Songshan Lake Exhibition and Performance Centre hosts inaugural programme of events
16 June 2026
Architects: ZHA
Location: Dongguan, Guangdong Province, China
Photos by Virgile Simon Bertrand
Located in Dongguan within the Greater Bay Area of southern China’s Pearl River estuary, the new Songshan Lake Exhibition and Performance Centre is at the heart of a mixed-use masterplan to revitalize the Yuehe Lake waterfront.
Designed by ZHA to serve as a civic and cultural anchor of the growing community, the Songshan Lake Exhibition and Performance Centre (SSLEPC) will host a variety of national and international events, exhibitions and performances for audiences of all ages. The centre’s public programme was inaugurated with its opening concert ‘The Sound of Songhu’ led by the China National Symphony Orchestra.
Honouring a birthplace of Cantonese Opera, an artform dating back over 700 years to the Song Dynasty, the flowing forms of its traditional costumes have inspired the centre’s design. Evoking the unique silk ‘water sleeves’ (the white extensions of robes worn by performers of Cantonese Opera who convey emotion with their animated gestures) the centre’s design incorporates multiple distinct structures that crescendo and flare, rising at its western edge to frame the main theatre and exhibition space.
Informed by the upturned eaves of the region’s traditional Lingnan architecture, the extended overhang of the centre’s roof maintains generous levels of natural light throughout the interiors while protecting the building and its outdoor spaces that are situated within Dongguan’s humid subtropical climate.
Facilitating fluid transitions across multiple levels of SSLEPC’s interior and exterior, the design opens to its sheltered public plaza, garden terraces and waterfront promenade on Songshan Lake for local residents and visitors to enjoy year-round.
The 1,200-seat Grand Theatre, along with the Exhibition Hall, is designed to host large-scale productions by local, national and international performers, in addition to conferences, industry forums, art exhibitions and sporting competitions. The 400-seat Multifunction Hall will host smaller theatrical productions and children’s theatre.
The Grand Theatre’s walls and ceiling are defined by 100,000 slender spines that enhance sound diffusion, control reverberation and disperse standing soundwaves to enrich acoustic clarity, ensuring a consistent auditory experience for every seat in the house. This field of static spines that vary in length, density and tone animates the interior with the perception of a subtle, rhythmic vibrancy.
The installation of prefabricated ultra-high-performance concrete cladding cast from reusable molds has reduced construction time, CO2 emissions and waste. Prefabricated aluminium soffits and roof panels feature a light grey opalescent finish to minimize solar heat gain at the centre’s low-latitude location. Its interiors incorporate aluminium and glass reinforced gypsum for low maintenance operations while extending the building’s life-cycle and reducing embodied carbon.
High-Performance façades and intelligent HVAC building management systems provide optimal operational efficiencies. The centre’s roof includes photovoltaic arrays and rainwater harvesting to generate on-site renewable energy and reduce water consumption. The sheltered public plaza, garden terraces and waterfront park combine permeable surfaces and re-planted wetlands to mitigate flood risk and enhance local biodiversity.
Songshan Lake Exhibition and Performance Centre in Dongguan, China – Building Information
Architects: ZHA – https://www.zha.com/
Client: Dongguan Songshan Lake OCT Investment and Development Co., Ltd
Design Architect: ZHA
ZHA Principal: Patrik Schumacher
ZHA Project Director: Johannes Schafelner
ZHA Project Architect: Martin Krcha
ZHA Project Leads: Yifan Zhang, Evgeniya Yatsyuk, Gizem Muhtaroglu
ZHA Local Team: Shao-wei Huang (Head of Shenzhen Office) , Haohao Chen (Local Project Lead)
ZHA Technical Support: Branko Svarcer, Armando Solano
ZHA Project Team: Erfan Pour Ahmad, Mahyar Rakeei, Nazanin Sharif, Kourosh Asgar Irani, Genci Sulo, Hazel Ozrenk, Chiara Baiocco, Dennis Brezina, Alessandra Lazzoni, Nassim Eshaghi, Xuanzhi Huang, Tommaso Casucci, Fangxingchi Du, Florentine Rockenbauer
ZHA Competition Project Directors: Johannes Schafelner, Shao-wei Huang, Charles Walker
ZHA Competition Project Architects: Ashwin Shah, Yifan Zhang
ZHA Competition Team: Valeria Mazzilli, Erfan Pour Ahmad
Consultants
Client: Dongguan Songshan Lake OCT Investment and Development Co., Ltd 东莞松山湖华侨城投资开发有限公司
End user: Dongguan Songshan Lake High-Tech Industrial Development Zone Management Committee 东莞松山湖高新技术产业开发区管理委员会
Operator: Dongguan OCT Songshan Lake Performance Centre Management Co Ltd 东莞华侨城松山湖展演中心管理有限公司
Local Architect (Planning/Structure/MEP): BIAD (Beijing Institute of Architectural Design) 北京市建筑设计研究院股份有限公司华南设计中心
Interior/Landscape Architect: BIAD (From Schematic design onwards) 北京市建筑设计研究院股份有限公司
Façade Engineering: RFR Shanghai 阿法建筑设计咨询（上海）有限公司
Lighting Design: GD-Lighting 大观国际设计咨询有限公司 (Schematic – Preliminary Design) Suoshi Lighting索氏照明设计事务所有限公司 (Construction Design stage）
Quantity surveyor: BIAD (SD- PD)
Theatre Consultant: PCT爱乐剧院咨询（Schematic stage）
Acoustic Consultant: Ecadi (华东建筑设计研究院有限公司 声学及剧院专项设计研究所, East China Architectural Design & Research Institute Co., Ltd.)
Transport Consultant: MVA 弘达交通咨询有限公司
Signage Design: W&T维唐设计（深圳）有限公司
Approved Inspector: Daye Construction Drawing Inspection 东莞市大业施工图审查有限公司
General Contractor: China Construction First Group Corporation Limited 中国建筑一局（集团）有限公司
Site supervision: Jiangnan Management浙江江南工程管理股份有限公司
Façade Contractors: Yasha Facade亚厦幕墙有限公司 Huayu Façade 华誉幕墙工程有限公司 Jiangsu Huiquan New Material Technology Co., Ltd. (UHPC Manufacture and construction) 江苏惠全新材料科技有限公司
Interior Contractors: Zhongfutai 中孚泰文化建筑股份有限公司 (Theatre 剧院）Hongjia construction 弘嘉建筑工程有限公司 (Exhibition展厅)
Stage and equipment contractor: Jin Dong Gao ke 北京金东高科科技有限公司
Landscape Contractor: Maohua茂华园林建筑有限公司
Signage Contractor: Fangxiang signage东莞市方向标识工程有限公司
Façade lighting Contractor: Yimingliang Lighting深圳市亿明亮智慧建设工程有限公司
Photographs by Virgile Simon Bertrand
Songshan Lake Exhibition and Performance Centre, Dongguan images / information received 160626
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Comments / photos for the Songshan Lake Exhibition and Performance Centre, Dongguan, China designed by ZHA – formerly Zaha Hadid Architects page welcome.
