Frank Lloyd Wright: Drawings and a Theatre

These are Frank Lloyd Wright’s drawings and plans, from the files of architect W. Kelly Oliver, a protégé of the famed American innovator. They’re up for sale at Heritage Auctions, including the presentation drawings of the Kalita Humphreys Theater in Dallas (above), commissioned in 1954 and completed in 1959. It was the only theater design to be constructed during Wright’s architecture career.

The use of concentric circles and ramps throughout recall his design for the Guggenheim Museum, also completed in 1959. Along the ceiling, these circles house the lighting and draw the eye from the perimeter of the space to the focal point – the revolving stage. These drawings exhibit his lifelong fascination with the theater, with a rare glimpse at his imagined mis-en-scène, demonstrating his regard for Japanese theatrical traditions. The costuming, blocking, and set design depicted expose an unexpected mastery of stagecraft – Heritage Auctions

See more drawings and blueprints included in the auction here.