Brad Steinmetz, assistant professor of design in the Department of Theatre, and Columbus architect Tim Lai will be honored this fall by World Stage Design 2013, a quadrennnial celebration of international performance design. The duo are winners of a design challenge that attracted more than 100 entries from 26 countries. They designed a fully functioning theatre made entirely from locally sourced, reusable or recyclable materials, which will be built in Cardiff, Wales, where it will be used as the main performance venue of the festival, September 5-15.

Steinmetz and Lai call their structure the Willow Theatre because its exterior features dangling fronds of fabric that shelter and sway like branches of a weeping willow tree. The building's strength comes from hired and returnable industrial scaffolding, while the decorative fronds and interior walls will be made from UK-produced horticultural fleece, a reusable material that can also be recycled.

Steinmetz's other design work will also be included in the design exhibition.