Lubbock, Texas, the birthplace of Buddy Holly, has a brand-new venue dedicated to the celebrated singer-songwriter and rock ’n’ roll legend. The Buddy Holly Hall of Performing Arts and Sciences has now completed, courtesy of Canadian architecture firm Diamond Schmitt.
The venue's recent inauguration – with a series of socially distanced, limited-capacity performances, in response to the ongoing pandemic – means the town has West Texas' largest dedicated performance hall, covering some 218,000 sq ft. The design includes two theatres of different sizes, a restaurant, two multi-purpose rooms and an outdoor covered amphitheatre. The aim is for this cultural hub to become a real hive of activity come summer or when any Covid-related restrictions can be lifted.
The design, explain Diamond Schmitt, ‘is inspired by the colours and shapes of the landscape of West Texas, including the prismatic and layered rock formations of Texas canyons'. As a result, it features deep-set windows, concrete ‘fins', and a large overhang that not only ensures shade and protection on ground level, but also creates a sense of architectural tension and movement.
Angular and dramatic, the building also feels sleek and modern, in both its form and function. Its flexible layouts and halls have been created to accommodate anything from ballet, symphony, school, opera, pop and country shows to Broadway productions.
‘Just as the idea for The Buddy Holly Hall grew from the Lubbock community, our modern design for the building is inspired by the region’s physical and cultural landscape,' says Diamond Schmitt principal Matthew Lella. ‘We designed a building that is both open and outward-looking and yet simultaneously invites the public to engage with all the activity happening inside. Responding to the unique challenges of the site – from the intense Texas heat to the location on a flood plain – we have created a signature new space for the performing arts with world-class facilities that embody the spirit of the performers who will be gracing its stages.'
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