Setting the Stage by Vincent J. DeSimone, P.E. and A. Christopher Cerino, P.E.

Steel sets the stage for the new Frank Gehry-designed Fisher Center for the
Performing Arts at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, NY.

hile many Frank Gehry- and a roof over the entirety. The Gehry achieved only by efficient steel truss de-

W designed buildings have

graced the covers of ar-
chitectural and engineer-
ing publications, the
Richard B. Fisher Center for the Perform-
ing Arts at Bard College is the first of its
kind. Located in Annandale-on-Hudson,
exterior is a sculpted shell that appends,
but never supports, the functionality of
the theater element.
The $62-million center opened in
April 2003, and houses the campus’s
opera, dance, and orchestral productions
as well as theatrical teaching facilities.
sign. Only the primary wide-flange
shapes are curved to match the undulat-
ing surface.
All of the structural steel for the proj-
ect was defined, dimensioned, and coor-
dinated with three-dimensional CATIA
modeling software. Three-dimensional
NY, the center is the first sculpted steel The complex comprises two distinct modeling was an integral part of the de-
building where the structure is perma- buildings that are linked with public as- sign process, from concept to system-in-
nently exposed to view from the interior. sembly spaces and the back-of-house in- terference checking, to shop drawings.
Gehry’s work typically resembles a frastructure. The signature metal
random metal shroud that alters the per- surfaces, featured in the lobbies and prac- The Main Stage
ception of interior space and manipulates tice studios, soar up to 80’ above the oc- The main building of the complex, the
the natural light it receives. When de- cupied space. The exposed stainless-steel Sosnoff Theater, is an 860-seat, 64,000-sq.-
signing Gehry buildings, it is important shingles are field-applied to shop-built ft feature performance auditorium. While
to separate the shroud from the structural light-gage metal panels that also provide the 100’-tall stage tower and adjoining
space of the interior. Irrespective of the the thermal and moisture envelope. The auditorium walls are cast-in-place con-
architecture, a theater must have a stage structural frame used to support the pan- crete for acoustic reasons, the long-span
tower, proscenium, orchestra, balcony, els in the expansive volumes could be roof system and the signature curved

Modern Steel Construction • January 2004

metal façade are supported by structural
steel.
The 12’ zone between the top of the
roof and the bottom of the acoustical ceil-
ing panels houses the working machine
of the theater. The 75’ clear span between
auditorium walls is achieved with struc-
tural steel trusses. Hanging from these
trusses are hundreds of steel sections that
make up the catwalks, light bridges, trol-
leys, and rolling ladders. In addition to
the theatrical needs, this area also serves
as the main air-distribution passage for
the auditorium below. Large ducts weave
through the truss diagonals, filling much
of the already-crowded ceiling cavity.
This cavity was modeled completely in
CATIA. A three-dimensional interference
check was performed to confirm the re-
quired dimensions and that no object in-
terfered with another.
The side walls of the lobby and the Above: Overall view of the Fisher Center for the Performing Arts with the Sosnoff Theater on the
front entrance feature exposed, custom- right and the teaching theater on the left.
built wide-flange steel shapes. These Below: Interior view of the “eyelid” in the Drama Room.
shapes were all built from high-strength
structural plate, where the web plate was
cut from computer data using computer
numerically controlled (CNC) machines
to match the shape exactly. The flanges
were CNC-bent on the weak axis, adjust-
ing the curvature along each inch of
length. Finally, the plates were assembled
on a large setting bed and machine-
welded. Many of the shapes were long
and irregular, and required splices for
trucking purposes. The bolted splices
were all assembled in the shop to ensure
bolt fit-up as well as continuity of the de-
sired curvature.
The erection of the 60’ to 90’ ribs went
smoothly due to key decisions made in
the design process. First, the curved ver-
tical elements could not act as columns.
Placing load on what is essentially a
buckled shape substantially increased the
lateral deflection and member size re-
quired. In addition, using the ribs as
columns would necessitate fire-protect-
ing the steel for the first 20’, which would
ruin the desired aesthetic. With these
constraints, it was decided that all of the porary guying for stability until the per- tion. Then, the horizontal angle spanned
roof steel would cantilever from the cast- manent bracing was in place. To save between ribs at a constant elevation, piv-
in-place walls. The ribs, supporting only time and cost, the permanent bracing oting on a single-end hole to achieve any
their own weight and the weight of the needed to be installed concurrently with plan angle. Male- and female-ended D-
metal panels, sit on the foundation walls each pair of ribs. There are approximately shaped gusset plates secured the mem-
and lean against the diaphragm of the 1000 brace-member connections, each bers above and below. These plates have
main roof with slotted connections to ac- with a unique vertical and horizontal the ability to rotate independently to re-
commodate deflection. angle. After many design iterations, each ceive single-bolted diagonal members at
Around the entire Sosnoff Theater are bracing condition was satisfied with one different and unique angles. While the
six different clusters of ribs that function detail. The length of the horizontal and single-bolt connections needed minor
as a braced unit. Setting each rib would diagonal steel angle braces was extracted field-welding to work for the design
have required a complex system of tem- from the CATIA solids model for fabrica- loads, they were more than adequate to

January 2004 • Modern Steel Construction

 What’s CATIA?
CATIA, or Computer-Aided Three-Di-
mensional Interactive Application, was
developed in France in the late 1970s
by Dassault Systemes, and initially
was used to design aircraft. It is now
an extremely powerful three-dimen-
sional solids and surface modeling
program, and is used extensively by
the automotive and aerospace indus-
tries. Until last year, the program ran
only on a UNIX operating system and
required the use of a reduced instruc-
tion set computer (RISC) rather than a
standard personal computer (PC).
This necessitated not only a substan-
tial monetary investment for the soft-
ware, but for the hardware as well.
With the release of Version 5, CATIA
can now run through the Windows en-
vironment on a high-powered PC. For
more information about CATIA, visit
www.catia.com.

serve as temporary braces. In the end, girders resting on columns below sup- Architect
two adjacent ribs were set and the tem- port these ribs. Fire protection was not re- Gehry Partners, LLP, Los Angeles
porary/permanent bracing was pivoted quired because the members exist more
into place in a matter of minutes. than 20’ above the occupied floor. Structural Engineer
Other noteworthy steel forms include: There are many other noteworthy DeSimone Consulting Engineers,
a 6,400 sq.-ft entry canopy with 85’ center steel forms in the teaching wing, such as P.L.L.C., New York City
ribs that cantilever more than 20’ feet be- a 30’ canopy beyond the drama room
yond the support at the top and bottom supported by three kickers down to the General Contractor
edges; continuous, kinked horizontal ground floor; and two “eyelid” ribs that Daniel O’Connell’s Sons, Holyoke, MA
HSS that pass through the last rib of the split to frame the extents of skylights in
side wall to cantilever the surface 8’; two the dance and drama rooms. Steel Fabricators
space frames of mitered 8”-diameter For the project, the design documents Berkshire Bridge & Iron Co., Inc.
pipes that support 20’ cantilever surfaces; not only included customary plans and (AISC member), Dalton, MA
and a 150’-long plan truss 85’ above- specifications, but also the three-dimen- Columbia Wire & Iron Works
grade, supporting the tops of the ribs that sional CATIA models. While fully coordi- (AISC member), Portland, OR
shield the front of the stage tower. nated CATIA models are required to
understand the complexities of Gehry Steel Detailer
A Teaching Theater projects, they also can result in substan- Angle Detailing, Inc. (AISC member),
The second building of the complex, a tial change-order savings in any project. Wilsonville, OR
420-seat teaching theater, is similar to the Structural change orders for the Fisher
first in that the anchor structure of the Center, including several minor owner- Architectural Modeling Software
stage tower and auditorium is made directed changes, totaled 1.3% of the con- CATIA
massive for acoustic reasons. Surround- tract value. This result would be
ing the theater box, is a lightweight struc- desirable for any project, let alone one Structural Engineering Software
ture with a compound-curved steel roof with the theatrical and architectural com- RISA-3D, ETABS, SAFE
that houses teaching areas for drama and plexity of the Fisher Center. ★
dance. Even though the teaching wing Detailing Software
features roof elements, the design con- Vincent J. DeSimone, P.E. is chairman of AutoCAD
cepts and details are similar to the undu- DeSimone Consulting Engineers. Christo-
lating walls of the Sosnoff theater. The pher Cerino, P.E. is an associate and was proj-
built-up wide-flange ribs also are trussed ect manager for the Fisher Center for the
with brace members using the single-bolt Performing Arts.
pivoting connection; however, kinked

Modern Steel Construction • January 2004