The Architect’s Newspaper features KPMB’s revitalization of Massey Hall

November 19, 2025

KPMB’s multi-year revitalization and expansion of Massey Hall, now part of the Allied Music Centre, is featured in The Architect’s Newspaper.  

“On the corner of Shuter and Victoria Streets in Toronto, the red-brick facade of Massey Hall has the dignity of its 19th-century origins, but inside the air hums with new electricity,” writes Ilana Amselem. 

The multi-phase project first entailed a renovation of the historic hall followed by a seven-storey addition housing new performance venues and support spaces. A series of suspended glass walkways link old and new.    

Together, these updates ready Massey Hall for another century as a cornerstone of Toronto’s cultural life. Key project goals included introducing new infrastructure to nurture emerging talent and supporting a greater range and volume of annual performances.  

Clad in a black bent metal profile that resembles a stage curtain, the new addition features spaces dedicated to artist development and educational programming, including a recording studio. Two new theatres, fitted with flexible 500- and 100-seat configurations respectively, are designed to host community events and performers less established than those selling out the hall next door.  

The seven-storey addition also supports the operations of the historic Massey Hall with new bars, dressing rooms, a green room, and a purpose-built loading dock. For the first time, instruments and equipment no longer have to pass through Massey Hall’s front door. The impact is significant: freeing the front door allows the venue to host more performances annually.  

“It’s still the same Massey Hall we know and love, now updated so that it can continue to be enjoyed for generations to come,” says KPMB founding partner Marianne McKenna. 

Read more about the Allied Music Centre at The Architect’s Newspaper. 

(Lead image: Tom Arban)