Projects

This complete renovation of the old New Yorker Theatre is almost all new construction. Working closely with architects Martinez + Johnson, Schuler Shook designed new lighting and theatre systems for the 665-seat theatre and provided input on catwalk placement, sightlines, and the data and power cable distribution.

Detroit Symphony Orchestra Hall was originally constructed in 1918 in a record 4 months and 4 days. Saved from the wrecking ball by a renovation in the 70’s, the DSO moved back downtown to Orchestra Hall in 1988. This most recent project commenced in 1997 and included completing the restoration of Orchestra hall and constructing 135,000 square feet of new space.

Schuler Shook provided full service theatre consulting. We provided programming, space planning guidance and equipment design services for the refurbishment, re-seating and equipping of the 2,064-seat Orchestra Hall, the Music Box – a variable-form second hall that seats up to 450 – the Jacob Bernard Pincus Music Education Center and the Robert A. and Maggie Allesee Rehearsal Hall. We also worked closely with the architect to provide much-needed public, backstage and administrative spaces.

Orchestra Hall now includes a refurbished orchestra shell and motorised rigging, a new forestage lift, a proscenium super-grid and new lighting system and mounting positions – all designed and specified by Schuler Shook. The Music Box includes a flexible lighting system for its multiple forms and uses, as well as extensive automated acoustical adjustment systems. 

River Spirit Casino and Resort underwent a major expansion project. The massive project included a Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville Casino and Restaurant, Paradise Cove Theatre (which is a 2,500+ seat showroom for live entertainment and sporting events), a 22-story 500-key upscale hotel tower, a world-class spa, convention and meeting centre, and new restaurants. 

Schuler Shook provided theatre planning services that included performance and architectural lighting control systems design, theatre seating including the VIP suites with open ​“Party Decks”. Seating is flexible to accommodate arena-style seating for MMA events. Schuler Shook also provided the rigging control system for in-house and touring production hoist control and conjunction with advisory services for rigging support steel and for catwalk layouts. 

Architectural lighting design services included house lighting for the theatre and VIP area, main casino lobby and floor, guest rooms and suites, fitness centre, hotel corridors, pool bar, ballroom and associated pre-function space and meeting rooms. 

Austin’s long time public television station, KLRU teamed up with Austin Community College to build state-of-the- art broadcast studios that will increase community engagement and offer enhanced workplace development programs. The largest is a 6,500-square foot studio with retractable seating that can deploy to create a wraparound studio audience of more than 400 for a variety of events, including community forums, film and lecture series, and filming and screenings. Motorized lighting battens in the studio will add to its flexibility and ease of changeover. The second studio of 1,550 square feet has an open floor and lighting pipe grid above. The third studio of 2,500 square feet is operated by ACC. The studio has an open floor plan, lighting pipe grid above, and a built in green screen area.

Schuler Shook provided planning for audience areas and studio infrastructure and production consultation. New production systems by Schuler Shook include retractable audience eating, staging platform systems, studio lighting fixtures and control, studio grids, and rigging systems.

The Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra sought to enhance the sound and overall experience for their concerts held in the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center (The DECC). 

Schuler Shook planned and specified a beautiful new state of the art acoustical enclosure, based upon the acoustical requirements of Kirkegaard Associates. In concert with SJA Architects, we designed the lighting control system and created new lighting positions in the cheek walls. We also added dimming capacity and specified new lighting equipment for the stage and apron.

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 

The Hilde Performance Center, an open air amphitheatre, opened in July of 2002 with a special performance by the Minneapolis Orchestra. The attendance for this grand opening drew over 12,000 patrons for the concert and festivities.

The amphitheatre includes several innovative and functional design features to accommodate a variety of programs including live music ensembles, amplified concerts, and drama. The facility stands 45 feet tall with a raised stage and acoustically tuned walls and ceilings. The flexible lighting control systems was designed for orchestra use and includes provisions for touring lighting, rigging, and audio equipment that can accommodate visiting groups. 

Originally constructed in 1927 as a World War I memorial, this 3,500-seat reconfigurable auditorium provides a home for concerts, ceremonies and events serving the City of Sacramento. Memorial Auditorium was renovated as part of an initiative to improve convention and performance venues in an effort to attract visitors and events to the city.

In December of 2002, the new Proscenium Theatre addition presented its first performance. The 250-seat theatre is the anchor venue of this new arts centre for theatre, music, and dance. 

The facility includes a black box theatre and a recital hall which are new performance spaces that are located in the existing arts building. The three performance spaces are connected with a new lobby and supported by dressing rooms, scene shop, costume shop, storage, loading, and arts classrooms. The theatre has a full fly house, orchestra pit lift, and state-of-the-art technical systems.

A.D. Players is a professional, resident theatre company founded by Jeannette Clift George in 1967. Mrs. George’s vision for the company included having a performing arts complex in the Houston Galleria district to produce and present theatre from a Christian perspective.

Ballet Memphis’ new studio space replaced an abandoned French Quarter hotel located in Overton Square. The building is approximately 30,000 SF and includes five studios, community spaces, costume shop and offices. The building features large windows where passerbys are be able to watch ballet dancers and students rehearse.

The Martin Theatre opened as the Murray Theatre in the 1920’s and presented a wide range of plays and music. In the 1990’s, the Ravinia Festival re-planned the building as a dedicated recital hall.

Working with architects Skidmore Owings & Merrill and acousticians Kirkegaard Associates, Schuler Shook developed a new stage enclosure to support acoustic music performances. This new recital ​“shell” projects sound to the 900 audience members, greatly enhancing the sound and intimacy of the room.

The building also received extensive auditorium restoration. Schuler Shook designed new lighting treatments to enhance the painted ceiling and to increase audience comfort.

The Hattiloo Theatre is a Black repertory theatre that began in 2005. The new theatre building includes two theatres, a lobby used for public performance and private events, dressing rooms and concession areas. Construction for the new building began in June 2013 and opened in July 2014. There are two black box theatres including the large main stage theatre which is a flexible space able to seat up to 180 audience. The second theatre can seat up to 58. 

Sam Houston State University is known for its strong theatre and music curricula. The school sought a new centre that would bring together music, dance and theatre while providing distinct performance areas attuned to the needs of each art form.

Through Schuler Shook’s programming and planning effort with the design team and performing arts departments, we helped create performance spaces specific to each art form. 

The Paramount Theater renovation and expansion restored the theatre from a dilapidated facility to a thriving performing arts centre. The 1,000-seat venue is producing and presenting a wide variety of arts, education, and entertainment events with the goal of reaching diverse audiences.

Schuler Shook was involved in the original pre-design of the facility, the shaping of the theatre and support spaces, and the design and specifications of the technical equipment systems.

The Orpheum Theatre was purchased by the city of Minneapolis to invigorate the theatre district. This 2,600-seat theatre is used for a wide range of programs, including large touring productions such as The Phantom of the Opera and Miss Saigon.

Working with the architects and city planners, Schuler Shook’s principal designer Michael DiBlasi guided the expansion of the stage house, development of backstage support rooms, and specification of new stage lighting and rigging systems. The rear wall of the stage house was removed, the stage was made deeper and a loading dock and dressing rooms were added.

The facility has been heavily utilized since its renovation. The Orpheum Theatre’s reputation for technical accommodation afforded it selection as the rehearsal and preview house for The Lion King prior to its Broadway premier.

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 Minneapolis Convention Center expansion began in 1998. Included in the expansion was a large flexible 3,400-seat auditorium to be used for large assembly events. Because it was recognized that a 3,400 seat auditorium would have limited use due to its size, a space capable of reconfiguration from a single large house into multiple smaller spaces was designed.

The lighting design challenges presented by the flexibility of the space were met with the use of dual downlight systems, custom wall sconces located in movable and stationary walls, and a meticulously programmed lighting control system. Area lighting and accent lighting integrated into the room design afford flexibility, task lighting, and accenting of ceiling and wall planes.

Schuler Shook’s theatre planning scope included the auditorium, its lighting control systems and stage rigging. Schuler Shook provided additional architectural lighting design for all public spaces, meeting rooms, and exhibit halls within the expansion.

McKendree University added to its campus a new facility for the arts – the Hettenhausen Performing Arts Center.

Schuler Shook’s theatre planners were involved early in the project to discuss with university leaders the precise needs that the new facility would fulfill. We worked closely with architects at Mackey Mitchell to design an appropriate new home for the arts while remaining sensitive to tight budgetary constraints. 

The beautiful 500-seat theatre anchors a 34,000 sf building. The facility includes a large band room, large rehearsal spaces, ensemble practice rooms and simple backstage accommodations. 

In just one year, with construction occurring only between performance seasons, this 1926 opera house received a renovation and expansion that reached from its 3‑story lobby skylight down to the enlarged orchestra pit.

Schuler Shook’s theatre planners brought to this fast-paced project their years of technical experience working in many other U.S. opera houses. We worked to improve both the technical systems available to the performers and artists as well as to enhance the audience’s experience from the new seating. Our scope covered stage areas and auditorium areas, the orchestra pit, new stage lighting and rigging systems, an LED-based stage titling system, and improved sightlines within a newly configured seating arrangement that allows for almost 160 additional seats.

Caruth Auditorium is a 490-seat concert hall used by Meadow School of the Arts. The auditorium is used for recitals, symphonic and choral concerts, and as a teaching space. The star instrument of the room is Opus 101, a beautiful C.B. Fisk pipe organ.

Schuler Shook provided design services for new organ lighting, new house lighting, and performance lighting upgrades. Color-changing LED wash lights highlight the organ and minimize heat gain on the pipes. New LED house lighting provides even illumination throughout the audience areas. Color-changing lights wash the side walls and uplight the ceiling reflectors. Circulation lighting was added to improve safety. Replacement theatrical lighting fixtures were tested, selected, and installed based on their photometric performance, power-saving LED technology, and flexible power control for silent operation. Motorized electrics battens were added for easy access to theatrical lighting instruments over the performance platform and audience seating. The result is a flexible, visually appealing room having lower heat and power loads, colour-changing capabilities throughout, and simple operation. 

The Majestic Theatre, an atmospheric proscenium venue, is adjacent to San Antonio’s Empire Theatre. 

The theatre’s programming includes popular music, orchestra, and Broadway Touring Companies. 

Schuler Shook designed the stage house extension and new rigging system. 

The Empire and Majestic theatres are jointly operated and scheduled, affording flexibility and maximizing income.

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.

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.

The Central Park Bandshell had its opening celebration and first performance on July 4, 2009. Schuler Shook provided the theatre planning services and design of the lighting and rigging systems. This new state-of-the-art bandshell replaced the existing bandshell in Red Wing’s historic Central Park.

The city’s vision was to transform this underutilized park into Red Wing’s ​“community living room.” Light fixtures and a simple lighting control system have been provided to meet the performance needs of local troupes. Infrastructure, including additional power, truss rigging points, and cable sleeves were designed to meet the needs of large touring groups.

Named in recognition of its neighbourhood, the Midtown Arts and Theater Center Houston is better known as MATCH. The nonprofit group was formed expressly to create new space where artists around Houston could come together to collaborate and present their work. The MATCH facility is custom designed with input from over 40 arts groups. The resulting structure contains four performance venues referred to as MATCH boxes located in two buildings — North and South — connected by a sweeping breezeway to the plaza. MATCH supports dance, music, theatre, visual art, film, performance art, and others in the new facility.

Each ​“box” is slightly different. MATCH Box 1, a flexible theatre with seating for 100 in the round, has white walls that allow it to easily serve as an art gallery. Blackout curtains help return it to a performance space. MATCH Box 2 is an end-stage dance theatre with a permanent resilient dance floor and seating for 159. MATCH Box 3 can seat about 140 and is a more traditional black box theatre. MATCH Box 4, an end stage proscenium space with seating for 329, has catwalks for theatrical support and adjustable acoustic curtains. Boxes 1 through 3 feature pipe grids for overhead support. 

Schuler Shook provided lighting design and theatre planning services for the new 450-seat Tower Auditorium in this Global Communications Hub in Charlotte. The room is designed for video production and teleconferencing as well as live lecture and assembly.

Working closely with the architects at Perkins+Will, we created a seating layout and appropriate lighting of the onstage presenter and the audience that works well for those in the room and for those experiencing the room through the bank’s Knowledge Channel video broadcasts.

North Central College advanced the fine and performing arts on campus with a series of projects involving new construction and adaptive reuse. Opened in the fall of 2008, the 57,000 SF Wentz Concert Hall and Fine Arts Center is now a beacon for the arts on campus and in the greater community.

To further foster learning, practice and performance. North Central College included a flexible performance space in their plan as well. The College renovated the 95-year-old former Grace Evangelical Church for this purpose and helped preserve an important part of the College’s and the community’s history in the process.

Schuler Shook provided theatre consulting and architectural lighting design services for the new Fine Arts Center, including the 650-seat Wentz Concert Hall and the 150¬seat Madden Theatre. The studio theatre includes flexible seating and staging options, providing the perfect setting for theatre, dance and music performance. We worked closely with Talaske Sound Thinking, the acoustician, and Loebl Schlossman & Hackl, the architect, to create an appropriate concert hall for groups such as North Central College’s Concert Winds, Women’s Chorale and Concert Choir. Our lighting designs are seen in the concert hall, studio theatre, lobby and gathering spaces.

This new performing arts centre replaced the significant Fine Arts Auditorium on campus. The new building include a 1,000-seat auditorium and music rehearsal rooms with planning for a future recital hall. 

While primarily used for music performances, including the Valley Symphony Orchestra, the centre also supports dance performances, especially folkloric dance with mariachi accompaniment.

Schuler Shook provided full theatre design services and architectural lighting for the theatre, main lobby, grand stair, second floor lobbies, first floor side gallery spaces and the building façade.

Built in 1957, Swathout Hall was renovated in 2015 to expand the platform size, provide better ADA access, upgrade the performance technology, and update the hall’s finishes. The performance hall is well-equipped to host solo and chamber music performances, as well as occasional chamber opera productions.

Walton Arts Center greatly expanded and modernized their facilities to be able to more easily fulfill their mission as a major community arts centre. Schuler Shook provided theatre consulting and architectural lighting design services.

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.

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.

The renovation of the Empire Theatre completed the repositioning of this two venue facility in the heart of downtown San Antonio. The Empire is a proscenium theatre which is used for dance, music, lecture and small drama performances. Schuler Shook provided complete theatre planning services to bring this 900-seat facility back to life. The Empire Theatre has a custom flexible seating system on the orchestra level which allows for three different configurations: Traditional Theatre Seating, Cabaret Seating and ​“pops” Seating.

The Empire’s adjacent atmospheric proscenium venue, The Majestic Theatre, had previously received a new stage house and rigging system, designed by Schuler Shook. The Majestic Theatre is used for popular music, orchestra and Broadway touring Companies. The two theatres are jointly operated and scheduled, affording flexibility and maximizing income.

Victory Gardens Theater, Chicago’s Tony Award®-winning home for new plays, had outgrown its space in Lincoln Park. Victory Gardens turned to Schuler Shook to lead a programming effort, identifying their goals for an expanded theatre. We worked very closely with the Artistic Director and Managing Director at that time — Dennis Zacek and Marcelle McVay — to refine Victory Gardens’s goals for a new home.

When the nearby Biograph Theatre became available for purchase, Victory Gardens saw a unique opportunity in their own neighbourhood. They purchased the famed cinema and began an extensive adaptation, developing a new 299-seat theatre that offers their playwrights a larger, more capable stage.

Schuler Shook advised Victory Gardens on theatre and backstage planning, designed the stage rigging and lighting systems, and assisted during construction of the project. In addition, Robert Shook designed lighting for the opening production of Charles Smith’s Denmark.

The new performing arts centre at the Lone Star College — Tomball campus replaces a smaller performance facility and provides students and faculty with a fully outfitted space for theatre education and performance. 

Schuler Shook provided theatre consulting services for a 425-seat multi-purpose theatre with orchestra shell for music concerts. The theatrical equipment includes 16 single purchase counterweight sets and seven motorised lineshaft rigging sets, adjustable acoustic curtains and orchestra pit with filler platforms. Schuler Shook also designed the theatrical lighting systems and advised on the seating.

The new outdoor amphitheatre in Nelson Park is part of the Decatur Park District’s long-term plans for development of the town’s lakeshore.

The new Music Education Complex at Texas A&M University-Kingsville includes a 500-seat performance hall, 100-seat recital/lecture hall, four large ensemble rehearsal rooms, practice rooms, classrooms and offices, collaborative spaces, and a recording studio. The building replaces the existing music building that was acoustically and spatially inadequate for TAMU-Kingsville’s active and growing programs. Schuler Shook provided programming and theatrical planning and design. Both the performance and recital halls include theatrical lighting systems for general concert illumination and atmospheric lighting effects, controllable through lighting consoles or accessed as pre-programmed presets for simple operation.

The performance hall, recital hall, and four large rehearsal rooms have curtain systems to adjust the acoustical characteristic for different types of ensembles. Additionally, the performance hall features two motorised, tilting reflector panels over the platform for further acoustical adjustment. These systems are motorised in the two halls for easily repeatable operation.

The renovation of the 3,500 seat Pavilion included acoustical, lighting and rigging upgrades. The new orchestra enclosure consists of wall panels and overhead panels, which are required to shift quickly from orchestra concert mode to popular concert mode. The wall panels both pivot and track into storage positions, and the tilt mechanism for the overhead panels can be remotely activated without lowering the panels to the floor, which saves many hours of stage setup time.

The new orchestra lighting consists of a combination of halogen and ceramic metal halide — this system is energy efficient and also requires less air conditioning to keep the stage cool in the summer heat. The renovation also included new house lighting, which was arranged in a radial pattern to match the seating layout.

This new 7,500-seat worship centre in South Barrington replaced the 4,500-seat facility that the church had outgrown. The new facility houses a 94′ W x 57′ H proscenium and 3‑axis LED screens that can project live feeds as well as pre-recorded scenes.

One of the main goals for the new worship facility was to retain an intimate feel and sense of closeness while almost doubling the overall seating capacity. Schuler Shook designed a forestage lift as part of the design solution to create intimacy in the new worship centre. The lift lowers from stage level to audience level, bringing the pastor closer to the congregants. The lift also lowers 20′ below stage level, providing access to the scene shop located on the lower level.

Schuler Shook also designed manual and motorised stage rigging, including five motorised light bridges for the church, and provided general planning assistance.

The Humanities Center for York College of Pennsylvania project began as a study in 2001 and was green lighted in late 2005.

The study resulted in a new performing arts centre in a prominent location on the college campus, consisting of a 700-seat proscenium theatre and a 150-seat black box theatre, a scene shop, dressing rooms, and support spaces. The facility includes a full fly loft for the benefit of student and community productions, as well as educational lectures and special events.

Schuler Shook provided theatre planning and design services for the performance and supports spaces, an orchestra pit lift, and complete theatrical lighting and rigging systems. Schuler Shook also provided architectural lighting design for the lobby and the theatre.

Herbert W. Armstrong College was founded in 2001 and several years later construction began on a new 823 seat auditorium. The new eight-story concert hall is located on the campus of Herbert W. Armstrong College and was built to serve the community by hosting various professional Broadway-style performances. The building also serves as a space for the Philadelphia Church of God services and provides classrooms for Armstrong College music department.

The McAllen Performing Arts Center hosts a variety of Broadway shows, Valley Symphony Orchestra, local music and popular entertainment acts, dance, and dramatic productions for McAllen and the Rio Grande Valley. The theatre seats about 1,800 patrons on three levels and features a generously-sized stage, orchestra pit with lift, motorised/ counterweight fly system, programmable Venetian-style valance, orchestra shell, motorised adjustable acoustic curtains, and extensive theatrical lighting. Schuler Shook provided full theatre design services and architectural lighting for the performing arts theatre.