ALA architects: kilden performing arts center

the kilden performing arts centre by ALA architects all images courtesy ALA architects

the kilden performing arts centre in the norwegian city of kristiansand will be completed in a year’s time. kilden is the most significant cultural building project to be undertaken in norway since the oslo opera house. designed by the helsinki-based ALA architects, kilden’s bold and expressive architecture is clearly distinguished from other nordic cultural buildings. the building has now reached ridge height, and work has started on the facade cladding and the interior design of the halls. the total budget of the building project is close to 1.3 billion norwegian kroner (165 million euros).   kilden’s key architectural feature is the inclined, undulating wooden wall. the mounting of the 4000 square metre free-form oak wall, implemented using cam technology, has just started and will continue until the end of october. the oak wall will be fixed to a 100 metre-long steel structure with a 40 metre overhang manufactured by the finnish company ruukki. the imposing wall is made of 20 000 different pieces. the use of timber from the southern norwegian forests is a reference to kristiansand’s history. the city became wealthy precisely due to the export of oak to central europe, when its demand as building material for sailing ships increased in the early 17th century. 

construction of the facade

the international architectural competition for the design of the sorlandet theatre and concert hall in 2005 was won by ALA architects of finland. in collaboration with a local company, sms arkitekter as, ALA is responsible for the architectural design of the project.   kilden will bring together various performing arts institutions in kristiansand: the kristians and symphony orchestra, agder theatre and opera south. the acoustics of the 1200-seat concert hall have been specifically designed for symphonic music. the theatre hall has a seating capacity of 700 and will function as the new home stage of opera south. the building also houses a stage for experimental theatre and a multi-purpose hall.  

construction of the facade

kilden gathers all the performing arts institutions of kristiansand under one roof. a shoebox concert hall with a capacity of 1200 seats is built for the symphony orchestra. agder county theatre will perform in a 700-seat theatre hall with excellent drama acoustics and extensivestage mechanics, with a theatre tower and understage machinery. the theatre hall is adjustable for music theatre performances, and will also house productions by the local opera company. in addition to the main halls, kilden includes a studio stage for contemporary theatre and a flat floor multi-purpose hall for a wide range of activities.

construction in progress

kilden produces experiences. the fundamental architectural content is the way the concert, theatre and multi-purpose halls work together with the support spaces. the halls are arranged in a row according to their functions, and the organisation of the service areas allows common production equipment to serve all halls efficiently and without interference. the service areas are located on one side of the halls, with the public foyer on the other.

model of the kilden performing arts centre

the cantilevering shapes created by the undersides of the auditoriums are clad with a continuous curving wooden wall. this smooth form covers the public foyer and the entrance area on the pier. the curving wall, which is made of local oak, divides everyday life from the fantasy world of the arts and performances inside the halls. the dramatic shape rising over the foyer attracts audiences and the public to gather under the building, signifying the richness and diversity of arts and performances behind it, and representing the potential of the arts organisations working together. the curving wall is manufactured from solid oak planks with the help of computer aided modelling techniques. it is a real, tactile, physical form, not just a thin layer of texture. the wooden shape also improves the acoustic conditions of the foyer.

model of the kilden performing arts centre

the monotonous, object-like theatre-black aluminium facades cover the three other sides of the building, complementing and emphasising the spectacular space created by the foyer wall. the concert hall is a dark, shoebox-type space that visually disappears towards the ceiling and creates reverberating volume for the acoustics. the walls of the concert hall are clad with continuous, triangularly faceted black fibre concrete elements, which create acoustically optimal surface modulation. the audience and the performers are surrounded by light, elegant wooden surfaces, which create a bright furniture-like element floating in the vast, dark hall. the moredelicate acoustical surface modulation around the audience and the performers is created by shaping this wooden element. 

model of the kilden performing arts centre

rendering of the kilden performing arts centre

rendering of the kilden performing arts centre

rendering of the kilden performing arts centre

performance hall

concert hall

project info: kilden – performing arts center for sørlandet location: kristiansand, norway type: competition 1st prize 2005 status: under construction completion 2011 program: 17.000 theatre and concert hall and 10.000 parking site: tight plot on a renewed industrial pier hinging the city center and a major recreational outdoor area. client: TKS IKS team: ALA – juho grönholm, antti nousjoki, janne teräsvirta, samuli woolston with niklas mahlberg, pekka sivula, pauliina rossi, pauliina skyttä, sami mikonheimo, jani koivula, auvo lindroos, aleksi niemeläinen, erling sommerfeldt, ingrid kokkonen, tomi henttinen sms arkitekter as: erik sandsmark, wenche aabel, lasse stamrud, hanne alnes collaborators: wsp multiconsult (structural engineering), arup acoustics (hall acoustics), brekke strand (room acoustics), sweco grøner, cowi (service engineering), tpc (theatre technical engineering), klaus stolt (scale model) birger grönholm (theatre expertise)