The architectural design of the transformable theatre space posed major challenges to fire engineering and ventilation. The cube works in conjunction with columns beneath the auditoria to support and stabilise the three projecting volumes. To give freedom for architectural planning of the theatres and other large spaces, we turned the faces of the cube into a stiff braced steel box carrying the building’s lateral loads and much of the gravity force. The theatres can be used independently or combined to allow performance spaces to be coupled for new theatrical possibilities. The 58,000m² complex features three auditoria plugging into a compact central cube that contains backstage areas, foyers, front-of-house and support facilities. Throughout the competition, scheme and preliminary design stages, Arup’s Beijing, Hong Kong, London and Los Angeles offices worked with the OMA and local partners, including KRIS YAO | ARTECH, providing advice on structural engineering, MEP engineering, sustainable design and fire engineering.

OMA’s unique design for TPAC, plugging three theatres into a central cube, won an international design competition in 2008.

Inspired by a traditional Chinese wood block puzzle, Taipei Performing Arts Center (TPAC) is an international-standard performing arts facility commissioned to satisfy the demands of the city’s contemporary art scene and advance Taipei as a world-class art capital.

Cube escape theatre safe code