TROY, NY — When the Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute opened last fall, its theatre, concert hall and two studios were equipped with automated rigging from J. R. Clancy, Inc.
Eight years in the making, the 221,000-square-foot Curtis R. Priem EMPAC includes nine levels of studios, a 1,200-seat concert hall, a smaller 400-seat theatre, a studio with seating for 240 people, another that seats 120, a 1,500-square-foot rehearsal studio and four artist-in-residence studios.
Designed by Nicholas Grimshaw & Partners of London and New York, the project’s construction began in 2003. Theater consultants Fisher Dachs Associates designed rigging systems, and J. R. Clancy supplying the rigging and acoustical equipment for the four performance spaces,
For the theatre, the company provided 22 high speed (0 – 240 fpm) hoists with 2000-pound capacity; a 33’ H x 60’ W steel-framed Zetex® fire curtain, a motorized main curtain, and a stage lift and seating wagon.
The concert hall received motorized acoustic elements, allowing the room acoustics to be adjusted. These included line shaft hoists for the movable ceiling panels, acoustical panel hoists, plus acoustic drapes and tracks and control system.
J. R. Clancy also provided point hoist systems for the two studio theatres. The hoists are at fixed locations with a system of movable, swiveling spot blocks. These can be mounted anywhere on the grid, allowing the user to place spotlines as needed.
For more information, please visit www.jrclancy.com.
