A $900,000 stage that will be part of the new North Boulevard Town Square is being called “dysfunctional” by a veteran local concert promoter. “It doesn’t serve the purpose of a true cover for the stage,” says Johnny Palazzotto, who produces the Baton Rouge Blues Festival. Palazzotto, who was recently honored by the New Orleans music magazine OffBeat for his efforts to keep the blues alive, says the city should have chosen a traditional stage for performances. “Architects take advantage of any situation,” he says. Trey Trahan, whose firm designed the stage, says Palazzotto’s concerns deal with the aesthetics of the stage. A twisted ring-shaped sculpture will serve as the canopy of the stage. During performances an 8,000-pound performance truss will hang off the canopy, along with lights and sound equipment. “This is a beautiful piece of sculpture,” Trahan says. Trahan designed the stage and Leigh Breslau, who heads Trahan’s Chicago office, reviewed the drawings. Breslau was involved in the architectural, engineering and planning services for Millennium Park in Chicago. “We were commissioned to design a progressive and forward-thinking stage,” says Trahan. The stage is set for completion in February 2012. For a rendering of the stage and truss, click here and here.—Timothy Boone
This story has been changed since it was first published.
