Don Draper’s conversation pit from Mad Men was very cool.
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Oh great. Now I want a gorgeous apartment with a conversation pit and skylights that look up on to a soundstage ceiling!
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We had a small (shag carpeted, of course) ramp that was built to fit on top of the step. It was longer, of course, and extended farther into the pit. It was stored in the bench seat built-in storage. I don’t know if it came with the house or if my dad built it. In any case, it allowed my grandmother, who had a hard time getting around, easy pit access
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My cousin’s house has a conversation pit. I was at a small party there once, people conversed everywhere except the pit.
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Get the fuck out the kitchen
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Bingo. Conversation pits are absolutely a great way to become aware of accessibility issues.
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This might just be excessive current events exposure; but I don’t think I could sleep comfortably in what looks like it could best be described as a ‘shag carpet shell scrape’.
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I suspect that I’d quickly founder on the details of the implementation(which is, presumably, why soundstages normally have multiple attached subject matter experts and have their existence hidden from the viewer); but in concept I love the idea of having a soundstage-like combination of standard built environment enveloped in specialized support infrastructure substrate:
Nothing actively wrong with normal light fixtures and outlets and stuff; but being able to call down bits of full theater tech-grade infrastructure from the support structures above, as needed, would be super handy. Also good for work-from-home scenarios when you need to occasionally summon a proper NOC/SOC monitor swarm but don’t want to clutter your desk with that sort of thing all the time: just have it lowered from the theatrical gantry as needed; then winch it away.
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The living room for the Brady Bunch house was technically a conversation pit, since you had to step down into it from all entrances. Not sure about the kitchen, though.
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I imagine the edges of a conversation pit could provide enough length for a comfortably accessible ramp. I’d love to see someone actually do that.
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Only in an absolutely enormous living room. The conversation pit itself already makes a fair bit of your perimeter less usable: in fact, that’s part of the intent: push people closer together while maintaining a larger more airy room that doesn’t make you feel claustrophobic.
But even just a handful of stairs built to 21st century residential code takes up a lot of space out of the middle of your room. An accessibility ramp is huge by comparison.
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I’m certain it would be a nightmare in every way, but I’d kind of love a house with various levels separated only by gently rolling slopes. Ground floor could double as a mini golf course, or an r/c raceway
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Now that is an outstanding, big, comfy reachback.
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These make me think of the Beatles movie where they are goofing in on of those. Hard Days Night? Ringo, IIRC, chewing on shag carpeting with chatter teeth.
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Y’all are missing opprotunuity to make a… trampoline room
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It looks cool in pictures but I feel pretty satisfied with pedestrian and pedestrian-friendly ground level seating that can be rearranged or replaced as needed.
There are so many things that look cool on social media but in praxis are uncomfortable or add an extra headache to a mostly ok thing.
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Saarinen designed this nice pit for JFK (TWA)
He also made a really great chair:
“At cocktail parties, late-staying guests tended to fall in. Those in the pit found themselves bombarded with bits of hors d’oeuvres from up above, looked out on a field of trouser cuffs, ankles and shoes. Ladies shied away from the edges, fearing up-skirt exposure.”
“Today (1963), few homebuilders are insisting on conversation pits, and a remedy has been found for homeowners discontented with the ones they have. A few cubic-yards of concrete and a couple of floor boards will do the trick. No one will ever know what once lay beneath.”
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Attempting to install one in a multi-floor building would certainly be one way to start a conversation with your downstairs neighbors.
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I predict just as many ankle breaks. 
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