Can anyone suggest a good resource to investigate that deals with the design of appropriate spaces for dance. I am designing, as part of a university project, a contemporary dance studio in Camden, London.<BR>Any help will be greatfully received. Thank you.

marc, welcome to you <P>i know you have received a range of excellent input elsewhere on this. for starters, we already have this thread, which was meant in fun (at least partly) but contains some good ideas:<BR> <A HREF="http://www.criticaldance.com/ubb/Forum7/HTML/000178.html" TARGET=_blank>http://www.criticaldance.com/ubb/Forum7/HTML/000178.html</A> <P>as to more serious resources, i'll think about that tomorrow, when i'm not so tired! meanwhile, i'm sure others will help out!<P>just one question - probably a dumb one - are you designing from scratch, or having to refit/renovate etc, an existing space?

Welcome Marc - welcome to the board. Have you ever taken a dance class? One of the best ways to be knowledgeable about how a space is used is to be involved in its use, I would think. Sort of like someone designing my kitchen who has never cooked.<P>Dance space - is pretty much that - space. The ideal dance studio (and Grace did supply you with a previous thread on this though much of that was in fun) should approximate a stage space. Many major companies design their studio space to exact proportions of their stage space. <P>There should be no impediments in the central area - no poles or other supports. This means a fairly large portion of an unsupported ceiling area. One wall should be given over to mirrors only - no barre to mar the uninterrupted expanse of the mirror. Along the walls (all three if so desired) should be lined with the barres. Preferably wooden barres. If the space is to be used for both children and adults there should be two sets of barres at two different heights. The barres are offset from the wall. I always enjoyed a studio that had windows - lots of windows.<P>The floor ideally is wood and is "sprung". Many studios occupy upper floors of a building to avoid a cement foundation. Dancers are ruined by hard floors. <P>There should be some sound dampening so that the piano or other musical source does not resonate in an uncomfortable manner. <P>There needs to be adequate space between floor and ceiling so that dancers can "partner" - the women do resent being knocked out by the ceiling when they are lifted!! So a high ceiling is mandatory. And all this space should be adequately heated for cold days. Dancers hate the cold.<P>So, I have probably told you nothing that you did not already know - LOL.

an excellent comprehensive beginning, basheva, as expected! can i add that dancers also find it difficult to get worked up about jumping around, when the temperature gets over about a hundred (37 degrees-ish) - but i don't think you'll hit THAT problem too often in camden! <P>psychologically, i believe a feeling of space and spaciousness is important - light coloured walls and ceiling would be good. windows are good for the same reason, but in the inner city obviously there are privacy concerns, and dancers do get around with very little clothing on, and can be self-conscious - so you will have to balance those needs in your environment. often studios have high windows, so lots of light comes in, but no-one can see in. of course, then you can't see OUT very much.....<P>some studios which have children's classes have a one-way observation window for parents - soundproofed - actually the de valois studio at the royal opera house has this, too (although not for parents, of course, and possibly more as a result of lighting needs in the adjacent corridor, than specifically for observation). if you have one, it's good to have it curtained, so observation can be prevented if desired. same for the mirrors - they should be floor to ceiling (ideally) and be covered with floor to ceiling heavyweight pullback curtains.<P>good even lighting is important in the big space. personally i hate fluorescents......which i have read are not particularly healthy.<P>hopefully lots more people will chime in with more ideas......we love thinking in terms of 'ideals'!

In other parts of the studio there needs to be a comfortable lobby area - parents and friends often spend a great deal of time waiting for their children to finish up class. A reception area and an office area, also. <P> And, that most blessed space of all the dressing areas for the dancers -separate for male and female. A counter area in the dressing rooms with mirrors is helpful for brushing hair and putting makeup on. Lockers are often used to lock up personal clothing while the dancer is in class. Benches to sit upon while putting on clothes and shoes. Some studios have a curtained off space for individual dancers to change since sometimes adults and children will be in the same dressing area at the same time.<P>Depending on the size of the studio ideally there should be storage space for costumes and music equipment. <P>I personally never minded having people look in the windows - and sometimes it was even fun. We had a fire engine stop one day and the firemen had a wonderful time watching us dance. Then, they came in and said they wanted to do a fire inspection of the building......the teacher shooed them out. My tax dollars at work.....LOL<P>------------------<BR>Approach life as a dancer approaches the barre, with grace and purpose.

Hello Marc,<BR>Indeed it isn't easy to find something on dance-spaces. (I'm sure this is one of the reasons why they give this as a task at your university)<BR>On the other hand it's just one of those 'dreamjobs' with an extra dimension !<P>I think Grace and Basheva have already covered a lot of elements to make a good case-study.<P>Years ago I had an order to design a dance-studio in a renovation project.<BR>(it's never been realised because Government retained suddenly all subsisdies !)<BR>I based my programme on the initial layout of a gymnasticroom because these have very parallel running elements.<BR>You can find this (as you probably know) in Neufert.(AJ has published something simular)<P>Have also a look in the library : AJ and perhaps AR must have handled 'dance spaces' in all those years.<P>Needless to say that it is important to create a good 'working machine' :<BR>*make a good 'traffic'-study.<BR> Between dance-classes the building will be <BR> overcrowded (coming and going, and so will <BR> be the parkingspace !)<BR> You need good dimensioned corridors<P>*maybe you can separate the 'streetshoe- <BR> area' from the 'dance-shoe' one.<BR> (although in an urban-context this is no <BR> priority)<P>*fresh air is important, so if possible let's<BR> open windows and avoid airco or mechanical <BR> ventilation (a lot of dancers get sick of <BR> it)<P>*provide the lobby area with video-projection<BR> (in my daughters previous danceschool this <BR> was the real centre of the studio !)<P>*provide a 'window-wall', and maybe you can <BR> use a one-way mirror between lobby and <BR> studio.<BR> Theachers love this because younger <BR> children's attention is not diverted.<BR> If you have no budget-limit : use double <BR> glazing with an internal gaz-curtain.<BR> (just push a button and you can't see <BR> through the window anymore)<P>*go and have a look during classes !<P>I wil have a look at my office, if I come across some publications I'll let you know.<BR>Goodluck !<P>

Welcome Viv!! Nice to have you join us. You have lots of great information in your post. And, you are very right that dancers don't like - and many do get sick - from articifical air. I have danced in as high as 102 degrees of heat without getting sick -but I often get sick from air conditioning.<P>Another nice feature would be a lounge area for the dancers separate from the lobby area for visitors. <P>Interestingly enough, new studios being built here in the United STates have to conform to the Americans with Disabilities Act. This means wheelchair access to all areas. While I am certainly in favor of this, it does present difficulties. One studio I know of had to create a ramp into the studio space itself (which would never be used by anyone in a wheelchair) but according to the zoning regulations had to be built. The dancers ALL tripped over it at one time or another as it extended literally into the center of the dance space. Finally a solution was reached by making the ramp removable - but then storage space had to be found for it.<P>So another thing to check, Marc, are the zoning regulations. These extend to landscaping and parking spaces - as well as height allowances of buildings and coloration. There is a community here just north of San Diego in which there is a height limitation - and all roofs have to be red tile. <P>This is getting complicated isn't it?

welcome viv - fancy us having another architect, and a european one at that! <P>i love this phrase!:<P> <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>If you have no budget-limit <HR></BLOCKQUOTE><P>haha!<P>i would back up basheva's agreement with you on the aircon. BUT - essential in australian summers, as much as we love fresh air. in the urdang studio in london i was the wierdo in class who had to open a window and stand by it - always attracted a few VERY annoyed looks - but they got so sweaty and smelly, i couldn't bear breathing their stifling stuffy air! not healthy. <P>i agree about the double-glazing too.<P>fascinating how different your professional approach is; you autonmatically think of things like corridor-width, which we don't prioritise - but which we DO apreciate. (that's your job, i guess.) <P>i think there actually IS an australian publication related to this issue - if so, ausdance will be the ones to have it or to know about it - but it might be only about one aspect like floors.....have a look or send them an email - they're very helpful. <BR> <A HREF="http://ausdance.anu.edu.au/" TARGET=_blank>http://ausdance.anu.edu.au/</A>

btw, marc has informed me that his plans are to take in construction from the ground up....(not a renovation or refit) - so all of you dreamers, out there...here's your chance to play! <P>bearing this in mind, marc, and your inner london site, i would say that the first thing a dancer wants, when they come in the door, is a pleasant ambient temperature - because that affects the muscles so much.....<P>i think this matters even more for a <B>contemporary dance</B> studio, because you often have bare feet - sure we've all warmed up with socks on - but wouldn't it be nice not to HAVE to?<P>then, all of the above!<P>CLEAN toilets and showers would be bliss - but very rarely found in london dance studios - yuck! with adequate ventilation, of course.<P>i hope these days they have 'no smoking' in such places. again, when i did class at the urdang in covent garden, i used to loathe having to walk into a cloud of cigarette smoke to get through the lobby, and then to get back thru the lobby to the studio, when what i was there for was a 'healthy' experience!<P>sound proofing between studios would be ideal......dreaming away, here.....<P>electrical outlets.....needed at the front of the studio especially - WHICH will BE the front? that's not as silly a question as you might think! dancers will use the space the way THEY think it should be used, regardless of where YOU designed the front to be! (sorry...)<P>i think i'll ask our technical production people to look in here - i bet they can add some insights from their angles.....jeff salzberg and babs?<P>

better yet! i'm going to move this thread in there - to BACKSTAGE forum. please follow it there....thanks.