Esplanade - Theatres on the Bay

Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay (also known as the Esplanade Theatres or simply The Esplanade) is a performing arts centre located in Downtown Core near the mouth of the Singapore River. Named after the nearby Esplanade Park, it consists of a concert hall which seats about 1,600 and a theatre with a capacity of about 2,000 for the performing arts.

Fondly nicknamed "the Durian” by Singaporeans for its resemblance to the popular fruit, Esplanade holds a 1,600-seat Concert Hall, a 2,000-seat Theatre and several intimate performance venues. Its performance spaces have hosted a range of high-profile events, such as the return of the quintessential musical Les Misérables.

Free programmes, from music and dance to theatre, also regularly take place at various locations in Esplanade.

History
In 1989, the Advisory Council on Culture and the Arts, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Ong Teng Cheong, produced a report assessing the status of arts in Singapore. The report would form the blueprint for cultural policy in Singapore, and led to the establishment of the National Arts Council and National Heritage Board. The report noted a lack of suitable performance arts venues; for example, Victoria Theatre was deemed only suitable for small to medium-sized performances, while Victoria Concert Hall was similarly lacking in its seating capacity and stage size. It recommended that a new performing arts centre be built, and in 1992 the Singapore Arts Centre (now known as "Esplanade Co Ltd") was established to build the Esplanade. The name for the centre was revealed in 1994. It was named after Esplanade due to its significant presence in the Esplanade Park.

Planning began in 1992, headed by the Singapore Arts Centre Co. It was developed at the cost of about SGD 600 million. Construction officially started on 11 August 1996, with a groundbreaking ceremony officiated by then Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Tony Tan. The Esplanade occupies the site of the former "Satay Club", a popular food haunt for Singaporeans which had been discontinued prior to the Esplanade's construction. The "Satay Club" had been relocated next to Sembawang Shopping Centre before moving over to the Gardens by the Bay since 2012, before closing down.

Completed in February 2001, the centre was officially opened on 12 October 2002, by the then President of Singapore S. R. Nathan.

On 5 July 2005, the opening ceremony of the 117th IOC Session was staged in the Esplanade, featuring a 30-minute-long performance aimed at showcasing Singapore's multi-cultural heritage to her international audience.

Since 2010, Esplanade MRT station was opened, which provides a connection to the island's train system and the station was named after the theatre.

For its last financial year ending March 2014, the Esplanade incurred a loss of S$2.3 million, the first operating deficit since its opening. This loss was despite the Esplanade racking up relatively similar numbers in terms of audience attendance and activities from the previous year and was attributed primarily to the drop in sponsorship and donations.

Exercise Heartbeat 2016, simulating Nice terrorist attacks, was held at this building on 2 September 2016.

Design
The building was designed by two architectural firms working in conjunction: by DP Architects (DPA) of Singapore and the London-based Michael Wilford & Partners (MWP), although the latter left the project in May 1995. The design consists of two rounded space frames fitted with triangulated glass elements and sunshades, which balance outward views with solar shading.

The original design, presented to the public in 1994, consisted of unadorned glass cases over the theatres, and initially elicited criticisms from the public, including calling it "two copulating aardvarks". Critics also accused that the design is insensitive to Singapore's location and climate as it would have created a greenhouse in the tropical climate of Singapore, but according to DPA director Vikas Gore some form of shading was always intended, and a cladding of aluminium sunshades was added to the final design. The unique architectural design has been said to have an appearance similar to either a durian (a tropical fruit) or the eyes of a fly. Hence, the building is colloquially known to locals as "the big durians". More than 7,000 triangular aluminium sunshades that cover its two circular glass shell structures looked somewhat like spikes on two halves of the fruit. The structure wasn’t meant to be a durian; it ended up being like that because it seemed to the architects the most interesting way of doing sunshades. They wanted to use glass because the views from Esplanade are beautiful in all directions, but since Singapore is so close to the equator, the structure also had to be protected from the sunshine and heat radiation.

Shopping and dining
Before you attend a performance, catch a pre-show dinner or a coffee at one of the restaurants or cafes at the three-storey Esplanade Mall. You can also squeeze in a quick spot of shopping at the retail outlets, picking up goods as diverse as customised hand lotions, or maybe a violin or two.

If you wish to explore the complex further, take the Esplanade Tour, a 60-minute guided tour that takes you through the Concert Hall, Theatre and other front-of-house facilities. The tour will give you an understanding of the venue’s acoustics, its architecture and history, as well as its contribution to Singapore’s art scene.

Facilities

• Performance venues

Other than performing venues, the Esplanade also contains meeting venues, as well as other lifestyle and arts related services. The concert hall and theatre are connected to the main concourse via a foyer, while the Esplanade Mall is accessible through an entry point located between these 2 halls.

• Concert hall

The concert hall serves as a venue for concerts, recitals, and other performances. There are only five other halls in the world with such state-of-the-art acoustics.

The orchestral platform is able to hold up to 120 musicians.

The concert hall's pipe organ comprises 4740 pipes and 61 stops. It was designed and built by Johannes Klais Orgelbau.

The Concert Hall is able to seat about 1,600 people over four levels. Types of seats include Stalls, Foyer stalls, and Circles 1, 2, and 3. There are another 200 seats in the choir stalls behind the concert hall stage, which may be converted into Gallery seats for an additional 200 people.

• Theatre

The Lyric Theatre which has a capacity of about 2,000 seats is a type of an adaptation of the horseshoe form of a traditional European opera house.

• Recital Studio

The fan-shaped Recital Studio is able to contain 245 people and is a venue for small scale chamber musical performances, as well as presentations and meetings.

• Theatre Studio

The Theatre Studio, with a capacity of up to 220, is a small setting for experimental theatre and dance presentations.

Esplanade - Theatres on the Bay, Singapore

• Address: 1 Esplanade Dr, Singapore 038981
• Capacity: 3,600
• Architects: Michael Wilford, Russell Johnson, Koh Seow Chuan
• Operating Hours: Daily noon-8.30pm