Legendary actors such as James Dean and Dustin Hoffman once roamed the halls of the Madison campus of Santa Monica College. The fresh and innovative performing arts center opened in fall 2008. The 32,300-square-foot
(2,973-m2) venue includes a 541-seat theater, rehearsal, dressing and storage rooms, plus state-of-the-art sound, lighting and screening capabilities.
The building was designed to create an aesthetically interesting exterior while including a functional yet attractive interior for producing superior acoustics. To accomplish this, architect Renzo Zecchetto incorporated many curved surfaces- which best reflect sound-into his 3-D model.
Track founder Chuck Mears worked with George Mihaylov, project engineer with general contractor FTR International Inc., to create the curved surfaces.
Radius Track’s design engineers used the architect’s original model to create enhanced and detailed 3-D computer models for each of the eight 40-foot- (12-m-) high curved sound reflectors. The specialized acoustical reflectors were specified to be symmetrical-four on each side of the auditorium. “If any reflector was off even the slightest bit, it would be very obvious,” Mihaylov said. “The acoustics were tested upon completion, so the curved framing needed to be precise.”
For the wall construction, Mears and Mihaylov decided that panelizing the walls added an opportunity to frame the panels off-site and place them in the theater fully assembled. Following the computer models and wall construction strategies, Radius Track provided FTR International with the necessary structural components, which were created using their patented, cold-formed steel fabricating processes that create consistent contours of solid, continuous steel pieces while meeting the specified structural integrity.
General contractor: FTR International Inc., Irvine, Calif.
Architect: Renzo Zecchetto, Santa Monica
Steel framing: Radius Track, Minneapolis
