The Topfer Theatre at ZACH is the regional theater for Austin and Central Texas. Andersson / Wise designed the building and its surrounding outdoor spaces to define a dramatic, iconic image for ZACH within the context of the city, as well as to create a performing arts campus that engages its strategic site on Lady Bird Lake.
Project Name: Topfer Theatre at Zach
Studio Name: AnderssonWise
Project Size: 33200 ft2
Completion Date: 2012
Location: Austin, United States
Photography: Andrew Pogue
The theater’s stage fly loft, with its elegant, vertical proportions, is visible from downtown Austin, whether one is approaching from the Lamar Street Bridge by car, or from the Pfluger Bridge on foot.
A large rain garden filled with native planting and bisected by pedestrian paths forms the foreground of the building.
The tower and gathering space, set within an idyllic native landscape, is the first impression for the ZACH campus. Emblematic of Austin’s environmental sensitivity, the image and experience celebrates the beautiful site and its relationship to Austin’s most prominent park.
