve the theater’s distinct architecture while equipping it to inspire a new generation.”

The integrity and concepts of Wright’s designs will remain, yet its renovations will see restoration to the revolving stage, and will also add smaller buildings to the site in order to extend the facilities of the theatre.

“The creation of two smaller theatres will allow DTC and other local companies to perform regularly on the site,” says Jennifer Altabef, chair of the DTC’s board.

“Diller Scofidio + Renfro will also develop a plan to revitalise the landscape around the theatre to link it to trails and surrounding areas,” according to Dezeen.

“Since it was built, the theatre’s bucolic setting between Turtle Creek and the Katy Trail has been overwhelmed by parking lots and roadways,” says Renfro.

“Our approach will seek to slow the site down and add new architecturally significant programmes grown out of the surrounding urban green.”

“The Kalita Humphreys complex will be an idyllic and iconic refuge surrounded by nature, merely footsteps away from the bustling city.

Sarah Buckley

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