Projects

The Forney ISD Opportunity Central (OC) is a $150 million facility designed to enhance learning, performance, and community engagement. Featuring a 6,000-seat arena, a 600-seat black box theatre, and a lecture hall, the venue is built for versatility. Schuler Shook collaborated with the architect and school district to provide theatre planning and design services, including sightline studies, seating configurations, production lighting, rigging, and performer support areas. Their work ensured seamless integration of production-ready systems, bringing this innovative space to life for students, artists, and the community.

This new 1,000 seat theatre serves the larger community with a wide variety of performance activities, and it also supports Bendigo Senior Secondary College. The project made possible the sustainable re-use of the former Sandhurst Gaol, which was re-purposed and renovated to serve as the front of house public space to the new adjoining theatre, providing historic character to the venue.

Schuler Shook collaborated closely with Y2 Architecture and Acoustic Studio in the planning and equipping of the new theatre. Ulumbarra Theatre is the largest regional venue in Victoria and is capable of presenting theatre, musical theatre, music, dance, cinema, community ceremonies, and a variety of audio-visual productions, for local and regional artists as well as touring productions. 

The Austin Independent School District desired a new performing arts facility that would be available for use by all schools in the district. The centralized facility houses a multi-purpose proscenium theatre seating 1,200, a 250 seat black box theatre, dance studio, multi-purpose room, kiln room, and an individual recording studio.

Originally constructed in 1937, this Art Deco visual and performing arts building was renovated and enhanced, with the addition of a new 100-seat black box theater, make-up and dressing rooms, arts studios and music rehearsal rooms. The historic decorative details of the 800-seat auditorium were restored, including the ornate seat standards. The audience experience was improved with air-conditioning and an electro-acoustic system.

Schuler Shook worked closely with Cuningham Group and the Alexandria School District to design a state of the art performing arts centre for their new high school. The 1,000-seat auditorium has a generously sized stage to support a wide variety of performances including vocal and instrumental music, drama, musical theatre, dance, lectures and assemblies 

In 2018 the new Student Life Center opened at St. Agnes Academy, a Catholic high school for young women in Houston, TX. The project included both new construction and adaptive reuse of an existing stage to a black box theatre. The new centre houses Sr. Jane Meyer, O.P. Assembly and Performance Hall; Arthur W. Buckley Theatre; 125-seat studio theatre; Jamieson Family Dance Studio; student commons; and additional classrooms. 

To help the school maximize use of the 1,300-seat theatre, the balcony can be closed off from the remainder of the audience chamber to create a 240-seat lecture room.

Schuler Shook provided full theatre consulting services for the proscenium theatre and studio theatre including planning, designing and specifying audience seating and sightlines, stage rigging and curtains, variable acoustic curtains, stage lighting power and control systems, stage lighting fixtures, concert enclosure, portable platforms, and pit filler platforms. We also specified portable platform systems for future purchase for the 125-seat studio theatre.