By Rosheen Fatima

The much talked about Actors Studio @ Lot 10 is finally ready and the city is bubbling. The hype has built up to a fever pitch. Rosheen Fatima heads to the new space to see how it fares

Entrance
Depending on which of the three elevators you take in Lot 10, the route to The Actors Studio can be easy or confusing. But once you step out onto the rooftop, you are greeted with the beautiful baby of a marriage between industrial and eco chic. Shrubbery lines the corrugated iron walls surrounding a small lawn. Walk down a small alley and you will see the unassuming entrance to The Actors Studio @ Lot 10. Done in metal and glass, the entrance doesn’t really pop out, but sits meekly in the wall.

Doors are now open
One feature that does catch your attention is the door handles, which feature The Actors Studio’s logo. Sleek and sophisticated, the handles (when not covered in fingerprints) speak almost to the dawn of a more modern era for The Actors Studio, promising to be a more versatile theatre space.

Stage
Walk through the entrance doors and the inner theatre doors and you step into the theatre. The first thing you notice is the height of the ceiling, which is 13 metres, held up by eight diagonal beams. The beams were there before the theatre was planned so it had to be designed to fit around them. Unfortunately, this means that some of the seats are obstructed, but the plan is to sell those seats at a cheaper price.
Inspired by the hanamichi style thrust stage, The Actors Studio’s stage is 13m by 4.4m and the thrust is 5.4m by 9.9m. Different from anything we’ve seen in KL before, the stage took some getting used to for some performers as the audience is very near and on three sides of the stage. Perspective glass panels are used as sound reflectors to bounce sound towards the audience, this is necessary due to the high ceilings. Also the walls on either side of the stage are covered in wood panelling with holes bored through them to help with the acoustics. Beneath the wood, one wall has a hard surface to bounce the sound and the other side has a softer surface to absorb some sound and prevent echoes. It is very clear that a lot of thought has gone into the design and execution of the theatre.

Changing room
Given a smaller space to work with, there was unfortunately not enough space to have two changing rooms. So The Actors Studio @ Lot 10 has a co-ed changing room which can comfortably fit ten, but can pack a lot more if needed.
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Check out the new Actor’s Studio for yourself at http://taslot10.wordpress.com