Reimagining Theatres with Digital Twins: Tramway Theatre’s COVID-19 Initiative
- Client
- Tramway Theatre
- Sector
- Culture & Heritage
Parametrix collaborated with leading partners to deliver a pioneering digital twin for Tramway Theatre, optimising COVID-safe spaces and enabling hybrid performance experiences through innovative BIM and Mixed Reality solutions.
The project was delivered during the COVID-19 pandemic, requiring strict compliance with physical distancing protocols while operating in a live theatre environment. Working under these constraints added complexity to data capture and coordination.
A further challenge was ensuring the Scan-to-BIM model remained fully interoperable for a wide range of stakeholders, including architects, theatre consultants, and technology partners. Accuracy, accessibility, and collaboration were essential throughout
Our team delivered a comprehensive digital twin of Tramway Theatre by combining high-precision laser scanning with photogrammetry drone surveys to capture both the venue and its surrounding site. The resulting BIM model was optimised for use across architecture, design, and technology teams, ensuring smooth data exchange and collaboration.
Key innovations included algorithmic modelling tools to calculate COVID-safe seating capacities, identify hygiene station locations, and simulate seating arrangements based on ticket sales and spatial availability.
The model also supported interactive applications, including digital previews of artist installations and hybrid performance events. Audiences could engage in person, online via an interactive platform, or through immersive VR experiences.
The Tramway project highlighted how digital twins can transform cultural spaces, supporting safer building use and enabling hybrid events and virtual engagement. Parametrix delivered a scalable, interoperable model that provided Tramway Theatre and its partners with valuable insights and long-term operational benefits.
Despite the challenges of working in a live venue during the pandemic, the project enhanced stakeholder collaboration and set a new standard for using BIM and VR to support cultural resilience and innovation.
