Recipient of People's Choice and Urban Architecture Awards from the 2023 Edmonton Urban Design Awards.
The original Roxy Theatre on 124th Street was lost to fire in 2015. The rebuilt theatre occupies the same narrow site, presenting an urban design challenge to maximize the impact of limited street frontage while designing for inward-focused theatre spaces.
Massing is tallest at the rear to accommodate the stage and catwalk, descending towards the street in a platonic wedge that concentrates the building’s formal energy at the public interface. A generous overhang protects and enhances this pedestrian-oriented space, taking advantage of zoning allowances for overhead construction above city-owned sidewalks. White stucco cladding references the international-style of its predecessor, while anticipating future development of neighbouring properties.
The iconic sign reaches skyward to the maximum allowable building height; its warm yellow glow visible from afar signals the return of a cultural hub. Bigger and bolder, it is resolutely dedicated to the memory of its predecessor; broken shards recovered from the debris allowed for an exact colour match. Hand sketching was used to explore art-deco forms for the sign and potential integration with the cladding.
The lobby is an extension of the street with maximum transparency, an operable glass wall and exterior brick that wraps through the interior.
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