Photo © Nick Merrick | Hedrich Blessing
For SOM, known for supertall towers and feats of engineering, a project like the Dallas City Performance Hall might seem to be a diversion, but partner Jeff McCarthy says that’s exactly why it was an important project for the firm, which had a good relationship with the city after completing an expansion of the convention center in 2002: ‘I think the things that truly made it interesting were the budget, the profile of performances, and the mission—that it would be an inspiring venue for emerging artists who might be stepping on a stage of this sort for the first time.’