Slotted SUPACOUSTIC FR and curved panels from Supawood Architectural Lining Systems were installed inside the Eternity Playhouse building in Sydney.
Built in 1887 the heritage listed building is a valuable example of
traditional Victorian Free Classical architecture. For decades a favourite
place of worship, the church was purchased by the City of Sydney in 2006 to
ensure its preservation. The City commissioned Tonkin Zulaikha Greer to
transform the building into a 200-seat state-of-the-art theatre.
To complete the restoration of the Burton St Tabernacle in Darlinghurst,
fire retardant acoustic linings were needed as a finishing touch to complement without
overpowering the surrounding heritage and reused materials. The architects
chose SUPAWOOD high gloss black custom slotted SUPACOUSTIC FR panels to achieve
the final intricate detailing.
One of the challenges involved the ceilings in the foyer area where the
designers wanted to highlight upright stepped curved surfaces with a vertically
slotted pattern finished in high gloss black to echo restored structural
elements. SUPAWOOD fabricated custom slotted SUPACOUSTIC curved panels finished
in SUPACOLOUR high gloss helped achieve this design objective.
Matching flat acoustic panels were supplied to keep other detailing coherent,
the largest area being a wall at the top of the stairs where the high gloss
finish acts like a mirror. All the panels were backed with IAT with an FR MDF
substrate used to meet BCA compliance.
The Eternity Playhouse project received the 2014 Greenway Award for
Heritage Architecture Creative Adaption, AIA NSW; and the 2014 National Trust
of Australia (NSW) Heritage Award for Adaptive Reuse.
