Diamond Schmitt Architects
In anticipation of Canada’s 150th anniversary of Confederation in 2017, the NAC is undergoing rejuvenation to establish new transparency and connection with the city.One of Ottawa’s main cultural attractions is getting a major facelift in anticipation of Canada’s 150th anniversary of Confederation. The National Arts Centre will start to undergo renovations this month – six months ahead of a previously discussed starting date.
Rosemary Thompson, the NAC’s director of communications, said this is to ensure the refurbished venue will be ready for its grand unveiling on Canada Day 2017.
“The construction management company is telling us (that) to make the July 1 deadline, we need to start six months earlier than anticipated.”
Thompson said it was important to tie the renovations in with the 150th anniversary because the Elgin Street arts venue was originally built as part of the country’s centennial celebrations almost 50 years ago. She said this was a major selling point that the NAC used to pitch the renovation proposal to the federal government.
Because the NAC is a Crown corporation, the cost of the renovations will come exclusively from federal coffers. The total cost of the project is set at $110.5 million.
Jon Soules, one of the principal architects working on the project, says since its original opening in 1969, there have been minor upgrades, but this will be the first major renovation done to the NAC.
“This is the first time we’ve changed the actual structure of the building,” he says.
The renovations will include adding additional bathrooms, enclosing some of the outdoor terraces and changing the façade to add a lot more glass to replace the old exterior of the building.
This will bring a distinct change to the look of the building, something that people in Ottawa have been demanding for years.
“The façades on Elgin Street and Confederation Square are grey-brown concrete, devoid of the glitz and glitter one associates with live music, dance and drama,” wrote Bruce Levine in the Ottawa Citizen back in 1996.
The changes made to the exterior will open up the building and allow visitors a chance to look out over some of Ottawa’s most famous landmarks, such as Parliament Hill.
“It’s a spectacular view that we really haven’t been able to use before,” says Thompson.
Soules talked about the need to improve the feeling of accessibility to the NAC.
“Everybody that works at the NAC loves the building, but they also think it looks like a bunker from the outside,” he says. “We’re trying to make the building more accessible both from the standpoint of people getting into the building and also making the building more transparent.”
The NAC was originally designed by Fred Lebensold and was influenced by the ‘brutalist’ style, which was popular during that era.
Despite the major renovations taking place, the NAC will stay open.
“The decision to stay open wasn’t an easy one,” CEO Peter Herrndorf said in a statement. “In the end, and after careful consideration, we’ve decided to remain open during the 2015-2016 and 2016-17 artistic seasons.”
Choosing to remain functional during the renovation will come with some challenges, as the construction has already led to the cancelling of many of the matinée shows.
“Earlier performances which are typically student matinées are either being cancelled or moved and that is unfortunate but it’s a cost of getting this done,” said Thompson.
However not all shows will be affected as the construction will only be taking place from midnight to 2 p.m. each day, and therefore the bulk of performances will still be held.
“We are protecting the evening shows,” said Thompson. “The show will go on at the NAC.”