Midlands Technical College, Harbison Theatre

Awarded:

• AIA South Carolina, Merit Award, 2011
• AIA Columbia, Columbia Honor Award, 2010

Located on a small campus, in a quiet suburban neighborhood, this 400-seat theatre and classroom building threatened to dwarf its surroundings. To mitigate the effect of a 5-story fly loft and a comparatively enormous footprint, the design team took advantage of existing topography while also wrapping program functions around the fly loft, to modulate and soften the building’s massing. Simultaneously presenting a one-story façade to the neighbors and a monumental façade to the public, exterior massing was further articulated through a composition of stucco and campus-standard masonry. The rich color was introduced in otherwise simple, economical interiors to denote theatre-related functions.