Sydney Opera House Box Office Accessibility Project
Interpretation Concept Designs
Sydney Opera House Trust
Sydney, NSW
Gadigal Country
Sydney Opera House engaged GML and Esem Projects to develop an approach to the conservation, interpretation and long-term management of the Fort Macquarie barbette wall and tower.
Delving beneath the Sydney Opera House at Tubowgule / Bennelong Point, GML’s archaeological team excavated the c1860s Barbette wall of Fort Macquarie as well as parts of the old 1901 Tram Depot. The site was excavated as part of the installation of a new escalator, presenting a challenge of how such a discovery could be interpreted to wider audiences visiting the Opera House.
GML and Esem Projects worked to develop a number of interpretive initiatives to communicate the archaeological research, the heritage values of Fort Macquarie and support a non-intrusive design solution that would not impact the heritage significance of the Opera House.
Some of the proposed devices include enriching the Opera House website to include this part of its history, website augmented reality which can overlay different ‘views’ of the site— and outwards to different points of interest across Sydney Harbour; and immersive storytelling in the form of digital and physical exhibitions via screens and projections onsite.
