The Living Building – Victoria Theater and Concert Hall

26/09/2019

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The Victoria Theater and Concert Hall is a performing arts center located along the Empress Place in the central area of Singapore. It is a two-building complex and a clock tower united by a common corridor; the building’s oldest portion was first constructed in 1862 and the complex was finished in 1909. The complex has experienced a number of renovations and renovations, most recently in 2010, when a four-year renovation project closed the complex. It was reopened on July 15, 2014.

The houses in the complex were used as a hospital for a number of reasons, including government events, political conferences, exhibitions, musical and stage performances, and for a short time. The Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) uses the concert hall as a performance venue, and the complex is managed by The Esplanade Co Ltd. On 14 February 1992, the Victoria Theater and Concert Hall was published as a national monument.

First started in 1862 as the Town Hall, the Victoria Theater and Concert Hall. A second public hall was constructed next to it in the early 1900s together with a clock tower to create a bigger complex.

The Origin Of Town Hall

Originally, the Town Hall was constructed to replace the older Assembly Rooms, where local operas and dramas took place but fell into disrepair. In 1855 the foundation stone was laid, and in 1862 the construction was finished. The Municipal Engineer, John Bennett, intended the building. It was constructed during an age of Victorian Revivalism then common in Britain, and therefore its design reflected this architectural style with Italianate windows, and it was the first such building constructed in this style in Singapore. Originally, the completed town hall housed a ground floor theater as well as meeting rooms and offices on the second floor of various government agencies. From 1862 to 1876, it also housed the Singapore Library. However, the population rise led in a greater demand for entertainment, and the town hall was unable to deal with growing demand for the use of the building for both entertainment and administrative reasons, so the offices were transferred out of the building by 1893.

Construction Of Victoria Concert Hall

In 1901, a public space in memory of Queen Victoria who died that year was chosen. It was then decided. Public funds were collected for its construction amounting to $368,000, exceeding the construction costs, leaving a $22,000 surplus for the municipal hall renovation to blend in with the new hall. The foundation stone was laid for the celebration of the coronation of King Edward VII on August 10, 1902, and the new building was built next to the Town Hall between 1903 and 1905.

Major Alexander Murray and the Department of Public Works initially drafted the plan of the memorial hall, which included the reconstruction of the front elevation of the old town hall along similar lines to the façade of the new memorial hall, which was subsequently modified by R. A. J. Swan and Maclaren’s Bidwell. The hall’s new design consisted of a ground floor stage, stalls and pit, and dress circle, walkway, and a gallery on top of the foyer.

Opening of Victoria Memorial Hall

The Victoria Memorial Hall was officially opened on October 18, 1905 by Sir John Anderson, Governor of the Straits Settlements. On February 11, 1909, the refurbished Town Hall was reopened. The Pirates of Penzance was the first performance that took place when it reopened in the renovated building. The town hall has been renamed the theater of Victoria. On February 6, 1919, the 100th anniversary of the founding of Singapore, a statue by T of Stamford Raffles. Woolner shifted to the front of the Memorial Hall from the Padang. A fresh semi-circular colonnade and a pool were added to the monument.

The Historical Events

In World War II, before their successful occupation of the colony, the memorial hall was used as a hospital for victims of bombing raids by Japanese forces during the Singapore Battle. During the occupation, even though the colonnade was destroyed and the statue of Raffles moved to the National Museum, the buildings themselves escaped major physical damage. In 1946, the statue was brought back to its initial site. In 1947, the Straits Settlements arms flag hung on the tympanum of the building’s two towers was substituted by the Crown Colony of Singapore’s newly created arms coat. It was carried down in 1959 to create a plaster cast of Singapore’s Coat of Arms, which was overlapped with two flagpoles on them with the Singapore Flag.

On the premises, a number of important civic as well as historical activities took place. From 1946 to 1947, the Memorial Hall was the location for trials of war crimes in Japan. The Hall was used as the center for briefing election officials and counting ballot papers during elections from 1948 onwards. It was the site of the founding of the People’s Action Party on 21 November 1954. The pilot television broadcasting service of Singapore, Television Singapore, was introduced here on 15 February 1963. In 2006, before the latest renovation, the Victoria Concert Hall interior underwent major renovations between 1952 and 1958, and it was also internally restructured to allow for the installation of air conditioning and soundproofing. Following significant renovations, Singapore’s national song, “Majulah Singapura,” was first conducted at the Victoria Theater in 1958. The Memorial Hall was restored to house the Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) in 1979, when it was renamed the Victoria Concert Hall.

Refurbishment Work

For significant renovations, the Victoria Theater and Concert Hall were closed in June 2010. W Architects and Rider Levett Bucknall (RLB) Singapore undertook the S$180-million renovation as project manager and quantity surveyor with Architectural Restoration Consultants Pte Ltd (ARC) as curator and Arup Singapore Pte Ltd as acoustician and theater planner. The renovation had the structures repaired and updated to satisfy current requirements. The buildings ‘ façade is maintained and certain components belonging to the initial structure of 1905 have been restored.

This involves re-establishing the main passage between the theater and the concert hall leading to the Arts House. New spaces have been created to accommodate construction services, commercial rentals and amenities such as a café. While the concert hall’s important interior features were retained, during the renovations most of the theater (save the façade) was totally destroyed. For the public, actors and support crew, the building now has additional fresh spaces. The theater has fresh changing rooms and a charging bay, while opening the main atrium has become an extra place for hosting arts events. The theater’s roof level has been raised to match that of the concert hall, and a fresh dance studio is housed under the ceiling. However, getting fresh rooms would require some sacrifices. For example, the theater now seats fewer individuals to free up room in what is now the atrium–about 600 out of about 900 before. The balcony of the concert hall has also been created smaller and higher, so that for those seated below acoustics are not impaired.

Facilities In The Victoria Theatre

After its renovation, the Victoria Theater had a seating capacity of 904, decreased to 614. The Victoria Concert Hall also initially had a greater ability of 883 seats, but is now lowered to 673 as an unsightly and intrusive balcony was removed during a previous refurbishment. The theater had a stage of 167.28 square meters in size before its renovation, and the concert hall had a stage that could be extended to 139.76 square meters. The concert hall was considered the venue with the city’s best acoustics and was the SSO’s main performance venue until the Esplanade – Theaters on the Bay was completed in 2002 when the orchestra moved its home base to take advantage of the superior acoustics and facilities brought about by technological and architectural advances over the years.

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