Opera Holland Park

London

Hall + Bednarczyk’s proposal for a temporary demountable opera house was chosen as the winning design for the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea’s annual outdoor opera season staged in Holland Park. The scheme, designed with tensile structure specialists Architen Landrell, was selected from an invited shortlist which included proposals by world-renowned architects.

The facility is required to be temporary due to its parkland location adjacent to Grade I listed Holland House. The design seeks to resolve the practical needs of a rapidly demountable audience facility with the desire for a luxurious opera house. An over-sailing tensile fabric roof provides a free-spanning cover for the entire facility, suspended from two 18m high V-masts.

A stacking system of pre-fabricated units, derived from temporary modular buildings, provides a habitable structure forming large hospitality spaces, while supporting grandstand seating for 1000 audience members. A set of timber clad steel balconies are designed to bolt to the stacked modular frame, creating a dramatic full width cantilevered frontage. The system is designed to be craned into position in a 3 day period, followed by a 2 week fit out period.