Contest to design rebuilt Abbey Theatre unveiled

Published Thursday 8 September 2005 at 10:25 by Anthony Garvey

Ireland’s arts minister John O’Donoghue is to launch an international architecture competition to choose who will design the new Abbey Theatre, which will be rebuilt on a new site in Dublin’s docklands.

The minister, who recently promised Ireland’s new national theatre would be “a cultural icon for the 21st century” is to seek cabinet approval for the contest, which will culminate in the new building, anticipated to cost around €150 million.

The design competition is likely to be organised in two stages, with architects initially invited to submit their ideas for the new theatre. From these a shortlist of six will be chosen to prepare more detailed plans before a winning design is finally selected. The rules for the competition, as well as the names of those charged with making an ultimate decision on the design, will be announced in the coming months.

Moving the venue from Dublin’s Abbey Street, where it was founded just over 100 years ago by WB Yeats and Lady Gregory, has provoked mixed reactions, with traditionalists urging a redevelopment of the current site. This has proved troublesome given the prohibitive cost of acquiring adjacent buildings. Also, a three-year search for an alternative city centre location has been hindered by legal and other problems.

One of the main advantages of the proposed docklands site is that it is already in public ownership, so there will be no acquisition difficulties. The new theatre, which will be located close to the International Financial Services Centre, has already been welcomed by the Dublin Docklands Development Authority, which is keen to add a cultural dimension to the area.

It is not yet clear whether the government intends to have the theatre financed directly by the state or through a public-private partnership (PPP), though many in the Irish arts world have warned against the latter. It is felt that if the PPP route is chosen, having an architectural competition will at least ensure the design takes precedence over financial considerations.

Meanwhile, planning permission is being sought for another major docklands development around Dublin’s Point Theatre. The scheme, to be known as the Point Village, envisages an extensive remodelling of the theatre, doubling its present capacity to 14,000, plus the addition of a music venue to accommodate 2,500.

The project, which is being proposed by millionaire Dublin businessman Harry Crosbie, who owns the 12-acre site, would also include a 12-screen multiplex cinema, hotel, office space, shopping mall and a 32-storey landmark tower with apartments.

A spokesman for Crosbie said that with the proposed redevelopment of the Abbey Theatre, plus the possiblity of a new national conference centre being built in the area, the docklands could become Ireland’s biggest cultural and tourist attttraction.