Building Tour: Royal Opera House with Stanton Williams

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Join practice director Alan Stanton, associate director Rawden Pettitt and associate Tom Shell for a tour of the Royal Opera House which recently underwent a major overhaul by the practice intended to reshape the historic venue as a new ‘multifaceted and inclusive cultural and social hub’.

The ‘Open Up’ project created a more welcoming experience for Royal Opera House visitors by introducing new enlarged foyers open throughout the day, improving circulation spaces, upgrading the roof terrace and transforming the Linbury Studio into a new theatre. The venue remained open to performances throughout the three-year project which focussed on alterations to the building’s Dixon Jones/BDP1990s extension leaving the iconic 1858 auditorium untouched. 

Tour Guides:

Alan Stanton - Director

Alan Stanton studied at the Architectural Association and UCLA and started his career working with Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers on the Centre Pompidou in Paris. He taught at the AA and ran his own practice before founding Stanton Williams Architects with Paul Williams in 1985. Stanton received an OBE for services to architecture in 2014 and lectures extensively around the world.

Rawden Pettitt - Associate Director

Rawden Pettitt joined Stanton Williams Architects in 2003 as project architect for the Grade II-listed Belgrade Theatre in Coventry. He worked on the sporting facilities at Eton Manor for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and oversaw the Royal Opera House ‘Open Up’ project.

Tom Shell - Associate

Tom Shell joined Stanton Williams Architects straight after graduating from Nottingham Trent University in 1996 with a first-class BA Hons degree in Interior Design. Shell worked on some of the practice’s most well-known schemes – including the Musée d’Art de Nantes and Kings Cross Square – and was project associate for the ‘open up’ redevelopment.

[image: Hufton + Crow]