Scala Sante

Founded in 1907 and today run by the Capuchins (whose founder is St. Francis of Assisi, patron saint of ecology), the Hermitage of St. Anthony describes itself as a natural sanctuary, a spiritual oasis. The site's vision for 2020 was to become a mecca at the heart of a natural sanctuary whose beauty inspires human and spiritual experiences for all visitors and pilgrims.

La Scala Santa, built in 1926, stands alongside a chapel and calvary listed in the Répertoire du patrimoine culturel du Québec. Built by the Capuchin fathers of Lac-Bouchette, this small aedicula simply covers a flight of steps: it replicates the one in the Praetorium of Jerusalem, which Christ climbed as he was condemned by Pontius Pilate. The challenge was to reuse this stone building and its tiered configuration to convert it into a small, ultra-modern multimedia auditorium. The numerous interventions required to fit out the spaces for this new use were carefully integrated to respect the architecture of the original building. On the outside, small contemporary extensions were carefully grafted onto the building to provide a stage and reception area. Inside, with the exception of the central staircase, everything was redesigned to integrate the solid-wood bleachers, as well as the numerous projection, sound and lighting systems.

La Scala Santa has become a state-of-the-art immersive space, a technological and architectural work of art that reflects the Hermitage's openness to the future by building on its past. The project was conceived and realized thanks to the work and close collaboration of the MATIÈRS, ABCP architecture, LMG engineers, Altanergy group and TB4 construction teams.