When FDA was asked by CALARTS to work with the faculty and staff to plan an expansion of the college’s arts facilities, it was clear that the school’s performance space would need to accommodate an ambitious program. Therefore, REDCAT’s performance and screening space in the lower level of Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles was designed for maximum flexibility.

The stage can be transformed into several configurations, from thrust and end stage to completely in-the-round. The space can accommodate an audience as large as 277. Eight movable seating wagons, and a covered “pit” containing three additional rows that can be revealed or decked as needed, can be reconfigured in many ways.

FDA’s concerns for both flexibility and cost-conscious design led to the decision to line the performance space with hinged doors. These are easily adjusted to optimize the acoustic properties of the space depending upon the requirements of each performance type.

REDCAT is FDA’s second theatre for CALARTS. The original “Modular” theatre that was designed in 1972 remains in use.