To effectively design a theater, the site constraints must be clarified. Is the theater to be constructed in an urban environment with tight space limitations, such as the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, or can the theater sprawl on an previously undeveloped patch of land, as with the theater at Bard College in New York State? The site limitations will directly impact the size of the theater, and the amount of room needed for circulation. The budget limitations will impact the materials used to build the theater.
The size and budget of the theater will also dictate how much money can be dedicated exclusively to perfecting the acoustics. If the budget is high, a separate acoustics specialist can be hired to test different acoustic scenarios with different materials to achieve the clearest and most beautiful sound.
A properly designed theater will be conceptualized as a forum for a particular audience. A theater dedicated to stage productions will have slightly different acoustic requirements than a theater dedicated to philharmonic symphony productions. The back-of-house sections of the theater will also need to be designed to house appropriate equipment and office space for the theater staff.
The lighting of a theater will dramatically affect the mood of the performers and the audience. Poor lighting leads to a cramped, unhappy feeling. Exuberantly lit theaters that utilize natural light with windows are inspiring. At night, the placement of lights both within the theater and on the exterior will also shape how people perceive the space. Naked fluorescent lighting is rarely recommended for a theater, unless the lighting is purposefully arranged to call attention to itself, as in the Hammer Museum's Billy Wilder Theater in Los Angeles. Spotlights should be available for the performers, but a subdued, more ambient light should be cast on the audience.
Professional architects who have practiced for at least 10 to 15 years have gained enough experience and knowledge to design theaters. Theater design is far more complex than, for example, a single family residential home, and draws on at least a decade's worth of experience. When architects initially graduate from graduate school, their experience is primarily theory-based. By working on an assortment of design projects for 10 to 15 years, they learn the literally thousands of profession-specific pieces of information they need to design a theater, from the proper depth of a skylight to how to position windows to reduce glare on a sidewalk.