A development application for a new Studio 'Black Box' Theatre at the Manning Entertainment Centre (MEC) has been lodged with MidCoast Council and is now on public exhibition.
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Estimated to cost $2,508,300, the alterations and additions to the council-owned MEC include a new studio theatre and associated foyer, back of house and audience amenities.
Architects Austin McFarland lodged the application, which proposes a new flat floor theatre with retractable seating for up to 160 persons to complement the existing facilities of the MEC and provide greater flexibility for the staging of entertainment and community events.
The studio theatre is proposed to be built to the north and directly adjacent to the existing MEC, with the existing 505 seat theatre and amenities to be maintained without any alterations except for an opening in the exiting foyer to connect to the new foyer space.
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The new studio theatre will be incorporated into the MEC operationally and will be under one common management.
The 'black box' style flat floor theatre provides a vastly different theatre experience to the existing 505 seat auditorium and a flexible performance space for a variety of styles.
The flexibility of the flat floor and retractable seating, combined with the new holding kitchen, opens this space up for new uses such as dinner events, conferences and trade shows.
The new layout also allows for connection of the back-of-house areas between the existing and new spaces including direct access from the new holding kitchen to the bar/service area in the existing foyer.
This connection will help with the management of performers during peak usage, in particular during the Taree and District Eisteddfod and large dance performances.
The connection also allows for the studio theatre to be used as a 'warm up' area for the larger productions, expanding on the way the MEC can offer the venue to performance companies.
The new dock will be accessed off the existing service carpark at the rear of the existing theatre.
The new studio theatre construction will be funded through a private donation combined with a NSW grant, with no funding allocation from MidCoast Council. The NSW grant funding has a time limit for expenditure.
The new work has been split into three stages:
- Stage 1 - Studio theatre, crossover corridor, foyer, audience amenities, comms rooms and forecourt
- Stage 2 - Dressing rooms, dock and holding kitchen
- Stage 3 - Extension of service roadway
The Stage 1 studio theatre can be operated utilising the existing MEC dressing rooms combined with the corridor behind the performance space acting as a crossover space and for fast changes.
The development application (LOT 1 DP 783990) is on public exhibition until August 24 and can be viewed on the MidCoast Council website or at council's offices.
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