New Galiasgar Kamal Tatarian State Academy Theater in Kazan (RU)

The Tatar theater has great cultural significance. It underlies the theaters of the Turkic peoples. That’s why the new building of the Tatar folk theater in Kazan should become special.

When cultural layers and meanings are read in the building, that very special identity of the architecture of the Tatar folk theater is born.

The first ideological layer is the landscape. The theater is located in a green area by Lake Kaban. Surface relief hides the main building without a need for digging in and allows the theater to become an extension of the park. The relief refers to the green terraces of Lake Kaban embankment. The terraces collect rainfall, which is stored in tanks under terraced relief. This water is used for irrigation and household needs of the theatre. The landscape also forms various functional zones, scenic viewpoints and walking routes.

The next layer is a ribbon with a national ornament, which refers us to the blue shawl, the most famous performance of the Kamal Theater. In some places, the "shawl" is raised, forming the entrance units and the most spectacular visual links between interior and park.

The local legend has is it that Khan's glut of wealth is hidden at the bottom of Lake Kaban. That is how khasite, an appanage of wealth, a historical Tatar decoration with stones comes as the unifying image of the theatre. Like khasite, the architecture shows how high-profile theatre is for all Tatarstan.

The volumes of the halls and the administration block resemble gemstones that rise on a hilly terrain. Each stone has its semantic meaning and is intertwined with the function of each box. The eastern hall for traditional festivals looks like turquoise - a stone treasured in the Ancient East as a symbol of the strength of ancestors.

The experimental scene of black box corresponds to Amethyst, which brings its owner inspiration and new ideas. The Great Hall is carnelian - this stone was traditionally used as a central insert in jewelry. In the Muslim religion, there is a belief that it protects family values. Yellow topaz as a symbol of leadership and wisdom correlates with the managing block of administration.

But the facades not only remind the fractal structure of the stones. We can also find the succession of the redefined Soviet modernism. Apexes, created on a national architectural elements basis, evoke an association with the holiday in the audience and stick in the memory.

The façade of administrative block plays a special role. It forms the street front and represents a curtain, turning the viewer's path into a theatrical performance. First, a visitor crosses the open front theater square, passes through the arch under the curtain and enters the theater courtyard with street performances, hidden from street noise. Here through the high glass, a visitor sees a carved carnelian shell - the volume of the central hall. Then he passes to open to below of the foyer and enters the auditorium. The interior of main hall styled on an urban environment as a reminder that the Tatar theater started out in the street.

Orientation of auditoriums to four winds allows to move through public spaces between the halls and to create completely different usage scenarios: organize entrances from any side to any hall, combine or separate the foyer and hold events of any complexity.

Thus, the theater complex combines variety of meanings and turns the space into a theatrical landscape integrated into a nature park.

There are many open and closed places for developing leisure, because the folk theater should remain the center of cultural life even between performances. The theater becomes not only a place for theater productions, but a true heart of the Tatar culture and social life of the townsfolk.