Bristol Arts and Innovation Magnet School

Location
Bristol CT

Institution
Bristol Public Schools

Architect
QA+M Architects

Acoustician
Akustiks

Construction Manager
D’Amato/Downes joint partnership

This classical revival building has been a downtown landmark since it opened as Bristol High School in 1922. It was later repurposed and renamed Memorial Boulevard Middle School, and it served this role until 2013. Well before it was vacated the city began exploring a further repurposing—this time as a cultural hub centered around the historic school’s theater. In 2018, after multiple studies, the Board of Ed and city agreed to create an arts magnet school serving grades 6 through 12, with the theater available to local and visiting artists.

Nextstage helped the project team adapt an early 20th century building to the needs of 21st century performance and pedagogy. The stage was enlarged, equipped with motorized rigging and all LED lighting, and a new loading dock created—to better serve both school and community users. The auditorium has programmable adjustable acoustics, more comfortable seats, and full accessibility. And, as a bonus, the old swimming pool at the lower level has been converted into a flexible studio theater with a pipe grid and state of the art LED lighting system.

Construction Type
New construction
Renovation

Square Feet
124,000

Cost
$54 million

Completion
2022

Users
The Town of Bristol

Spaces
700-seat proscenium theater
100-seat flexible studio theater
Scene shop
Costume shop
Support and instructional spaces

Photography © Red Skies Photography