Theatre consultancy Charcoalblue has hit a high note at internationally acclaimed Glyndebourne. In just over a year Jon Stevens, former Head of Sound at Glyndebourne and now Charcoalblue’s Creative Director, has orchestrated the transformation of the Ebert Room, an existing rehearsal room, into a multi-use performance-ready space.
Charcoalblue – dubbed ‘the most exciting and innovative theatre consultancy in the UK’ – began work on the scheme last year. The project was inspired by Glyndebourne’s Executive Chairman Gus Christie’s vision to create a modern, well-equipped and highly flexible venue that reflects the classic Glyndebourne style.
With a £1million budget, Stevens worked alongside Glyndebourne’s Technical Director Dave Locker to investigate ways in which the 200sqm Ebert Room – originally constructed in 1959 as a scenic rehearsal space – could be better adapted to accommodate its burgeoning range of events, pre-show talks and education projects.
Assisted by his colleagues at Charcoalblue, Stevens devised a flexible scheme with seating for up to 130, a retractable stage, sophisticated stage lighting and audio visual systems, new energy-efficient air-conditioning and greatly improved access for wheelchair users.
“After 50 years of continuous use, the Ebert Room was showing its age,” explains Stevens. “But stripping it back to the bare walls enabled us to expose its history – including part of the old 1930s opera house – and celebrate its past. We wanted to make sure that the sense of it being a working space was not lost, so a lot of effort went into concealing the complexity of the new technical installations.
“As lead consultants on the project, we were able to control every aspect of the design, which helped us to shoehorn the requirements of a demanding brief into a relatively small space. We’re delighted with the result – and we’re thrilled that Glyndebourne are so pleased with their new venue.”
“The Ebert Room is no longer simply part of the old Glyndebourne but a vital part of its future,” explained Christie during a presentation to the projects sponsors. “Through a schedule of pre-performance talks, education projects and events, the Ebert Room will help Glyndebourne to attract a new generation of music-lovers while adding real value to what we can offer our existing audiences.”
He went on to say: “I want to thank Jon Stevens and his team for doing such a wonderful job and delivering such a wonderful transformation.”
The refurbished Ebert Room was officially launched in April 2011. The event comprised talks and film clips as well as recital performances from Glyndebourne’s own up-and-coming, young opera singers. Each aspect emphasised the flexibility of the stunning acoustics, lighting, sound and video systems.
Jon Stevens comments: “Going back to Glyndebourne as a consultant was a wonderful experience. In addition I had the good fortune to work alongside old colleagues from my days as Head of Sound at Glyndebourne. Colin Cuthbert and Nick Read from the specialist entertainment technology installers on the project, Northern Light, both worked at Glyndebourne at the same time as I did – so the team felt very much back together!”
Dave Locker concludes: “We are delighted with the results. The Ebert Room will quickly become a creative launch-pad for new and educational work. Its flexible design and technical facilities mean that the space can accommodate every sort of activity from simple rehearsals to staged performances: we are immensely proud of what it can offer.”
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