Laban Dance Centre, London
About the Project
- Principal designer: Herzog & de Meuron
- Client: Laban
- Principal contractor: Ballast Southern
- Contract value: £22 million
This new dance centre in Lewisham houses 13 dance studios, offices, study rooms, a 300-seat theatre purpose-built for contemporary dance and a dance health centre to support the organisation's pioneering work in dance science.
Laban also has a library and cafeteria open to the public.
As well as providing professional dance training, the new centre offers dance classes for children, amateurs and youth groups and, on its first open day, 6000 people visited the building.
The use of colour gives the building its special magic. The polychromatic exterior is unique, consisting of transparent or translucent glass panels, depending on whether the space behind requires a view. Coloured, transparent polycarbonate panels are mounted in front of the glass panels, serving as a protective shield (against sun, glare, heat radiation) and contributing to the overall energy system.
Internally, magenta and lime green positively explode, giving the spaces
their exuberance, and the shadows of the dancers fall on to the matt glass
surfaces of the interior walls and facades, creating a magical effect.
The judges said:
"A design tour de force with a welcome regeneration message"
