King's Theatre

One of the principal challenges was upgrading the ventilation in the auditorium without adversely affecting its ornate interior. Installing new ductwork required sections of the auditorium to be carefully taken apart, creating routes for services to be incorporated into the existing building fabric. 

We used airflow analysis to develop the auditorium ventilation strategy, with particular attention paid to audience comfort and the theatre’s demanding acoustic environment. Fresh air is delivered through discreet ventilation slots, helping achieve quiet, even air distribution while keeping the engineering visually unobtrusive.

The auditorium is served by a new rooftop air-handling unit incorporating heat recovery, together with a dedicated heat pump providing heating and cooling. This allows improved environmental conditions to be delivered alongside better energy performance.

Our architectural lighting design contributes to accessibility and highlights the historic interior. Low-energy LED sources have been introduced where appropriate, reducing energy use and maintenance requirements, while many original light fittings, including the theatre’s chandeliers, have been retained and refurbished rather than replaced. This approach reduces the carbon and cost associated with replacement while maintaining an important part of the building’s character.

The completed restoration brings the King’s Theatre up to the environmental, accessibility and technical standards expected of a contemporary performance venue while preserving the qualities that have defined it for generations. Through careful coordination of new and existing elements, the engineering remains largely in the background, allowing the theatre itself to take centre stage.