Expertise

Dorita Hannah

Architecture & performance form the principle threads that weave through Dorita Hannah’s creative work, teaching and research. A specialized architectural consultant in buildings for the visual & performing arts, her practice includes scenographic, interior, exhibition and installation design as well as international performance design projects. She has published on practices that negotiate between art, architecture and performance. In 2007 she was a jury member of the Prague Quadrennial, a 4-yearly global exposition on theatre architecture and design for which her work was previously exhibited in 1995 and 1999 – leading to a commission to design the central thematic installation for PQ 2003. In 2006 she convened an International Symposium on Performance Design in Rome that brought together interdisciplinary architects, artists, performers and theorists, resulting in the publication of an anthology. Dr Hannah also recently co-edited a themed issue on Performance/Architecture for the Journal of Architectural Education. She has practiced as a designer in New Zealand, Australia, London, Czech Republic, Greece and New York, gaining awards and citations for her creative work, including a UNESCO Laureate (1999), NZIA and DINZ Awards (1994-2007), the selection of her work for the International Archive of Women in Architecture (2003) and silver/gold awards at World Stage Design (2009). Dr Hannah is on the board of directors for Performance Studies International, and the Interior Architecture/Design Educators Association. She is vice-Chair for OISTAT’s History/Theory Commission (International Organisation for Scenographers, Theatre Architects and Technicians) and is on the editorial boards for Performance Paradigm, World Scenography (3-vol publication) and TACE (Theatre Architecture of Central Europe). She is the international commissioner for the Architecture Section, coordinating the program and designing the exhibition in the 2011 Prague Quadrennial.