The Everyman Theatre in Liverpool has reopened, but in a dramatically different guise. A new-build facility replaces the original 19th Century theatre located on the same historic city centre site in Hope Street, next to the soaring Catholic cathedral.
Designed by architect Haworth Tompkins and built by main contractor Gilbert Ash for client Liverpool and Merseyside Theatres Trust, the £13.4m building is characterised by its animated facade featuring more than 100 sunshades etched with the portraits of Liverpool residents and a glowing red sign that references the original theatre’s signage. On the roof, a row of large ventilation chimneys give the building a distinctive silhouette.
The building fabric was designed to achieve a BREEAM Excellent rating, unusual for an energy-intensive urban theatre, and combines thermally massive construction with a series of natural ventilation systems and low energy construction methods and materials.
A total of 25,000 reclaimed bricks were salvaged from the original theatre, a converted chapel, and reused to form the main curved wall between the 400-seat auditorium and its surrounding foyer. The timbers were also recycled to form the roof structure.
Natural ventilation for the main performance and workspaces is achieved using large roof vents and underfloor intake plenums, with offices and other spaces ventilated with opening windows. A fully exposed concrete structure with a high percentage of cement replacement aids natural cooling.
The building makes efficient use of the constrained sloping topography of the site by arranging the public spaces around a series of half levels, which avoided the need to demolish more adjoining buildings. The public spaces, such as the bar and foyer, are arranged over several storeys, creating a tiered route from the street to the auditorium.
The “front or house” part of the building features the main auditorium with its three-sided “thrust” stage, a foyer and bistro spaces. The theatre also includes a “theatre and community” studio, writer’s study, meeting and function rooms and new back of house and support facilities including a scenic workshop and a rehearsal room with recording suite.
