Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts in Kansas City, Missouri, United States

December 29, 2010 Category: Cultural, Public Buildings

Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts that located in Kansas City, Missouri, United States, was designed by Safdie Architects. Three performance spaces – a proscenium theater, a concert hall, and a banquet hall – are placed along the ridgeline of the site, facing south. A glazed foyer serves the two major halls, with a smaller foyer attached to the banquet hall.

The roof intersects with an outwardly inclined and curved glass wall, which contains the foyer with a southern view. The tensile forces of the suspended glass foyer roof are counteracted by a series of cables tying down the structure to anchors at the entrance terrace. The curved, segmented northern walls are sheathed in silvery stainless steel and punctuated by acid-etched, limestone-colored, precast concrete perpendicular walls.

The roof is stainless steel over the performing halls, changing to glass over the foyers. The glass enclosure opens the foyer to dramatic views of the sky and skyline. At night, seen from the exterior, the glazing disappears and reveals the dramatically lit theater facades and activity within the public areas.

Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts design by Safdie Architects