Costume Workshop Project.

Descriptions

The RSC is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire and has an extensive national and international reach. The company employs approx. 1000 staff and produces around 16 productions a year from its home in Stratford-upon-Avon and plays regularly in London, Newcastle upon Tyne and on tour across the UK and worldwide.The Victorian buildings on Waterside, formerly the ‘scenery workshop' across the road from the Stratford theatres have housed the RSC's costume workrooms since the 1950's. Skills and disciplines in the workshop range from Men's and Ladies costume construction to footwear and armoury; millinery to dyeing and printing; then fitting and finishing. The rooms vary from ‘pokey to spacious', work light is variable, access is poor, floor levels do not match or align, space is confined by the perimeter and there is no lift – all contributing to some minor health and safety issues.The costs of doing nothing to improve these workrooms are increasing year on year. These include temporary maintenance on the existing building to fix leaks, repair windows and replace antiquated boilers and other infrastructure; spend on additional heating and cooling appliances due to the building leaking hot and cold air; outsourcing some costume work due to inadequate capacity – regular additional spend of GBP 100k pa is not uncommon. These factors alone justify redevelopment.The RSC, with its new theatre building, has now aspired to exciting new technologies in all its stage operating departments. The scenery workshops on the outskirts of Stratford were purpose built for construction and fabrication, whereas the Costume buildings in Waterside restrict the ability to grow or redevelop, and to rethink of the structure the costume department into skill sharing and the development of craft and artisan expertise. The current space and poor facilities often constrain the RSC to out of date and old fashioned processes. The RSC also aspires to teach, train and nurture the very skills that it has garnered over the years which the theatre industry recognizes are talents that are in danger of being lost when senior members of the department retire. The future could include trainees, apprentices and mentors all working within the facility.The RSC is looking to appoint an architect led design team to deliver the design associated with our proposed costume workshop redevelopment project. The initial phase of the design work will take the project through to the completion of RIBA Stage D. This will support our Arts Council Stage 2 application, which if successful, will see the design team remobilised to complete the detailed design phases and prepare tender and construction drawings. The project is likely to be procured using a traditional procurement methodology.The scope will include:- architecture including fit out elements;- structural engineering;- services engineering;- lighting design;- access consulting;- acoustic design;- CDMC services;- fire engineering and consultancy;- BREEAM assessment;- ecology and environmental advice.The scope will not include the project manager, cost consultant, town planning advisor (including associated technical, environmental and heritage advisors), neighbourly matters, legal and insurance advice, surveys requiring contractors, topographical or measured surveys and hazardous material surveys or decant from the current premises and reoccupation.