University theater takes cue from surrounding topography
The new performance hall at Utah State University, inaugurated in January 2006, features sculpted, geometric forms that evoke the look of the surrounding mountains. Designed by Sasaki Associates, the 420-seat hall is a play of geometries -- an orthogonal concrete shell with 18-inch thick concrete walls encloses the performance space; a contrasting origami-like entrance pavilion has precise architectural geometry that recalls the tectonic forces that formed the surrounding Bear River Mountains. Triangular skylights angle light into interior spaces; at night the pavilion faces a piazza and is dramatically lit, highlighting splayed columns that suggest musical notes.
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