1/12
RL reconceptualized the organization's facilities with a new street identity, interior renovations & rooftop extension. Internally, program areas are expanded to include two theaters with integral bar zones, rehearsal, educational, administrative, and support spaces distributed over five floors.
2/12
The existing facade with its array of cuts, fills, additions, and other modifications reveals the building's history. Rather than restoring the building to its original state, RL adds to the composition an overlay of new large window openings cut in the facade with only partial regard to older features.
3/12
RL reconceptualized the organization's facilities with a new street identity, interior renovations & rooftop extension. Internally, program areas are expanded to include two theaters with integral bar zones, rehearsal, educational, administrative, and support spaces distributed over five floors.
4/12
Original rough brick walls are exposed and frame new contemporary performance spaces with associated bars formed from blackened steel.
5/12
The original Nuyorican Poets Cafe sign will be preserved & reinstalled behind the new blackened steel bar at the main street level performance space.
6/12
An expansion at the roof level creates a new performance space with an associated bar formed from blackened steel & featuring the work of artist, Cecilia Biagini.
7/12
An expansion at the roof level creates a new full floor for a second performance space. New stair & elevator infrastructure make the facility fully accessible.
8/12
Early programming section study with entry, enlarged street level, Stage 1 performance space & bar, new flex/rehearsal space & offices, and new upper level Stage 2 performance space & bar.
9/12
Section model showing enlarged street level performance space & bar, new flex/rehearsal space & office floors, and a second performance space & bar. The rehearsal/flex and administrative areas are situated on the mid-levels, acoustically separating the street performance space from the new upper level performance space.
10/12
Enlarged street level performance space, bar & balcony. Existing masonry walls will remain exposed retaining the space's current raw, substantial character.
11/12
Early study for new rear lot garden with ivy wall.
12/12
New windows add a dimensional layer to the building which has accumulated features over decades. These incisions are organized by and reflect the contemporary programmatic arrangement within.