Buxton Center for Bainbridge Performing Arts - Exterior

The Buxton Center for Bainbridge Performing Arts

Location

Bainbridge Island, Washington

Owner

Bainbridge Performing Arts

Collaborators +

General Contractor: Carley Construction

Acoustics, A/V and Theater Planning: Arup

Theater Planning: Shalleck Collaborative Inc.

Structural Engineering: Lund Opsahl LLC

MEP Engineering: PAE Consulting Engineers

Civil Engineering: Saez Consulting Engineers

Landscape Architecture: Groundswell Studio

Lighting Design: Luma Lighting Design

Project Size

New area: 5,400 square feet

Renovated area: 11,300 square feet

Seating Capacity

219 auditorium

Project Status

In Progress

Services

Architecture, Interior Design, Planning, Renovation + Adaptive Reuse

LMN was commissioned to study the expansion of the Center, starting with a prioritization process that involved key staff and Board representatives to align the program with the available financial resources. Function spaces required to address artistic and community needs were identified and coalesced into a building program.

The Buxton Center for the Bainbridge Performing Arts is the renovation and addition of the 1992 building, revitalizing a beloved community theater into an inviting place for performers, patrons, staff, and the greater arts community. The renewed Buxton Center aims to strengthen the public connection within the downtown—creating a cultural and civic campus, including City Hall, Town Square and its weekly farmer’s market, the Buxton Center, and the Historical Museum.

Designed to achieve LEED Gold certification, the addition includes a multi-purpose studio theater that will serve as rehearsal, classroom or performance space, and a new two-story lobby and bar, balconies, box office, expanded restrooms and administrative spaces. The redesign of the auditorium includes improved sightlines and accessibility for all patrons, a reconfigured seating bowl with sound locks, and new finishes and lighting, while the back-of-house spaces receive upgrades to building systems.