ORLANDO, Fla. — If you've driven by the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts recently, you may have noticed a huge structure taking shape — and fast.
- Dr. Phillips Center officials offer Steinmetz Hall construction tour
- CEO: Isolation pads will help produce 'perfect sound room'
- Person sitting alone should be able to hear own heartbeat
That building, on the north side of the performing arts center, will open in 2020 as the Steinmetz Hall. It was purposefully phased in order to raise the capital to build it to "the highest acoustical and aesthetic standards."
During a hard-hat tour Friday, Dr. Phillips Center President and CEO Kathy Ramsberger pointed out a few of the almost 700 isolation pads exposed next to the upright concrete.
"These pads isolate all vibration," she told us. "The goal is to have a perfect sound room. It's called an N1 (sound) rating."
In other words, the horseshoe-shaped concert hall will be so quiet that a person sitting alone should be able to hear his or her own heartbeat.
Steinmetz Hall will be 40 feet taller than the Walt Disney Theater, which houses the Broadway shows. But the new hall will have 1,000 fewer seats, at 1,700.
After the hall is completed, it will be professionally tuned for about six weeks.
Meanwhile, the Dr. Phillips Center now has its first executive chef, Jason Klingensmith. He was there to reveal new consessions for the 2018-2019 season.
Among them:
- Bruschetta - Tomato cone, herb crema
- Tuna Tartare - Sesame Cone, Yuzu Vinaigrette
- Tuna Tataki Display - Sambol Hoisin, avocado cream
- Chocolate Ganache Bites - Graham shell, Italian cherry puree
- Mediterrabean Chicken - on pumpernickel
- Thai Beef Wrap
- Cheese & Charcuterie
- Hummus - Tomato Jam and Pita Rounds
- Truffle Dusted Popcorn
- Holiday Cocktail - a peppermint-flavored vodka martini (coming soon)
The offerings are located on all three tiers of the Dr. Phillips Center. But staff says changes are coming soon, like having the food closer to the front of the lobby and the core of the building.