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In contrast to the “gentle architecture” design ethic we incorporate into the majority of our residential, commercial, and municipal projects, our involvement in the planning and design of movie theatres across the United States and Canada has allowed us to stretch the boundaries of our design creativity. Our bold, colorful designs serve to attract the attention of movie patrons, while maintaining a sound design aesthetic. Our experience and understanding of the logistics involved in designing such high capacity venues has also proven valuable when applied to other types of projects, such as performance theaters and conference facilities.
| Mississauga Coliseum - Mississauga, Ontario, Canada |
 This 65,000 s.f. 10-screen theatre is truly a landmark design for Thorp Associates and the Movie Theatre Industry. It is the first movie theatre built in the round. The ten giant screens back to the outside nautilus-shaped wall of the building. 2,657 seats face the screen from stadium risers within pie-shaped auditoriums. The design maximizes the number of the “best” seats in the house, eliminating the distant and off-center seats from traditional auditorium design. The auditoriums are accessible from a circular balcony overlooking the lively central lobby, which includes a variety of entertainment and food service.This design has won an Urban Design Award from the City of Mississauga and an Architectural Design Award from the Colorado North Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. In April of 2002, Joe Calvin was selected as one of the outstanding young architects of Colorado at the AIA Colorado Young Architect's Awards Gala for Excellence in Construction Documents. |
| MetroLux 14 - Loveland, Colorado |
The new MetroLux 14 Theatre is the second movie theatre that Thorp Associates has designed for the MetroLux Theatres partnership in Loveland, Colorado. Designed from the exterior to integrate seamlessly into the overall Promenade Shops at Centerra Lifestyle Center newly constructed at the northeast quadrant of the booming Interstate 25 and US Highway 34 intersection at Loveland, the 60,000 square foot theatre also helped establish the architectural style of the entire Promenade Shops complex. The variety of materials, textures and lighting used on the building’s exterior minimizes the visual scale and makes the building inviting within the pedestrian friendly promenade. The new building encloses 14 state-of-the-art all-stadium seating auditoriums in a spacious and colorful themed interior. Thorp Associates worked closely with MetroLux's in-house designer in creating the lively forms and selecting the vibrant finishes. Since opening late fall 2005, the Owners have enjoyed a significant increase in movie traffic over their previous facility. |
| Metropolitan Fairview Theatre - Goleta, California |
 Thorp Associates has just completed another theatre for a long standing client, Metropolitan Theatre Corporation of Los Angeles, California. Desiring to expand theatre services in the city of Goleta in Santa Barbara County, California, Thorp Associates designed a 3-screen, 484 seat multi-theatre complex addition and remodel for its client. Using CMU, timber frame and lumber framing, the prefinished metal siding incorporates architectural steel accents, and masonry veneer. The 11,830 s.f. addition features all stadium seating, pedestrian paseo to connect it to its existing outdoor shopping center environs. Currently under construction, completion of the all stadium seating addition is anticipated for January of 2007. |
| Trans-Lux Silver Cinema - Silver City, New Mexico |
 The Silver Cinema is a seven screen, 26,000 s.f. theatre designed for Trans-Lux in Silver City, New Mexico. The building's unique shape establishes not only a new image, but also a new building technology for the Trans-Lux Theatre Corporation. The shape is a result of careful design coordination of Insulated Concrete Forms (ICFs). These forms allow for the construction of solid reinforced load-baring concrete walls for both the exterior and the sound demising walls separating adjacent auditoriums. The factory built custom form work not only allows for an efficient structure and construction process, but also provides adequate thermal and sound insulation on these walls eliminating the need for many additional interior and exterior materials. The stucco finish of the exterior will be applied directly to the permanent forms and a single layer of fire-rated gypsum board will be applied to the interior, exceeding the theatre industry's stringent requirements for sound transmission attenuation. The Silver Cinema project is scheduled to start construction in mid-2007.Click here for animated movie walk-through |
| Galaxy 12 - Riverbank, California |
 The Galaxy12 is a 67,000 s.f., 12-screen movie theatre in Northern California. Its design includes wide screen presentations and stadium seating. The central corridor is immediately adjacent to a Lobby that features a Cafe, Party Room, and Arcade, in addition to a full Concession Stand. An elevator provides access to patrons with accessibility needs to the highest levels of seating in the four largest auditoriums, adding to dispersed accessible seating at a variety of elevations throughout the building. The exterior features lively lighting on a large asymmetrical blue “fin” element with metallic tile accents and a cable supported canopy. |
| MetroLux 12 - Loveland, Colorado |
 This 37,615 square foot 12-Plex has jettisoned the "two-screen community" into the modern theatre experience. The Aztec motif on the exterior and interior gives the theatre patron a feeling of escape. The exterior neon band catches the eye of those driving the busy arterial leading from an interstate highway and factory outlet center, to the Gateway to the Rocky Mountains. The expansive 5,000 s.f. lobby/service center, with raised skylight, is reminiscent of the grandeur of lobbies of the early part the century. Additionally, the bold relief and warm vibrant colors create a unique and exciting prelude to the state-of-the-art exhibition. Thorp Associates is especially excited about this premium facility in its backyard, which has exposed the community to the theatre work, which keeps the long established architectural firm busy. |
| Roxy 14 Theatre - Santa Rosa, California |
 This 62,000 s.f. theatre houses 14 auditoriums in a "stacked" configuration to take better advantage of the small footprint area of this downtown block. Escalators, stair and elevators convey patrons between the levels of the structure. Each auditorium features wall to wall screens, stadium seating, and THX quality sound systems. An upper level concession stand augments the main concessions, and a Cafe on the lower level faces on to the street front with full width glass. |
| Goleta Old Town Revitilization - Goleta, California |
 Working with Town and County Officials, Thorp Associates was commissioned to design a new retail and entertainment core to facilitate a long awaited Downtown renaissance. Several deteriorated structures were razed to provide space for a central, open courtyard for family recreation, street performers, and vendors. The project included a new multi-level parking structure to accomodate the 8-plex, stadium seated movie theatre and renovated retail and restaurant facilities. Pedestrian access was encouraged through re-developed former alleys, as well as existing street frontage. The commission also included streetscape and graphic design, to help define the newly integrated urban core. |
| Desert Walk Theatre - Palm Springs, California |
 This 75,000 s.f. complex is currently in the early phases of design. There will be 12 screens and approximately 2,800 all stadium-style seats. The building is integral with a new pedestrian shopping mall in Palm Springs. Its small footprint requires that the auditoriums are "stacked" on two different levels of the building. A circulation tower with escalators, stairs and elevators to convey patrons between the levels is one of the features of the exterior design. The exterior also features a Cafe-balcony and several large overhead shading elements, which are very contextual with the proposed designs for the rest of the shopping mall. |
| Rancho 16 Theatre - Rancho Mirage, California |
 Rancho 16 is a 75,000 s.f. theater complex in the desert of this Southern California community with the first stadium seating in the area. Its 16 auditoriums are arranged in an "H" shaped configuration instead of the traditional long corridor, so that the entrance to each auditorium is not very far from the Lobby. The design combines stadium-style seating in the back two-thirds of the auditoriums with traditional sloped seating closer to the screens. The exterior design features colored block, stucco, and painted steel to reflect the mountains of the desert beyond. |
| Monroe 12 Theatre - Monroe, Washington |
 Monroe 12 is a 62,000 s.f., 12-screen movie theatre near the northwest coast. Its design includes wide screen presentations and stadium seating. The central corridor is immediately adjacent to a Lobby that features a Cafe, Party Room, and Arcade, in addition to a full Concession Stand. An elevator provides access to patrons with accessibility needs to the highest levels of seating in the two largest auditoriums adding to dispersed accessible seating at a variety of elevations throughout the building. The exterior features a 48 foot tower topped with an open lattice globe and a large arched glass portal giving access to an interior, weather-protected ticket booth. Grand opening for this facility was in August of 2000. |
