Location
Porto, Portugal
Year
2024
Area
3,200 m²
Client
Municipality of Porto
Status
Completed
Duration
4 years
Design team
Marta Sóbria, Jonas Nørd, Tomás Reis
Photography
Atelier Nørd
(The project)
A 420-seat concrete theatre shaped by acoustics, daylight and the slope of the city.
Teatro Leve occupies a steep site above the Douro. Its board-marked concrete volumes step down the hill, framing a public stair that doubles as an open-air auditorium.
Built for sound
Every surface of the main hall was tuned with acousticians over two years. The result is a room that feels intimate for a solo voice and generous for a full orchestra.
A stair for the city
Outside performance hours the great public stair becomes a place to sit, meet and watch the river — the theatre’s most used ‘room’.
(The brief)
A 420-seat theatre on a steep, awkward site above the Douro — for music, dance and spoken word, and open to the city even when there is no performance.
(Our response)
The volumes step down the slope, freeing a public stair that doubles as an open-air auditorium. The main hall was tuned with acousticians for two years before construction.
Acoustic study model of the main hall
(Materials)
A quiet palette.
Calm, rigorous and generous with their time. The theatre sounds as beautiful as it looks — the audience noticed on opening night.
Clara Nunes, Artistic Director
Next project →
Refúgio Norte
Gerês, Portugal