Palladium Concert Hall Opens in Carmel, Indiana

Providing its region with a cultural attraction of world-class quality and scale, the multi-venue Center for the Performing Arts in Carmel, Indiana - just outside of the state capital of Indianapolis - opened the first of its venues on January 29, 2011, with an inaugural concert at its state-of-the-art concert hall The Palladium. The Center's other venues, now under construction, will be a 200-seat studio theater (opening in March 2011) and The Tarkington, a 500-seat proscenium theater (opening in August 2011).
 
Given a gracious and elegant form by architect David M. Schwarz Architects Inc. with local consultation by from CSO Architects, the 1,600-seat, 154,000-square-foot Palladium is the only true concert hall in its region and features an acoustic design by the renowned firm of Artec Consultants Inc. In addition to presenting an extensive schedule of concerts and events, The Palladium is also the new home of The Feinstein Foundation for the Preservation of the Great American Songbook, making the Foundation's extraordinary, museum-quality archive of American popular song available as never before to scholars and the public. A selection of materials is currently on display in The Palladium, with objects including the original sheet music art from "Porgy and Bess"; Fred Astair's dancing shoes; and the player piano roll from George Gershwin's 1925 "Rhapsody in Blue".
 
"With its three unique venues, the Center for the Performing Arts will fill an important void in our community, which has never before had facilities of this quality," said President and Executive Director Steven Libman. "They will allow us to present the finest artists from around the globe, as well as provide much-needed space for local and regional arts organizations, fostering artistic development and community engagement. Through their support, Mayor James Brainard and the members of Carmel's City Council have given an extraordinary gift to the residents of Carmel and the region."
 
The performing arts complex is the cornerstone of Carmel City Center, a $300 million mixed-use redevelopment project. City Center is a pedestrian-oriented "city-within-a-city" that will offer cultural and civic programming, a public green, residential apartments, office space, a boutique hotel and numerous restaurant and retail venues. While providing the residents of Carmel with a visionary blend of urban density and suburban location, City Center will also serve as a valuable resource for the citizens of Indianapolis, a mere 20 miles to downtown Indianapolis, but city limit is only 7 miles.
 
Local and regional arts organizations benefiting from the Center for the Performing Arts include its resident companies: Actors Theatre of Indiana, Carmel Repertory Theatre, Carmel Symphony Orchestra, Central Indiana Dance Ensemble, Booth Tarkington Civic Theatre, Gregory Hancock Dance Theatre and the Indiana Wind Symphony.
 
"We have learned a lot about communities over the past half-century, since the early era of suburbanization and sprawl," stated James Brainard, "including the lesson that the two-car, one-family house tucked away from everything else is no longer a sustainable model on the large scale, either economically or environmentally. What's more, it's not really desirable. People want the convenience and conviviality that Carmel City Center offers-and the Center for the Performing Arts is an indispensable element of that experience."
 
OPENING AND INAUGURAL SEASON
Opening festivities for the Center included a civic dedication ceremony on Saturday, January 22, attended by Center leadership, Mayor Brainard and other local government officials. Other community-oriented events organized included public tours, tuning concerts by local organizations, and an opportunity for community members and students to perform on stage, as part of "Take Center Stage."
 
The opening gala performance at the Center's Palladium was directed by award winning director and actor GorDon Hunt, and included special performances by the Center's Artistic Director Michael Feinstein, renowned jazz artist Chris Botti and the Carmel Symphony Orchestra, and vocalists Neil Sedaka, Dionne Warwick and Cheyenne Jackson.
 
"The music that I love is not the property of any one place like New York or Los Angeles, or of any elite group," stated Artistic Director Michael Feinstein. "It's American music-and the more you know about the Great American Songbook, the more clearly you recognize that it encompasses blues, jazz, country, classical, everything. That's why our ultimate ambition for the Center is to present a cross-section of the best of American music, dance and theater."
 
Rounding out the opening festivities was a special classical concert on January 30, 2011 featuring The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and the Miró Quartet with Lynn Harrell.
 
Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels has designated the week of January 22-30, 2011 as "Palladium Week." The proclamation honors the Center for the Performing Arts and its positive contributions to the State of Indiana.
 
Following on the heels of the opening week festivities, the inaugural season of the Center for the Performing Arts offers 20 concerts from January - June 2011, representing five distinct series: Classics, Great American Songbook, Jazz Roots, Country and Dance.
 
Highlights include classical concerts by the Vienna Boys Choir, St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Cleveland Orchestra; the Jazz Roots series' performance showcasing divas Diane Reeves, Jane Monheit and Nikki Yanofsky; and a Great American Songbook series with the Center's Artistic Director and platinum-selling crooner Michael Feinstein, Broadway legend Marvin Hamlisch and vocalist Debbie Boone. The Country series brings Vince Gill and Clint Black to the Palladium stage.
 
"Our first season offers something for everyone, and we've made an effort to be sure our programming is varied and fresh," said Libman. "In fact, nearly all of our concerts feature artists whom our local community has not had the opportunity to see and hear in a long time, if ever."  A complete schedule for the inaugural season can be found at: http://www.thecenterfortheperformingarts.org.
 
ARCHITECTURE AND ACOUSTICAL DESIGN
Architectural design firm David M. Schwarz Architects Inc. of Washington, D.C. collaborated with acoustician and theater planner Artec Consultants Inc. of New York City and with Indiana-based CSO Architects Inc. to create the 154,000-square-foot Palladium concert hall. Known for the renovation and expansion of Cleveland's Severance Hall, for the design of Bass Hall in Fort Worth, Texas, and for the design of Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville, Schwarz has given Carmel a concert hall with a refined, traditional appearance that will complement the architectural landscape of Carmel City Center.
 
The four-fronted, symmetrical design of The Palladium, massed around the domed central space of the "single-room" concert hall, was inspired by Andrea Palladio's Villa Capra, "La Rotonda" (1566). The Hall's exquisite exterior detailing was inspired by the Viennese Secessionists of the early 20th century, while the interiors were influenced by the neo-classical works of 18th-century Scottish architect Robert Adam, a devotee of Palladio.  The hand-carved limestone façades and columns, coupled with streamlined proportions, stylized detailing, and varied textures and materials, create a structure that combines a traditional vocabulary with subtle contemporary references resulting in a timeless design.  Recognized local interior designer and artist Walter Knabe has created custom wall design, which is complementary to the architect's incorporation of the Adams-style influence.
 
A raised, colonnaded portico on the south façade faces Carmel City Center's Village Green and creates a grand entrance at the top of the orchestra level. The east and west façades provide ground-level entry vestibules, allowing barrier-free access to the lower orchestra level on each side.  The north side of The Palladium, where the natural grade is higher, offers a symmetrical façade for decorative purposes. The exteriors of The Palladium boasts more than 15,000 pieces of beautiful Indiana limestone, mined from quarries located two hours from Carmel.
 
The Palladium is based upon the traditional "shoe box" shape concert hall with high ceilings and massive, sound-reflecting walls.  However, the room itself is symmetrical, from side to side and front to back, creating a central volume that is topped with a cylindrical dome with an oculus in the middle.  The two oval spaces that fuse into the central volume are also symmetrical from front to back with identical outermost walls and ceilings surrounding the half dome.  The Palladium is one of the few concert halls that play into Palladio's multiple use of symmetry.
 
With seating for 1,600 patrons, approximately half of those being located on the main floor, the Palladium will provide audiences with acoustically and visually intimate setting for a wide variety of music performances.  More than 600 patrons will have access to multiple-level box seats with amenities such as private anterooms. There also will be audience seating behind the performance platform. The stage can accommodate a maximum of 120 musicians. In order to provide intimacy and a sense of being enveloped by sound, side ledges for audience seating and acoustic reflection are provided at two levels. 
 
THE FEINSTEIN FOUNDATION FOR THE PRESERVATION OF THE GREAT AMERICAN SONGBOOK
The Feinstein Foundation for the Preservation of the Great American Songbook's permanent home is The Palladium at the Center for Performing Arts. Given the origin in Indiana of such legendary songwriters as Cole Porter and Hoagy Carmichael, as well as Michael Feinstein's own roots in the Midwest, the Foundation's relocation to Carmel is something of a homecoming for this treasure trove of American music.  Students, teachers, families and other visitors to the Center have the opportunity to view selections from the Foundation's collection; and as Artistic Director of the Center, Michael Feinstein also plans to host an international Great American Songbook Festival.  In time, an education center and museum will be built at The Palladium to support the Foundation's activities.  
 
FUNDING FOR THE CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTSThe Center for the Performing Arts is a $150 million capital project financed through the Carmel Redevelopment Commission (CRC) and through Tax Increment Financing (TIF) revenue gained from local businesses benefiting from Carmel City Center. Operating support for the Center is managed by the Center for the Performing Arts Foundation and is funded through a combination of corporate, foundation, individual and government sources.