Red Rocks Amphitheatre Feasibility Study

Challenge

The Red Rocks Amphitheatre has been designated as a National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service and Department of the Interior. The amphitheater is a top destination for Colorado residents and tourists from around the world. Rolling Stone magazine has designated the venue as “America’s best amphitheater” – with a capacity of nearly 10,000 seats. Music idols like the Beatles, U2, Jimi Hendrix, the Grateful Dead and James Taylor have all played here multiple times.

The City and County of Denver recognized the need for stage roof renovations to continue serving the millions of yearly visitors. However, to reach a place where they could confidently move forward with design and construction, the City and County needed a design feasibility study in order to assess whether roof renovations would not only be possible but economically wise, technically sound and sustainable.

Solution

The City and County has partnered with SEH on a variety of projects spanning decades, also selecting SEH to lead the feasibility study for a potential stage roof design.

Prior to various technological innovations, performing a feasibility study for the amphitheatre would have required a project team to hand-take photos and uncover dimensions by hand. In an environment like the one the Red Rocks Amphitheatre is hosted at – with the stage rock and pulpit rock – it would have been nearly impossible to accurately document the needed measurements.

The selected SEH team used innovative drone filming and 3D point cloud technology to create an accurate 3D digital rendering of the stage and roof, and ultimately to complete the feasibility study. With this model, which can be evolved in real-time, the City and County has been able to accurately assess the current roof and potential options for a newly designed roof. This use of technology cut down on the amount of time required to perform the study and create the report, saved the City and County expenses due to the shortened schedule, and increased measurement and dimension precision of the rendering.

The drone flights for filming needed to be precise and careful in an environment like the Red Rocks Amphitheatre. The drone team achieved the necessary permits to fly in such a public, highly used area, and the captured information was promptly transferred to create the 3D digital model.

With a 3D point cloud scan, capable of 360-degree turning and changeable during evaluation, the City and County was able to evaluate the feasibility of potential renovations to the stage. They have since begun moving forward on a full stage roof redesign with the needed insight in hand.