Phantasmagoria

The rise of post-industrial society in the 19th century transformed Paris into a fragmented, alienated space of modern consciousness. T.S. Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” explores this modern angst, portraying Walter Benjamin’s flaneur as a detached wanderer who temporarily transcends modern life's shock by reimagining urban events as theatrical displays. Their diminishing social relevance in the contemporary setting prompted a critical study of the flaneur’s new form of existence in the 21st century coined by Zygmunt Bauman’s “Postmodern Flaneur” under the influence of the consumerist culture and modernisation. Henri Lefebvre’s “Concept City” likewise undermines the flaneur as fragmented between the commodified, panoptic vision of control offered by skyscrapers and the chaotic, immersive ground-level experience shaped by the “anonymous law” of urban planning. In this context, the Sydney Harbour Drama House project aims to create a sense of serendipity through immersive performances, inviting users to explore the labyrinth of the city via meandering pathways without a fixed destination. While the architectural journey of the space is heavily choreographed, this project seeks to expose the inherent control of urban planning and its dialectical relationship with the flaneur, through intentional imposition of architectural elements to mimic the flaneur journey and their fascination associated with the theatricality of modern consciousness.

Perspective Plan of Theatres

Roof Plan and Threshold Studies

Axonometric of the Drama House

Perspective Sections and Interior Render

Exterior and Interior Renders