| The Queen Elizabeth
Theatre in Vancouver, Canada opened in 1959. It is
the home of Vancouver Opera and Ballet BC. Although
on many levels it can be seen as one or North
America’s seminal post-war multi-purpose
auditoria, its acoustics have never found favour. It
now is long overdue for a facelift. The renovation
scheme, designed by Thom Weeks of proscenium
architecture + interiors, will see the single balcony
room converted into a two or three tiered house
complete with side boxes. In 1998 Aercoustics
conducted extensive studies on both computer and
physical scale models. The acoustical challenges
presented by the room were formidable. Solving these
problems has led us to a new understanding of the
sound in auditoria, in particular the effect of height to width ratios. |
 renderings by Thom Weeks, proscenium architecture + interiors
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