National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts

National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts Weiwuying
衛武營國家藝術文化中心
General information
Type	arts centre
Location	Fengshan, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Coordinates	22°37′23.6″N 120°20′33.0″E / 22.623222°N 120.342500°E / 22.623222; 120.342500
Owner	National Performing Arts Center
Technical details
Floor area	3.3 hectares
Design and construction
Architect(s)	Francine Houben
Website
Official website

National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts, also known as Weiwuying, (traditional Chinese: 衛武營國家藝術文化中心; simplified Chinese: 卫武营国家艺术文化中心; pinyin: Wèiwǔyíng Guójiā Yìshù Wénhuà Zhōngxīn), is located in Fengshan District, Kaohsiung, Taiwan. It is the largest cultural facility in Taiwan,^[1] the world's largest performing art theater under one roof, and the first national-level performing arts venue in southern Taiwan.^[2] The planning, preparation, and construction were overseen by the Weiwuying Arts and Culture Center Preparatory Office and, after completion, it became one of the venues under the National Performing Arts Center.^[3]

The main building was designed by Dutch architect Francine Houben and includes four indoor performance halls, which are as follows: an Opera House with 2,236 seats, a Concert Hall with 1,981 seats, a Playhouse with 1,209 seats, and a Recital Hall with 434 seats.^[4] On the south side, there is an outdoor theater that connects to the central lawn of the Weiwuying Metropolitan Park, capable of accommodating 30,000 people for outdoor performances. The Concert Hall is equipped with a pipe organ featuring 9,085 pipes, making it the largest pipe organ in Asia. It was constructed by the Klais Orgelbau in Germany. The facility has been praised by The Guardian as the "biggest arts venue on Earth land in Taiwan."^[5]