Taiwan's most important theatre was opened in 1987. Spread over four tiers, it has seating for 1,524 audience members. The theatre enjoys high international prestige, in part due to its commitment to preserving the art of classical Chinese theatre.
In 2015, the decision was made to revamp it thoroughly, an international call for bids was made for the installation of new stage technology, including control technology, and SBS won. For SBS Bühnentechnik GmbH, the challenge to this task lay not only in its demanding list of services but also, above all, in the short time period available to carry them out and the company's lack of local knowledge.

There were eight months from work starting on the construction site to it being presented to the user. The National Theatre Taipei project had a tight time frame from the very first day.
Within just six weeks, the existing stage machinery and associated steel structure was removed, and each bolt was removed from every part of the building, right up to the roof trusses. Immediately afterwards, the installation of the new machinery began. 96 new drives were installed in the overstage machinery and 42 in the understage equipment.

One particular challenge was organising the drives in the understage chamber. The old system’s stage lifts did not allow the lowest platform to be driven to the level of the storage space beneath the stage.
To add a key function to the stage lift system, all the drive technology for the platforms was moved from the middle to the edge of the pit, ensuring that every cubic centimetre of available space was being used. The space in the pit where the drives used to be can now be used for stage lifts to sink down further, while the uninterrupted lower platform can now be used for staging performances.

All 138 drives are controlled by SBS’s own COSTACOwin® computer control system. This tried-and-tested control system is already working away successfully in almost 100 theatres in more than 20 countries. In line with DIN EN 61508, it is certified according to the “SIL 3” safety integration level and thus complies with the highest safety standards in the industry.

Immediately after SBS had completed the project, on 3 March 2017, the Taipei National Theatre began its regular programme. This was Taiwan’s first major theatre project in recent years to have been completed within budget and on schedule.
Our special thanks go to the customer and their representatives, with whom we formed a good, goal-oriented team. The Taiwanese project partners commissioned to carry out work on site also played an important role in this successful team performance.
The opening was a shared success!