National Ballet School - Maitland Residence

Beginning with a group of listed and designated historic structures, GBCA transformed this densely urban site into a cohesive 50,000 square foot complex that now successfully serves as the residence for Canada’s National Ballet School. Completed in the fall of 2007, this project illustrates how creative and coordinated planning approaches and thoughtful interventions can turn a disparate grouping of heritage structures into a highly functional building complex that provides a safe, comfortable environment, all while respecting the comprehensive protection of several heritage resources.

The project included the rehabilitation of five former residential buildings and the restoration of a former Quaker Meeting Hall (the original 1959 ballet studio and the symbolic and physical heart of the complex). Each building was recognized as a complete entity with all facades being treated with the same care as the street facades. New construction was confined to interstitial spaces and the rear of the site and therefore does not detract from the Maitland Street streetscape. The 10,000 square foot modern addition sympathetically integrates with the low scale massing of the original buildings, while its siting, incorporating an unused rear lane, created new green spaces both in the former lane and in an interior courtyard. In effect, the entire site was reinvented but remarkably only a fraction of the square footage is new.

The challenge for GBCA was to maintain the integrity of all of the heritage buildings in order to preserve the general impression of separate residential structures, yet, at the same time, to create a highly functional and comfortable complex. Subtle modern elements, like slivers of glass connectors, links, and staircases bridged the interstitial spaces and mitigated the complexity of floor heights throughout all of the existing structures without compromising the heritage forms. These glass linkages are all tucked back from the front wall planes and kept within the bounds of the dormers and roof pitches, rendering them inconspicuous in the overall streetscape. The links enhance the distinction between distinct units, all while simplifying the travel routes through the complex without compromising the three-dimensional heritage buildings.

The former Quaker Hall was carefully restored and adapted to a multi-functional use. Historically important not only for its Edwardian architecture and historical associations to the Christian Society of Friends, the building was also important for being the original home of the National Ballet School. Accordingly, not only were the original 1911 features restored, such as the classical windows and portico, but also those elements key to the building’s more recent history, such as the ballet barres and sprung floor. Maintained in its original programmatic use—as an open space—the hall now serves variously as dining hall, lounge, school event or rental space.