Cadence is a dance and wellness hub located in Dundrum Business Park, Dublin, within a repurposed 1960s office building. The project explores how existing commercial structures can be adapted to support movement, wellbeing, and community. The former John Paul building has undergone multiple changes over time, including extensions and structural alterations, resulting in a layered internal layout while retaining its original concrete framework. This condition informed the design approach, creating an opportunity to reorganise the interior while working within the existing building envelope.

The building has been reconfigured to include dance studios, yoga spaces, wellness facilities, a juice bar, and quiet retreat areas. The design is guided by movement, rhythm, and transition, drawing inspiration from the flow of dance and the layered qualities of the silver birch tree. A central courtyard, anchored by a silver birch, acts as the heart of the building, bringing natural light deep into the interior while strengthening orientation and visual connection across levels.

Circulation moves users gradually from energetic, social spaces to quieter, restorative environments. Changes in materiality, lighting, and scale help define these zones without creating rigid separation. Visual links to the courtyard remain throughout, reinforcing continuity and a sense of calm.

Cadence is designed primarily for dancers and yoga practitioners but also welcomes the wider community, encouraging engagement with movement, reflection, and wellbeing. Responding to the pace of contemporary city life, the project creates a place for users to pause, reset, and reconnect. Through adaptive reuse, layered spatial sequencing, and a focus on sensory experience, the design transforms an underused office building into a welcoming environment that supports both activity and restoration.