FIREHOUSE CENTER FOR THE ARTS
NEWBURYPORT, MA

The Society for the Development of Arts and Humanities of Greater
Newburyport came forward with an exciting new plan for a multipurpose community center. Respecting both the public and historic aspects of the building, the society’s design called for a creative arrangement of community, commercial, and performing arts spaces. Following its tentative designation in August 1985, the society held extensive discussions with local citizens, potential users, and professional consultants to refi ne the building plan. The concept that was pulled together contained a mix of dedicated and programmable spaces, the dedicated ones to include:

• the 200-seat lecture, performing arts, and conference center
• a 2,400-square-foot multilevel restaurant
• municipal offi ce spaces, and meeting rooms
• a viewing tower and historic interpretive display
• a senior citizens center, a public information center
• display space for local arts and crafts

Inside, the Firehouse is a thoroughly modern theater, suitable for
live drama, films, lectures, or music. The steeply raked seats are
distributed between two tiers enabling each member of the audience
to have unobstructed sight and hearing lines to the stage. The
new theater blends the original structure with the newer elements
while retaining the distinct identities of each. Architectural details
like the exposed wood beams and arch-top windows remind the audience of the different roles the building has played over the years.
The original acoustical design of the theater called for reflectors
hung between the beams, but because of the small volume of the
space and the desire to keep the beam space uncluttered, the scheme was abandoned. It was determined that the sloped, gabled ceiling surfaces provided adequate adequate natural reinforcement and the beams provided additional, desirable acoustic scattering.

The Firehouse Center for the Arts has also won several architectural
design awards including: the American Institute of Architects,
National Honor Award; the AIA New England Regional Council
Merit Award; and Boston Society of Architects, Honor Award.