Pritzker-winning architect Toyo Ito (伊東豊雄) will return to discuss his latest architectural achievement — the National Taichung Theater (臺中國家歌劇院) — in a special showcase co-organized by the Asia Society Hong Kong Center and the Kwang Hwa Information and Culture Centre on April 22.
Slated to open to the public this October, the National Taichung Theater boasts the world's first beamless structure complete with irregular curved walls. The architectural feat earned praise from media commentators such as Reuters, who dubbed it "the world's ninth new landmark.”
Ito's unique vision, which set him apart from 32 other architectural firms that participated in the 2005 international design competition organized by Taichung City, was based on creating a "sound cave” with tubular voids and hourglass-shaped cutouts.
"The National Taichung Theater is not just a building that houses the opera. The entire architecture itself is an opera,” noted Ito. "One can feel the flow of air, sound, and light not only in the foyer, but within the restaurant, sky garden, and everywhere else in the building. One feels overwhelmed by the grandeur of a cosmic brilliance coming out of the architecture.”
The Japanese architect will be joined by K.C. Chen (陳國慈), director of the National Performing Arts Center in Taiwan, Victoria Wang (王文儀), director of the National Taichung Theater, and Louis Lu (茹國烈), performing arts director of the West Kowloon Cultural District.
Dialogue will be held in Japanese and Mandarin Chinese, and accompanied by English interpretation.
The night will be brought to a close with a performance from Bulareyaung Pagarlava (布拉瑞揚•帕格勒法), a Taiwanese choreographer attached to the National Taichung Theater's residency program.
‘Architecture as the Embodiment of Opera'
- Date: April 22, 2016
- Venue: Asia Society Hong Kong Center
- Address: 9 Justice Drive, Admiralty, Hong Kong
- Free Entry: Pre-registration is required
Related Features