Frank Gehry at work
Frank Gehry’s body of work is one of the most celebrated in contemporary architecture, and his sensational and iconic buildings for the performing and visual arts are among his most well-known works. Signature Theatre Company is proud to be collaborating with Gehry on Signature Center. If you have not already, take a look at his models of the Center. In his own words, Gehry describes his interest in the project:
“That magical space between the actor on stage and the audience is one
of the most compelling ideas. To design spaces for that to happen has
been intriguing to me for many years, and I enjoy designing spaces for
the performing arts and plastic arts. The idea of being able to come
out of the busy street and all the chaos of New York and walk in and sit
down and all the sudden you are in a new world. That’s powerful.” – Frank Gehry, architect of the Signature Center.
Below, check out what distinguished Signature alumni are saying about Gehry:
“There’s people in the far corners of the planet that can affirm that it’s exciting to get Frank Gehry to design an armchair let alone three theatres. It’s been really exciting to see this company grow into its mission, and now we have this incredible opportunity to create the platform for what this company is capable of and what it deserves. I think we’ll be able to look at the Signature Center and say that was such a natural idea.” – Edward Norton, Actor and Trustee
Edward Norton and Frank Gehry at the 2010 Signature Gala
“You feel that thrill of saying, why not? And that's what you want theatre to be is, why not? Why not ask Frank Gehry, the greatest architect in the world, to design our theatres on 42nd Street? Why not?” – John Guare, Signature Playwright-in-Residence 1998/99
“What’s always occurred to me, when I saw Bilbao, [Spain, where Gehry’s Guggenheim museum is located] when I saw the Disney Hall, is how theatrical these buildings are. It harkens back to a period when the architectural design of the theatre was willing to enter into a kind of dialectic relationship with what’s on stage. The audience wasn’t merely meant to vanish.” – Tony Kushner, Playwright-in-Residence 2010/11
John Guare and Tony Kushner at the 2010 Signature Gala
