Jacob’s Pillow Reopens Its Doris Duke Theatre, Which Aims to Be a Center for Dance and Technology While Focusing on the Land’s Indigenous Roots
In 2020, Jacob’s Pillow was struggling. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the beloved Becket, Massachusetts–based dance organization was forced to cancel its summer festival for the first time in its 88-year history. Then, in November of that year, the Pillow was dealt another blow: The Doris Duke Theatre, one of its two main theaters, burned to the ground. (The cause of the fire was never determined, and no one was injured.) The destruction of the 230-seat Duke, which opened in 1990 and was known for its flexible, black-box design, led to an outpouring of support from the dance community, with artists taking to social media to share how much the space had meant to them. Now, nearly five years later, the new-and-improved Doris Duke Theatre is opening with a lineup of exciting performances.
The new, flexible theater, which seats 220 to 400, was designed by Dutch architecture firm Mecanoo, in partnership with landscape architecture firm Marvel and acoustics consultants Charcoalblue. Situated on the site of the former theater, the new Duke was built on four primary pillars: Indigenous design values, environmental sustainability, accessibility, and existing and emerging technology.
The Duke aims to become one of the world’s leading homes for the intersection of dance and technology. The building’s infrastructure includes tools to integrate advanced interactive technologies, such as enhanced reality and robotics; livestreaming; a spatial sound system (which can create a 3-D soundscape); and cutting-edge video and lighting design. “The space is wired and powered for any kind of technology that might be created as the years go on,” says Pamela Tatge, Jacob’s Pillow executive and artistic director. But, she adds, “it still has all of the intimacy and warmth and character” of the original theater.
The new Duke strives to strike a balance between the past and the future. “We did a study where we interviewed artists and community members and really opened up who got to think about the future with us,” says Tatge. The results of those conversations led them to focus on the local Indigenous community.
Jacob’s Pillow’s campus is closely tied to its bucolic, rural environment; but the Doris Duke is going a step further with design elements and programming that reflect the land’s Indigenous Muh-he-con-ne-ok/Mohican roots. The artist Jeffrey Gibson, who is of Choctaw/Cherokee heritage, worked closely with the rest of the design team, including on infusing the space with Indigenous values. “We’ve been seeking to decolonize our organization, so it made sense to take stock and honor the land on which we’re building this new theater,” says Tatge. These efforts show up in both the architectural choices and landscape design, which includes an Indigenous garden with medicinal plants and a communal fire pit, as well as in the theater’s renewed commitment to featuring Indigenous artists.
The Doris Duke also provides innovations for Jacob’s Pillow staff. The theater includes separate video and lighting control booths, leading to improved soundproofing; a production catwalk; a loading dock; exhibition space; and a bigger, open-air lobby for preshow talks. “It’s about amenities, for artists and for staff,” says Tatge. “In terms of staff safety, labor, and time, we’ll save a whole lot.”
All of these features will be put into action this summer, in the midst of the nine-week Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival. The Pillow is marking the Doris Duke Theatre’s opening with a weeklong celebration, running July 6–13, with performances by Camille A. Brown & Dancers, Annie-B Parson, Eiko Otake, Kinetic Light, and others. This will be followed by six weeks of programming, featuring Andrew Schneider, Elle Sofe Company, Eun-Me Ahn, Faye Driscoll, and Huang Yi—many of whom will utilize the theater’s technological capabilities. The season will also include the return of Shamel Pitts | TRIBE, which was in residence at the Duke during the 2020 fire and will now make its Pillow performance debut.
“I’m most excited about having people experience the possibility and the beauty of the structure,” says Tatge. “It’s so responsive to the kind of experience we want artists and audiences to have.”
