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| Digging up the past May 19, 2016 - Kennedy Center REACH site |
[Full Disclosure: I am a current employee of the Kennedy Center. Any opinions expressed in this piece are my own personal views and do not represent that of the Center, its management, or its staff.]
When you think of archaeology, you usually think of digging and finding centuries-old items. When I look at a building, I like to do what I call architectural archaeology. My eyes dig into the walls and decor, searching for evidence of what the building used to look like, how it has evolved, what has been added, and what has been forgotten about until a future renovation. I'm going to present to you some architectural artifacts I've discovered from my current excavation, the Kennedy Center.
BATHROOM TILE
Here is a picture of a bathroom covered in floor-to-ceiling tile. Would you use these tiles in your bathroom today? Probably not.
Up close, this pattern is not too bad to look at. It's a very Edward Durell Stone style, a circle within a square. They are simple and bold shapes, repeating ceaselessly. I am betting that this bathroom has not changed much since 1971.
This is in a former VIP area, now used for admin space. I originally theorized this was a remnant of a highly-stylized VIP room lost to time. However, a few weeks later I stumbled upon another use of this tile in an event storage area next to the Atrium. Looking at blueprints, the space these other tiles live in was originally part of a large bathroom complex. So my current theory is that this was what all Kennedy Center bathrooms looked like in 1971.
All public bathroom spaces have been renovated since then, but it's nice to get a snapshot of what they probably used to look like. For some reason, not many people take pictures of bathrooms throughout the years.
In a side hallway, we have one flight of stairs, connecting two levels of admin space. Do they need to be connected here in the space's current configuration? Not really. It's odd in this tall building to have a staircase comprise of only one flight.
Despite its rudimentary tread and riser, the stairs have an unexpected flourish in a golden railing with end curls. Usually, this kind of railing is reserved for front-of-house usage, not for office space.
It has an odd turnaround railing support. It does not look right how it slightly bends.
The top railing is shorter than usual.
This area is by the President's Office, which can explain the more dramatic flair. The President's Office (originally known as the Director's Office) has always been here. There are other public-facing flourishes in the surrounding office area, including light fixtures matching the ones in the theater lobbies. This was and is a show space of sorts for those visiting the President's Office. If you're the President of the Kennedy Center, you don't want your guests to be wowed by the Halls and Foyers, then arrive at your office and say, "Oh, that's it?" Get that same gold treatment. You deserve it.
What still isn't explained is why these stairs were needed in the first place. Original blueprints list the space up the stairs as unfinished space. These stairs also appear there as only rising one flight. More research will need to be done to find why this was needed.
STAGE DOOR LIGHTS
Once you are buzzed into the Opera House Stage Door, most people walk through the inner antechamber onto another destination. The room isn't anything special to look at, so most people don't look up to see some interesting overhead light fixtures.
These hanging sphere lights add some unexpected charm. They're definitely a bright spot in this utilitarian space. The other stage doors have been renovated/moved locations, so they have more modern lighting fixtures. I hope these guys stick around for a few more decades, I really like them.
Also, note that ceiling. Older/original sections of the building use these small, square ceiling tiles. (The ceiling can be replaced, please just keep those lights.)
MISSING CHANDELIERS & WALL SCONCES
When architectural elements are removed at the Kennedy Center, things are usually made to appear like nothing had ever been there. For example, phone booths used to be scattered all around the Center. Now, it's hard to find where they were located. There are, however, some architectural elements that were removed, but evidence remains of their existence.
When Millennium Stage was added to the Kennedy Center, the Grand Foyer was altered in many ways. One was the removal of a chandelier from either side of the hall. Their former locations can easily be spotted from the Millennium Stage house.
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| A complete chandelier, with the spot of the missing chandelier behind. Millennium Stage North peeks in. |
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| Backstage at Millennium Stage, a hole where a wall sconce once hung in the Grand Foyer. |
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| Remaining wall sconces in the Grand Foyer |
Why are these still visible? Probably because, should the Millennium Stage series ever end and the stages be removed, the wall sconces and chandeliers can return to their former homes with ease.
BONUS: A MAP
This is a Kennedy Center map:
It is taped to a wall in a well-traversed backstage path. It's of the Grand Foyer Level of the building, but it hangs a floor below on the A Level. No date is included, but a few features on it can tell you roughly how old the map is. It lists the "American Film Institute" where the Family Theater is now. The name change happened in late 2005. The Washington National Opera is listed on here as the "Washington Opera," a name they used until February 2004. With the noninclusion of Millennium Stage in the Grand Foyer, I can assume this map was created before 1997. Folks, there has been a map taped to the wrong level of the building for probably 20+ years.
Other things to note:
- AFI had its own box office
- Washington Opera's offices were once in the building. They no longer are. (But I'm sure they're fine with that, their administrative offices now have windows)
- Lost & Found is marked where the Concert Hall Stage Door is now
- There's a gift shop and First Aid in the Hall of Nations?
SOURCES
Kennedy Center Blueprints (Thanks always to Vaughan Bowen!)
Garth Ross Interview
Silver Theater Opens to the Public
Family Theater Virtual Tour
Washington Opera Goes 'National' In Name and Vision
