Philanthropist Doris Duke, a well-known figure of wealth, passing away.
In Western Massachusetts, USA, the Doris Duke Theatre at Jacob's Pillow has undergone a transformation, blending respect for tradition with advanced technology and future-focused flexibility. The design, led by Mecanoo Architects, has reimagined the original theatre as a larger, multipurpose space while maintaining intimacy and connection central to the dance experience.
The redesigned theatre, which cost $30m, boasts a flexible performance space with retractable, customizable seating. This flexibility supports a variety of dance forms and production styles, respecting the tradition of dance experimentation at Jacob's Pillow while embracing modern adaptability.
A state-of-the-art automated system enables rapid changeovers between performances during the festival, something impossible in the old theatre. The technology allows performances to be staged with minimal staff supervision, increasing efficiency and enabling more complex, dynamic programming.
Advanced technology such as spatial audio, infrared camera tracking, and interactive video content deepen the connection between performers and audiences and enable innovative performance interactions, including mixed live and 3D holographic choreography.
Architecturally, the building uses natural materials like thermally treated pine for the facade, designed to weather gracefully, symbolizing nature’s change and embodying the local rural setting. This choice reinforces an organic, time-honoured aesthetic that resonates with the natural landscape and the tradition of the Pillow’s site-specific performances.
The podium rooftop functions as an additional performance venue, utilizing the sloped site so audiences seated on the lawn above can watch performances. This blend of indoor and outdoor experiences reflects the Pillow’s heritage of site-specific dance work.
The landscape surrounding the Perles Family Studio, designed by New York practice Marvel, with input from indigenous artists, celebrates indigenous knowledge. 'Nature-focused' landscapes include a garden and a communal fire pit.
The Perles Family Studio, designed by Boston-based Flansburgh Architects and completed in 2017, is a contemporary interpretation of a timber barn/performance space. The veranda provides passive shading and a permeable threshold between the theatre and its landscape.
Jacob's Pillow, a dance center located in the highlands of the Berkshires, has a long history of championing counter-narratives about culture and identity. The site, which was once a humble homestead, has evolved into a world-class dance mecca through a series of renovations and additions designed to meet the changing needs of audiences and performers.
The locals saw the zigzagging road as the rungs in Jacob's ladder, while a nearby farmer identified a pillow-shaped boulder by the farmhouse as the rock where weary Jacob laid down his head to sleep. Shawn and his 'Men Dancers' toured the world, performing more than 1,250 times in 750 cities.
Regular 'Tea Lecture Demonstrations' were staged to showcase the troupe's dance skills to the local community and to raise funds, which sowed the seeds for what has now become America's longest running international dance festival. Today, Jacob's Pillow remains a place of summer camps, summer homes, and picture-book settlements of spotless clapboard houses, well-attended churches, and carefully tended lawns, embodying the all-American dream.
Isabel Allen, the author of this article, captures the essence of the new Doris Duke Theatre at Jacob's Pillow, a testament to the power of blending tradition with innovation, and a beacon for the future of dance.
[1] Mecanoo Architects. (2021). New Doris Duke Theatre at Jacob's Pillow. Retrieved from https://www.mecanoo.com/en/project/new-doris-duke-theatre-at-jacobs-pillow-2
[2] Flansburgh Architects. (2017). Perles Family Studio at Jacob's Pillow. Retrieved from https://www.flansburgh.com/project/perles-family-studio-at-jacobs-pillow
[3] Marvel Architects. (2018). Jacob's Pillow. Retrieved from https://www.marvelarchitects.com/projects/jacobs-pillow-dance-festival-campus-master-plan
[4] Baan, I. (2017). New Doris Duke Theatre at Jacob's Pillow. Retrieved from https://www.iwanbaan.com/projects/new-doris-duke-theatre-at-jacobs-pillow
[5] Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival. (n.d.). About Jacob's Pillow. Retrieved from https://www.jacobspillow.org/about
- The redesigned Doris Duke Theatre at Jacob's Pillow, which cost $30m, showcases a fusion of traditional dance experimentation and modern adaptability, using advanced technology for performance and spatial audio, infrared camera tracking, and interactive video content.
- The Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, located in Western Massachusetts, boasts a rich history of championing counter-narratives about culture and identity, having evolved from a humble homestead into a world-class dance mecca.
- The Perles Family Studio, designed by Boston-based Flansburgh Architects, features a contemporary interpretation of a timber barn/performance space, mimicking the rural setting with its veranda providing passive shading.
- The landscape surrounding the Perles Family Studio, designed by New York practice Marvel with input from indigenous artists, celebrates indigenous knowledge, incorporating a nature-focused garden, communal fire pit, and reflecting the Pillow's heritage of site-specific dance work.
- Beyond dance, the Doris Duke Theatre also serves as a multipurpose space, with the podium rooftop functioning as an additional performance venue, allowing for a blend of indoor and outdoor experiences reminiscent of the Berkshires' idyllic summer homes and picture-book settlements.
