The new theater, IMM THEATER, is a project planned by TOKYO DOME CORPORATION and LIVE FORWARD Co., Ltd., a group company of YOSHIMOTO KOGYO HOLDINGS Co., Ltd., as a new venue for theater and entertainment in Tokyo Dome City. The aim is to create the excitement, cheerfulness, joy, and laughter of the audience that the new theater is intended to inspire. The entire building was designed to express the excitement of being surrounded by spotlights on stage, with a rope-like design created for both the exterior and interior. Using the concept of a curtain call, the colorful and bold ropework on the exterior represents the expression of the curtain fabric between the stage and the audience, and the superimposed pattern of spotlights hitting it, creating a design that allows for the theater’s interior to be felt from the exterior as well. The main entrance is designed to be open to the city by reducing the volume at the corner of the building and inviting people in from there. The design is simple, yet captivating.
The interior design draws the colorful ropework design from the exterior into the foyer, conveying a colorful and exciting story that contrasts with the monochromatic interior. The color of the seats in the theater also matches the ropes to create consistency in the design.
The building was not intended to be just a simple box limited by a budget, but to express the excitement of the theatre's interior spotlight in an ingeniously designed exterior, as if it were a theatre, a place for entertainment.
Therefore, the volume of the building itself took a monochrome and simple shape, with rope used for athletic attractions and playground equipment used as wrapping. The combination was born out of the ingenious use of materials that were cost-effective and had an affinity with the Tokyo Dome and the attraction area, without being restricted by the boundaries of building materials. The range of prominent colours, which is the purpose of athletic ropes, was also a catalyst for their adoption as a material for expressing enjoyment.
The rope design was applied to the long sides of the building to read the conditions of a long tangent road and an open frontage. In order to express the emotions of the theatre, which are created by both the audience and the performers, the design plan uses a gradation of warm colours, from yellow to wine, to mirror the gradual build up of emotions during a performance.
The impression of the tight ropes on the building expresses the tense atmosphere of the front side of the theatre stage, while the rugged presence the metal fittings expresses the atmosphere of the back side of the theatre stage.
In this exterior ropework, a space between the wall and the ropes was created, allowing for an up to double expression of the ropes, so that the shadows cast by sunlight during the day and by lighting effects at night create a design that is more complex and dynamic than the actual amount of rope. This is an attempt to achieve an effect that is not excessive in terms of weight, structure and cost.
In order to create an easily recognisable main entrance to the building, the corners of the simple rectangular building feature a large cut to create a shape that is open to the city, welcoming people in. Once inside, the foyer area is designed with a rope design that also extends to the outside, creating a sense of unity between the interior and exterior space.
The theatre's interior design is mainly based on theatre content, so the view from the audience side is monochrome, while the seats are intended to appear colourful when viewed from the stage. In this way, the view from the performers' side is colourful and enjoyable, with a design that was created with an awareness of how the performers and audience are perceived.
This design was developed for a new build, however this technique of wrapping the architecture to add depth to the exterior is a design method that can also be used for renovations and repairs.
Architect
Takenaka Corporation
Client
TOKYO DOME / LIVE FORWARD Co.,Ltd.
View Original