UNStudio is building a theatre complex in the West Kowloon Cultural District of Hong Kong, featuring three performance spaces connected by ramps.
The Dutch architecture studio is revealing its design for the Lyric Theatre Complex for the first time at the Business of Design Conference in Hong Kong this week, although the building has been under construction since April.

Featuring a compact design intended to maximise visibility, the complex will contain the 1,450-seat Lyric theatre, the 600-seat Medium theatre, and the Studio theatre that seats 270.
There will also be a large rehearsal room and an eight-studio centre for the resident dance company, along with shops and restaurants.

Each theatre will have its own foyer, allowing all three to be open simultaneously. Each of these foyers will have balconies and overlooks, so theatre-goers and the public can enjoy what the architects described as a "see and be seen" atmosphere. In an inversion of the traditionally enclosed "black box" theatre design, UNStudio put transparency at the core of the building. Large sections of the facade will be glazed to allow the public to see inside the building and watch the dancers rehearse.

The theatres will be stacked for compactness, connected by two ramps curving in a 3D figure-of-eight design. The first ramp will down to the Lyric theatre, while the second will ascend to the Medium and Studio theatres.
Located in the centre of the looping ra...