Des Moines, Iowa, USA
Designed by ASK Studio, the Riviera Stage at Riverview Park in Des Moines is an open-air performance venue serves as a tribute to the site’s historical significance, particularly the Riviera Ballroom, a renowned music venue that operated from 1915 to 1978 and hosted legendary artists such as Duke Ellington and Glenn Miller.
The site was bare except for a decades old metal flag pole.
The stage is the celebration of a city’s history and a neighborhood’s pride.
It is a venue for performance intended to echo the purpose and import of the original Riviera, which once hosted the likes of Stan Kenton, Duke Ellington, Lawrence Welk and Glenn Miller.
The modern form of the structure belies a series of historical references woven into the design.
The Riviera Stage at Riverview Park received a 2024 American Architecture Award from the Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies.
The open-air venue harkens back to the ballroom’s original design with open side walls and exterior seating areas.
The barrel trusses reflect the form of the original structure and the stage resides near the spot where the Duke once thrilled crowds.
The design’s tenet is rooted in place-making for a vibrancy that has been hushed for over four decades.
Soaring trusses, repurposed from a grain storage facility, intimate a spirit of adventure through scale and a sculptural futility.
They boldly mark the outdoor room for the community to gather, employing a syntax that evokes the daring of yesterday’s “Coaster” and “Wild Mouse.”
The intent is to be magical, even mystical— recollecting the ghost structures of the island.
The Riviera Stage celebrates this place with an insertion that is indefinably referential.
The aspiration is that a memory can be recalled or simply created through reference and the spirit of performance. The island will again be home to legends, laughter and dancing.
Project: Riviera Stage at Riverview Park
Architects: ASK Studio
Lead Architect: Brent Schipper
General Contractor: Henkel Construction Company
Client: City of Des Moines Parks and Recreation
Photographers: Cameron Campbell, Integrated Studio
