In 2010 the Dallas Arts District added an outdoor venue to the recently completed Winspear Opera House and Wyly Theatre. Annette Strauss Artist Square (Strauss Square) replaces the ad-hoc Artist Square stage that had been displaced by the building of the Winspear and complements the existing Meyerson Symphony Center and Booker T Washington High School to continue the progress of Dallas’ Arts District into one of the world’s most complete and encompassing urban arts developments.

The City of Dallas wanted to keep Artist Square within the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts (now AT&T Performing Arts Center) which has become an important cultural facility, bringing people into the Arts District who wouldn’t otherwise come into this area of downtown Dallas. ATTPAC will manage a wide variety of programming of country music, dance festivals, jazz, world music and more.

Sound Space Design, with sound system designers Engineering Harmonics and theatre consultants Anne Minors Performance Consultants, showed that with careful planning a downtown outdoor performance facility could work on this site, so that the City of Dallas and ATTPAC could retain this important public venue. The reopening of the new Strauss Square energises the area, bringing a wide cross section of public into contact with the theatres, opera house and concert hall in the downtown Dallas Arts District.

Now serving as Dallas’s premier outdoor events facility, the Annette Strauss Square has come a long way since its opening in 1989. Originally deemed little more than an open field used by local artists and merchants, the venue has since undergone extensive structural and aesthetic renovations.

Revered as the spirit behind the arts district of Dallas, Annette Strauss served as Mayor from 1987 until 1991. As a means to pay homage to her influence, designers at Good Fulton & Farrell called upon the use of ALPOLIC panels to ensure visual appeal and longevity for the pavilion.

For the exterior of the facility, zinc and metallic silver ALPOLIC panels were cut into a harlequin-esque diamond pattern and applied using a rain screen attachment system. This method allowed the panels to breathe, prevented molding, and permitted a soft, natural patina to occur. Additionally, designers of the venue believe the contrast of the two metals hints at the illusion of “glistening leaves”, and effectively blends with the natural surrounding.

Today, the Annette Strauss Square hosts an array of events - from dance and theater performances, to music and art festivals. Those who worked on the project praise ALPOLIC for its aesthetic appeal and affordability, and hope that the new venue will act as “an appropriate appreciation for Annette Strauss and her spirit.”

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