The Fulton Playhouse

The Fulton Playhouse sits beside a community playground and ballpark, surrounded by schools that span early education through high school, including Bethel Elementary, PS3, PS9, and the Brooklyn Waldorf School. This concentration of young children reveals a strong need for family-centered housing rooted in play and learning. The project preserves the site’s historic brick façade, carving into it to form a public indoor courtyard across the first three floors. The playground extends into the building itself, transforming it into a continuation of the outdoor play space. Within the courtyard, squash courts and an indoor playground create year-round opportunities for play and gathering, while the courtyard invites rest and interaction amongst all ages. Community gardens replace the former wall-ball courts, extending the public realm and integrating urban agriculture as a collective learning tool. As a whole, the building becomes a playscape of movement, discovery, and education that unites families, communities, and honors the existing site and architecture.