New Adelphi – Theatre, Recording Studio and Performance Space Design
The New Adelphi Building is a landmark centre for arts, performance and creative education, bringing together theatre, music, dance, media and design disciplines within a single purpose-built facility. Designed to inspire creativity and collaboration, the building provides students with access to industry-standard performance, production and recording facilities, creating an environment that bridges education and professional practice.
Drama by Design was appointed by BAM Construction as Project and Design Manager for all specialist theatre, performance and studio systems throughout the development. Working from the design stage through to project completion, our role was to manage and coordinate the delivery of the specialist technical installations, ensuring that all systems were fully integrated, delivered efficiently and met the University’s operational and educational objectives.
The building incorporates an extensive range of specialist facilities, including a 350-seat flexible theatre, studio theatre, television acting studios, recording studios, radio facilities, dance studios, ensemble rooms, rehearsal spaces and live performance environments. The diversity of spaces required a carefully coordinated technical strategy that would allow each facility to function independently while also enabling resources to be shared across the wider building.
At the heart of the development is a highly adaptable performance theatre designed to support a wide variety of production styles. Drama by Design oversaw the delivery of a flexible auditorium and staging system capable of accommodating end-on, thrust, promenade and theatre-in-the-round configurations. The seating and staging arrangements can be reconfigured to suit individual productions, providing students and visiting companies with a professional-standard performance environment that encourages experimentation and creativity.
The theatre was equipped with comprehensive stage engineering and theatre infrastructure, including a tension wire grid connected to perimeter technical gantries, providing safe and flexible access for lighting, sound and production equipment. Motorised lighting bars, flying systems and extensive technical infrastructure were incorporated throughout the venue, enabling the theatre to support everything from drama productions and live music performances to conferences and public events.
Acoustic performance was a key consideration within the theatre design. Adjustable acoustic curtains allow the auditorium environment to be modified to suit different performance requirements, creating appropriate acoustic conditions for speech, drama, amplified music and musical performance. This flexibility ensures the venue can accommodate a broad range of artistic and educational activities.
The studio theatre and television acting studios were designed to provide professional training environments with flexible technical infrastructure and integrated production systems. Comprehensive lighting, power and signal distribution systems enable the spaces to support performance, rehearsal, filming and teaching activities while allowing equipment to be connected and reconfigured quickly to suit changing requirements.
The building also houses a suite of professional recording and radio studios designed to support music technology, audio production and broadcast teaching. Drama by Design coordinated the specialist technical infrastructure throughout these spaces, ensuring seamless integration between studios, rehearsal rooms and performance venues. Extensive audio, fibre and data networks connect facilities across the building, allowing signals and media resources to be routed efficiently between spaces and providing long-term flexibility for future developments.
A key objective of the project was to create a fully connected creative arts environment where performance, recording, broadcasting and teaching activities could interact seamlessly. Through careful coordination of theatre systems, studio technologies and building-wide infrastructure, Drama by Design helped deliver a facility that supports collaboration across disciplines while providing students with access to professional-standard production environments.
The completed New Adelphi Building stands as one of the UK’s leading higher education facilities for the performing arts and creative industries. The project demonstrates Drama by Design’s expertise in theatre consultancy, theatre technology design, studio design, performance venue planning and project management, delivering a technically sophisticated and future-ready environment for arts education.
