KATSU
Katsu is a “stage set” that invites actors to experience the movement of their bodies by means of a disarming optical experience.
Context
Katsu is a permanent work integrated into the rehearsal hall and roof terrace of the Théâtre de Quat’sous by the Montreal architects FABG. It was carried out within the framework of the Quebec government “Politique d’intégration des arts à l’architecture”.
Within the courtyard
The transparent glass lites that the architects originally conceived as a terrace guardrail are raised from a height of 42 inches to 7 feet. The modified panels are laminated, tempered and comprise a delicate filigree of transparencies
and double-sided mirrored stripes. These lites are also inserted into the curtain-wall looking onto the terrace.
In so doing, the terrace becomes an intimate courtyard – albeit one with a theatrical sense of spatial immediacy and intensity resulting from an almost Rococo multiplication of reflections upon reflections. But the glass is also
transparent, maintaining panoramic views of the city and its mountain.
Inside the rehearsal hall
In the evening, when the rehearsal hall is lit from within, the glass-wall doubles the perceived dimensions of the room and creates a stunning backdrop for informal rehearsals, parties and events.
During the day, the effect of the mirror stripes is attenuated, rendering the curtain-wall mostly transparent and maintaining the daytime view of the city.
From the street
During the day, Katsu’s curtain wall reflects the city and the changing conditions of the sky. As one’s body moves and one’s eyes look up, the walls of the courtyard shimmer - the result of the moiré effect caused by the layering of
stripes. In the evening, when the rehearsal hall is lit from within, the curtain-wall and the courtyard walls glow like a lantern.
Architecture
The box-like outline of the courtyard is conceived as one in a series of additive volumes for a building of multiple material expressions and accumulated volumes. The work does not try to overpower the architecture.
