Article source: Clark Nexsen

The site for the Imperial Centre Theatre is across an abandoned street from the historically significant Imperial Tobacco Company cigarette factory in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. This site, which has been a city park for the past century, was formerly occupied by a public swimming pool. The Imperial Centre Theatre is linked to the larger complex by an enclosed bridge that spans over the abandoned roadway. This bridge is designed to allow the presence of the historically significant street to be understood while minimizing the impact on the character of the original buildings. The structure and plan alignment of the bridge were derived from the existing overhead gantry previously used for transporting coal to the central boilers. The Imperial Centre Theatre seats 300 people in a surprisingly intimate relation to the stage.

Image Courtesy JWest Productions

• Architects: Clark Nexsen (formerly Pearce Brinkley Cease + Lee)
• Project: Imperial Centre Theatre
• Location: Rocky Mount, North Carolina
• Client: City of Rocky Mount
• Project Team: Jeffrey Lee, Irvin Pearce, David Francis, Nelson Tang
• Size: 35,000 SF / 300 seats
• Photographs: JWest Productions

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