The Guga S’Thebe Children’s Theater is an expansion of the existing Arts and Culture Center Guga S’Thebe (by architect Carin Smuts) located in the heart of the Langa Community in Cape Town, South Africa, attracting local children, adolescents, and artists, as well as international tourists. Referencing historic and cultural properties of the site, the rectangular building volume is rotated creating an almost triangular square between the new theater and the amphitheater. The square serves as internal courtyard and as open auditorium for the exterior stage. Position and rotation of the building volume is based on an existing path which was grown informally during the apartheid era as a connection between the former barracks and the post office, this pathway was and is an important space for informal exchange.
Utilizing readily available and inexpensive shipping containers, the building’s rectangular footprint is defined by eleven stacked and staggered used shipping containers. The two level high boundary of the container wall defines the interior enclosure of a multifunctional theater (seating for 200 people) with a reconfigurable stage and exterior spaces, such as an outdoor stage, children play areas, and a garden. Numerous auxiliary spaces are contained within the width of the container wall, which include backstage areas, a soup kitchen, a room for stage direction, recording studio, workshops, and spectator balconies, creating a color pop as bright colors contrast against neutral tones of the large corrugated acoustically diffusing surface wrapping the performance space. Local artists and textile designers collaborated and made a series of interior and exterior textile panels that act as screens, windows and acoustic quilts.
Double-story steel columns line the interior of the container wall supporting v-shaped pre-fabricated wood trusses and a metal roof that hover above and extend past the container wall suspending a plane of acoustic absorbers and lights. To improve the interior climate, the container walls were insulated with a layer of light clay panels, which were fabricated on-site. The façade’s unique patterning is derived from researching the traditional Xhosa beadwork, giving systematic configurations that adapt to different orientations of the building and transitions to other materials – from wooden shingles (re-used planks from fruit crates provided by the local agriculture) to brickwork facing the historic path.
Vernacular traditions research in construction methods combined with industrial reused or recycled waste materials and naturally renewable earth materials define the design team’s parameters for the Design/Build framework and pedagogical structure. Focused on full-scale prototyping and material experiments, architecture students from three international schools – the Georgia Institute of Technology (Atlanta), the Peter Behrens School of Arts (HS Duesseldorf), and RWTH Aachen University (Aachen) – embarked on an international collaboration to make impact through design. Participating students lead all phases of design and construction. During the construction phase, students worked alongside members of the community, learning how to work with an array of construction materials and their specific applications alongside developing a strong awareness and respect for another culture and its surrounding environment. This pedagogy allows for an understanding of architecture as a social practice with all of its attendant cultural implications.
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Main Partners:
AIT-ArchitekturSalon, Hamburg/Cologne
City of Cape Town
CS Studio Architects, Cape Town
Georgia Institute of Technology, School Of Architecture
Guga s‘Thebe - Arts and Cultural Centre, Langa
Imagine structure GmbH, Frankfurt / Köln
Peter Behrens School of Architecture, Düsseldorf
RWTH Aachen University, Faculty of Architecture
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Design / Realization:
Peter Behrens School of Arts, Faculty of Architecture
Professor Dipl.-Ing. Judith Reitz
Franz Klein-Wiele
Tobias Urton
Thomas Schaplik, MA Virginia Clasen, MA Norman Kamp
with students from PBSA Düsseldorf
RWTH Aachen University, Faculty of Architecture
Institute for Building Typologies and Design Basics
Dipl.-Ing. Bernadette Heiermann
Dipl.-Ing. Nora Elisabeth Müller
Sebastian Holtmann
Professor Dipl.-Ing. Anne-Julchen Bernhardt
with students from RWTH Aachen
Georgia Institute of Technology, School of Architecture
Digital Fabrication Lab
Professor Dipl.-Ing. Daniel Baerlecken
Katherine Wright, MS, BArch, ARIA
Jacqueline Mancher
with students from Georgia Institute of Technology
CS Studio Architects, Cape Town
Carin Smuts
Simone Bergoff
Carlton Mouton
Bruce Torrance
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Academic Collaboration:
School of Architecture, UCT
Albertrum Crowder
Heath Nash
Mike Lowe
Habitat for Humanity, UCT
Kagiso Zwane
Chris Molteno
Tamarin Leong
Detmold University of Applied Sciences
Professor Bernadette Heiermann
Max Ernst MA
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Engineering Consultants:
Imagine structure GmbH, Arne Künstler
S. Imail Consulting Electrical Enigneers - Shafieqa Ismail
with Dorman projects - Errol Dorman
Solution Station - Reynier Oelofsen
Transsolar Energietechnik GmbH - Markus Krauss
Build Collective, Elias Rubin
MiTek - Clayten Gouws/ Conrad v. Zyl/ Schalk Brits
Peutz Akustik - Klaus-Hendrik Lorenz-Kierakiewitz
Carl Lutzeler - Structural Engineering
Heribert Weegen - container transformation
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Initiative/Fundraising:
AIT-ArchitekturSalon, Hamburg/Cologne, Kristina Bacht
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Press, Editorial Office:
Lasse Ole Hempel, Katrin Kolling, Anuschka Kossak, Cornelia Krause, Marina Schiemenz, Devita Pawennei, Christian Polonius, Martina Schmidt, Myriam Fischer, Maren Derneden, Johanna Niescken, Nathalie Martin, Monja Horrer
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City of Cape Town
Department of Arts and Culture
Ria Briers
Nikita Campbell
Louis Coetzee
Johan Cornelius
Cedric Daniels
Andile Dyasi
Dimitri Georgeades
Lorraine Gerrans
Donovan Geysman
Natalie Harper
Margot van Heerden
Ashley Hemraj
Peter Henshall-Howard
Renee Holleman
Riaan Ismail
Saul Jacobs
Robin Jutzen
Peter Koen
Louise Ing
Mogamat Landers
Gerald Lee
Juliet Leslie
Eesa Limbada
Bongani Mgijima
Zayd Minty
Xoliswa Morara
Ashley Newman
Shamila Rahim
Gregory September
Robert Siebrits
Craig Sissing
Ancunel Steyn
Brian Tarrant
Abraham Venter
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Supported by
Bild hilft e.V.
Bischöflicher Hilfsfonds Eine Welt für die Organisation der Spenden
Interstuhl Büromöbel GmbH & Co. KG, Germany
Karl Bröckner Stiftung
Rotary Club Berlin-Gedächtniskirche
Rotary Club Munich
Rudolf-August-Oetker Stiftung, Germany
Steven A. Denning Award, Atlanta USA
Sto Stiftung, Germany
ACA Threads
Afrisam
Airton Timbers
Anchor Projects
Apple Tool and Gas
Archigraphy
Artemide Handelsgesellschaft m.b.H
Assmann Büromöbel GmbH
Bambana Management Services Ltd
BigBox Containers
Boltfast
BUCO Athlone
Build-It Athlone
Builders Warehouse
CD Fox Packaging Materials
Cape Sewing
Claytile Ltd
Container 4 U
Corobrik Ltd
Création Baumann AG
Creative Industries Funding
Dietiker AG
DLW Flooring GmbH
DORMA Deutschland GmbH
Fastenright Ltd
Geberit Southern Africa Pty Ltd
Group Five Ltd
Hansa Armaturen GmbH
Hire-It, Maitland, Theo van Neel
Interface
Interstuhl Büromöbel GmbH
Johnson Crane, Werner Müller
Kevin Bates Flooring & Carpeting, Shirley Milne
Kilowatt AV, Corne Mouton
Lafarge, Durbanville, Dave Hierons/ Paarden Eiland, Rhuwayds Lalla
Macsteel, Chris Pennacchini
Maschinen Kaul GmbH
Messe Frankfurt GmbH
Metroroofing, Adam Commerford
Modek, Lorraine Salies
Multi Pallett Epping
O-Line, Amor Steyn
Okavango Lighting ARB Electrical Wholesalers
Pfleiderer AG
Plascon
Popular Canvas
Powertool Repairs
PPC
Prosound, Charles Markotter
Renolit SE
RFF Foods
Rigifoam, Carol de Jager
sander.hofrichter architekten
Showtex SA, Michael Spaan
Siyazama Steel Ltd., Trevor Jackson
Stellval Crane Hire, Gail Thompson
Superfine Colors, Kelvin Irvine
TECE GmbH
Tile house Cape Town
Trussworld, Alison Pietersen
TTS Tooltechnic Systems GmbH
Tuff Guard
Two a Day Group LTD
Upat
Villeroy & Boch AG
VV4 Agri Ltd.
WINI Büromöbel Georg Schmidt GmbH
Würth South Africa Co.Ltd., Marisa Maurer
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Special Thanks
Alain Uyttebrouch
Staff of the Guga S´Thebe Arts Center
Claudia Weinbrenner-Seibt, Firmengruppe Weinbrenner
Andy Horn
Jan Störmer, Störmer Murphy & Partners, Hamburg
Karl Hvidsten, Structural Engineer, Cape Town
Mirko Tegeder
Nathi Gigaba
Sara Spiro, sara spiro group, Zürich
Siviwe Mbinda, Happy Feet Youth Project, Langa
Manana
Geoffrey Mamputa
Nomtha Dilima
John Coetzee
Florian Schrage
In Performance Project 2014
Branko Popovic
Jolijn Fiddelaers
Nawie Kuiper
Nora Wetzel
Saskia Oidtmann
Sivuyisiwe Giba
Buhle Ndamase
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Participating Students
Peter Behrens School of Architecture, Düsseldorf:
Chaye Agbetou
Kristina Franke
Cora Hanquet
Dilsoz Kasim-Sieto
Catharina Keckstein
Evelyn Kreuzer
Marco Martens
Jannik Metje
Miriam Metje
Miriam Nguan
Zehra Özdilek
Thomas Schaplik
Nikolija Stamenkovic
Günay Terzi
Ebru Yazici
Virginia Classen
Janina Pahlke
Kyra Pahlke
Jelena Krämer
Elena Miegel
Maike Schulz
Matthias Stromberg
Joana Koslowsky
Joana Münster
Ann-Denise Hinse
Rosa Niggemann
Ulrike Baumann
Isabelle Motschull
Kardar Aslan
Hannah Diermann
Berit Wenthaus
Nadja Jung
Fabian Konkol
Levke Danker
Theresa Lücke
Cornelia Schneider
Nico Hillen
Greteakiny Ohlendorf
Lena Hille
Vanessa Rottstädt
Daniel Schröder
Nico Kückemanns
Svenja Wenzel
Anna Schneider
Vanessa Kiefert
Annika Krause
RWTH Aachen University:
Paola Both
David Bulenda
Markus Claudy
Paula Frasch
Hanna Fokken
Katja Göser
Valerie Gottburg
Nadia Heyers
Katrin Karos
Conrad Kersting
Hannah Koschinski
Theresa Kotulla
Christian Kühnle
Elahe Maleki
Nicklette Marques Pires
Tina Meyer
Khaled Mostafa
Judith Neyses
Nils Oehler
Carl von Oy
Nathalie Pszola
Sebastian Rothkopf
Lukas Schlüter
Nicolas Schulz
Carolin Schulze
Julia Schwippe
Andreas Seegmüller
Simon Spenrath
Laura Stock
Johannes Walterbusch
Fiona Westphal
Wang Shu Wu
Tim Andrasko
Julia Leucht
Yingcheng Liang
Daniela Lindner
Alia Mortada
Tina Schumann
Di Wu
Sarah Tendler
Elisabeth Faßbender
Ronja Monshausen
Franziska Enderle
Victor Bausinger
Laura Hohlfeld
Friederike Henne
Juliane Seehawer
Adrian Fuhrich
Benedict Christensen
Tiemo Deller
Inna Kotel
Henriette Riecke
Liessa Riebesel
Mareike Kapitza
Laure Kerger
Rana Elkholi
Lukas Pauw
Fabian Klemp
Kay Sommer
Ru Yang
Qingxian Du
Jana Mentges
Anne Fabritius
Lavinia Hoeck
Kristin Schoening
Dominique Ramrath
Pitt Lion Gerlich
Tarik Kaya
Constantin Wiemer
Smina Gahlen
Nele Geßner
Thomas Klinkhammer
Samila Sydiq
Henning Hessel
Henriette Riecke
Conrad Idensee
Christopher Neuwirth
Magdalena Stephan
Dennis Mertens
Dominique Boh
Matthias Rietze
Anna Kuretzky
Miriam Attallah
Marina Thelen
Elsa Gaugué
Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta:
David Baxter
Katelyn Bouret
Christine Cangelosi
William Collar
Sara Damiani
Brittney Davis
David Duncan
Jeremy Gentry
Lisa Goubeaux
Meredith James
Peter Jamieson
Ashwin Kamath
Joanna Robinson
Phebe Tam
Kara Thomas
Austin Wright
Derin Yilmaz
WenWen Zhao
Briatta, Mary
Cousseillant, Bob
Kim, Daniel
Kitchens, Taylor
Longhi, Paloma
Miller, Andrew
Miller, John
Moghimi, Leila
Nazli, Mediha
Orvino, Morgan
Sawyer, Kaleigh
Serna, David
Quy Le
Jacqueline Mancher
James McDaniel
Michelle Kraus
Paul Reynolds
Amelia Deaton
David Moore
Hannah Goldstein
Erika Hogan
Brian Sudduth
Dillon Mertens
Ali Crownover
Andres Erazo
Jose Garza De La Cruz
Geoffrey Rees
Whitney Ashley
Phoebe Edalatpour
Takuto Osawa
Grey Peterson
Liu Qiao
Detmold School of Architecture and Interior Architecture:
Max Ernst
Sabrina Mix
Felix Röder
Larissa Brüsehafer
Nadine Duffe
Marie Ehrenstein
Friederike Essfeld
Steffi Faff
Anna Lena Faltin
Sarah Hesse
Pieter Junge
Amelie Kastrup
Jana Kausemann
Lena Klein-Erwig
Mona Makebrand
Carina Pardun
Pia Aletta Peters
Jens Renneke
Renate Sibgatullina
Anne Sonnefeld
Pascal Völz
Luise Watolla
Tim Winter
Anne Worpenberg
Christian S. Schantz
Dennis Sonntag
Leo Busch
Gut Rosenberg School of Design:
Josef Forstmeier
Benedict Boderius
School of Architecture, UCT:
first year students of 2013
third year students of 2013
Habitat for Humanity, UCT
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Volunteers
Hannah Heiermann
Pauline Henke
Dominik Ortseifen
Julian Runge
Peter Krings
Constantin Weil
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Builders from Langa
Siya Malgas
Mtutuzeli Hotele
Malibongwe Sohomani
Sipho Dyira
Lyanda Centane
Brian Xolile Ngxiki
Loyiso Botha
Masixole Nkonya
Progress Mvere
Nokuzola Renqe Inam kula
Zonkie mzi
Sanelisiwe Nkobe