USITT Seeks Nominations for 2017 Architecture Awards

USITT invites nominations for its 2017 Architecture Awards, recognizing the best new performance spaces and reflecting outstanding design by theatre architects and consultants.

The awards celebrate excellence in the design of Theatre Projects completed within the past decade. Nominate at www.usitt.org/awards/profarch.

New or renovated buildings housing performance spaces large or small are eligible for 2017 awards if completed since Jan. 1, 2007. The submission deadline is Sept. 1.

A professional jury will consider submissions based on creativity, contextual resonance, functional operation, use of new technology, and community contribution. USITT Honor Awards and Merit Awards will be presented at USITT 2017 in St. Louis, MO, next March.

This year USITT gave top awards, Honor Awards, to three buildings: The Theatre School at DePaul University in Chicago, the Everyman Theatre in Liverpool, UK, and the Salle de Spectacles de Mont-Laurier in Quebec, Canada. The Performing Arts Center at the State University of New York at Potsdam and Stavanger Concert Hall in Norway received 2016 Merit Awards. USITT's Architecture Commission established the awards in 1964 to recognize theatre architecture as a unique discipline and increase the interest of architects in USITT and designing for performing arts.

USITT values theatre architecture as an important facet of performing arts design and technology. Besides the professional architecture awards, USITT and sponsor American Seating hold a biennial design competition for theatre and architecture students, and USITT offers many sessions carrying AIA/CES credits at its Annual Conference & Stage Expo.

USITT, the United States Institute for Theatre Technology, is a national non-profit association for the live entertainment production industry. It provides hands-on learning, mentorship, and networking opportunities for emerging and working professionals in the backstage arts. Its Annual Conference & Stage Expo is the only complete production event in North America, featuring over 250 training sessions and 280 exhibitors of the latest tools and resources for creating live entertainment. For more information, visit www.usitt.org.