The City Theater of Qazvin has officially opened its doors, marking a significant milestone for the cultural landscape of this Iranian city. Designed by GRI co. (Golden Rectangle Idea Consulting Engineers) and completed in 2023, this two-story structure with a basement spans 1,970 square meters and provides the city's first professional Black Box theater venue. The innovative design addresses years of requests from local theater artists who previously lacked a dedicated space for professional performances.
The theater complex is strategically located on a 2,200-square-meter plot adjacent to Mellat Park, one of Qazvin's most significant historic green spaces in the city center. The site was created after the municipality demolished several run-down and inefficient stalls that had become a social security problem. This urban renewal project transformed a problematic area into a vibrant cultural destination, though three stalls remain as the municipality was unable to acquire all properties during the planning phase.
Architecturally, the building presents a striking contrast between transparency and enclosure. The ground floor consists of a glass volume housing general project spaces including theater rehearsal rooms, meeting and arbitration areas, management offices, information desks, ticket sales, and a cafeteria. This transparent base serves as the foundation for the distinctive white brick cube above, which contains the main theater performance hall. The white cube appears to float above the glass volume, creating an abstract sense of suspension that has become a defining visual characteristic.
The design team, led by architects Mahdi Karimi and Samira Fadakari, faced significant challenges during the project's development. They were given an extremely short timeframe of less than two months to complete both the design and construction plans. Additionally, height restrictions due to the building's proximity to the historic park limited the total height of main floors to 8 meters above street level, while the theater required a minimum ceiling height of 5 meters.
To overcome these constraints, the architects employed an innovative solution by excavating the site 2 meters below ground level and positioning the ground floor in this lowered area. This approach allowed them to accommodate all necessary spaces across three levels while respecting the height limitations. The excavation created wide steps and ledges around the building, which now serve as seating areas for park visitors and street performance spectators, seamlessly integrating the theater with its urban environment.
The main theater hall, designed as a Black Box with a seating capacity of 220, occupies the first floor within the distinctive white brick cube. This specialized performance space was specifically requested by Qazvin's theater community, as this type of professional venue was previously unavailable in the city. The basement level houses practical spaces including restrooms, a workshop for set construction, storage areas, and utility spaces, ensuring the theater can operate as a fully functional professional venue.
One of the building's most innovative features is the porous white brick curtain constructed using a dry technique without mortar. Custom-designed Teflon components, molded specifically for this project, fill the spaces between bricks. This unique construction method transforms the first-floor waiting hall into a dynamic environment where the interplay of light and shadow changes throughout the day, creating visual connections between the interior and the surrounding park.
The project represents a successful collaboration between the Qazvin Municipality, which envisioned the theater in 2018, and the local artistic community. Theater artists now visit the building daily to rehearse performances and read plays, while children enjoy puppet shows and theater enthusiasts attend nightly performances. The venue has also become a gathering place for special religious performances known as Ta'ziyeh during important cultural celebrations.
Since its opening, the City Theater of Qazvin has transformed not only the physical landscape but also the cultural life of the city. Morning exercisers in the adjacent park now encounter this striking white brick structure instead of the former dilapidated stalls, representing a successful example of urban renewal through cultural investment. The theater stands as a testament to the power of architecture to revitalize communities and provide essential cultural infrastructure for artistic expression.
