Stadium Seating: How It Can Benefit Your School’s Auditorium

Stadium seating can transform a school auditorium, making it more enjoyable for students and other people in the audience.

And it’s not just a matter of comfort and style—stadium seating improves communication to the audience. Whether it’s a play or a lecture, stadium seating helps promote the desired interchange between the stage and the students.

ADVANTAGES OF STAGE SEATING

• The most-obvious and most-important benefit of stadium seating is improved site lines. With traditional flat-floor seating, the stage is usually elevated to help people see. But, as anyone who’s relatively short knows, an elevated stage or screen isn’t a very adequate solution for a taller person in front of you. People often end up sitting at awkward angles, straining their neck, or simply not being able to see well. Stadium seating eliminates the problem of height differences in the audience. It’s also simply more comfortable to look down or straight ahead (at an elevated screen or stage) rather than having to look up during an entire performance or event.
• Stadium seating can free up room in the auditorium for uses such as a dedicated open area for people in wheelchairs to watch the stage. It can also create room for storage or offices under the seats. (Storage rooms and offices can be constructed before installation, and the stadium seating can be built over the top of those structures.)
• Stadium seating can change the atmosphere of an auditorium from drab to exciting. Stadium seating has been around for years now, but it still has the feel of luxury compared to flat-floor seating. Atmosphere shouldn’t be underestimated. It plays a key role in the how the audience reacts to what’s being presented to them.
• Installing stadium seating provides an ideal opportunity to upgrade the quality of the seats themselves. Consider seat width, back pitch, shape, padding, texture, and color. Improvements in these areas can combine with the sloped design to completely remake your auditorium.

CONSTRUCTION OPTIONS

Installing stadium seating in an auditorium has traditionally involved the use of concrete framing and structural steel. But this level of construction isn’t necessary. Stadium seating can be built independent of the vertical building structure, thereby eliminating worries about loads and capacities.

A  “kit” using polystyrene blocks such as EPS Geofoam can be used—reducing cost and time to install. Pre-cut polystyrene blocks are stacked to create the shape of the tiered seating risers. Permanent steel forms are installed on the face of the risers and secured with steel hardware. Then concrete is poured on the steel forms.

This installation method has the benefit of allowing the design architect flexibility in laying out the seating. The polystyrene blocks can be cut into almost any size, height, or shape, so the height and depth of each riser can be customized to order. This method also allows for multiple configurations—straight rows, segmented-radius rows, or true-radius rows.

CONCLUSION

Stadium seating can improve sight lines, increase comfort, create extra room, and enhance atmosphere in your auditorium—all without expensive renovations to your existing building. Consult with a proven specialist in stadium seating design and installation to help you determine cost and decide if the time is right for you to upgrade to stadium seating.