Harbourfront Centre
 Aerial shot of Harbourfront Centre site | |
  Location within Toronto | |
| Established | January 1, 1991 |
|---|---|
| Location | 235 Queens Quay West, Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Coordinates | 43°38′20″N 79°22′55″W / 43.638834°N 79.3818785°WCoordinates: 43°38′20″N 79°22′55″W / 43.638834°N 79.3818785°W |
| Visitors | 12 million/year |
| Director | Marah Braye |
| Public transit access | 509 Exhibition or 510 Spadina streetcar from Union Station |
| Website |
www |
Harbourfront Centre is a key cultural organization on the waterfront of Toronto, Ontario's, situated at 235 Queen's Quay West. Established as a crown corporation in 1972 by the federal government to create a waterfront park, it became a non-profit organization in 1991. Funding comes from corporate sponsors, government grants, individual donors and entrepreneurial activities. Harbourfront Centre has a seating capacity of 2,000.
Harbourfront Centre works with over 450 community organizations, and hosts more than 4,000 events a year in many disciplines such as theatre, dance, literature, music, film, visual arts and craft.[1]
History
The federal government faced mounting criticism from the City of Toronto due to the amount of money being spent for Montreal on both Expo 67 and the 1976 Summer Olympics. Hence, the city decided that it would build Harbourfront Centre and the province would build nearby Ontario Place in order to revitalize Toronto's industrial harbour and increase tourism to the city with help from the federal government. As a result, The federal government committed to buying 100 hectares of land to be appropriated for public use. In 1972 "Harbourfront Corporation" was established as a federal Crown Corporation.
Harbourfront Centre was formed on January 1, 1991 as a non-profit charitable organization with a mandate to organize and present public events and to operate a 10-acre (40,000 m2) site encompassing York Quay and John Quay (south of Queens Quay West).
In 1982, Queen's Quay Terminal was remodelled by Zeidler Partnership Architects (the same firm that designed the Toronto Eaton Centre). The project transformed the industrial space into a mixed-use building that included shops, restaurants, offices, and exclusive residential condos (it once was the home for Premier Mike Harris).
Since its inception, Harbourfront Centre has been introducing Toronto audiences to artists and art forms that would not normally be seen in commercial venues.
Harbourfront Centre is patrolled by its own in-house security team, which works closely with police to ensure the property to protected.
Programming
Harbourfront Centre runs year-round programming with a combination of indoor and outdoor events. In the winter months more emphasis is put on theatre shows.
Cultural programming
Main events:
| Title | Date | Disciplines |
|---|---|---|
| Authors at Harbourfront Centre | September to June | Literary |
| International Festival of Authors | October | Literary |
| NextSteps | September to June | Dance |
| Summer Festivals | May to October | Multidisciplinary - Free multicultural festival series |
| World Stage | February to May | Theatre, dance, multidisciplinary performance |
Educational programming
Main events:
| Title | Date | Age group | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| School Visits | October to May | Grades K-12 | Elementary and secondary programmes |
| Camps | March and July–August | Ages 3–17 | March Break and summer camps |
Venues
- Harbourfront Centre Theatre (formerly known as the Enwave Theatre) — 420-seat theatre
- Fleck Dance Theatre
- The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery
- Visual Arts galleries; exhibition space
- Harbourfront Stage — outdoor concert venue (formerly Westjet Stage)
- Natrel Rink — outdoor skating rink
- Lakeview Market
- World Café
- Toronto Music Garden — designed by Yo Yo Ma and Julie Moir Messervy
- Studio Theatre
- Brigantine Room
- Marilyn Brewer Community Space
- Lakeside Terrace
- Miss Lou's Room
- Craft & Design — studio for artists creating ceramic, glass, metal and textiles
- Harbourfront Centre Shop
Trivia
- First children's summer day camps at Harbourfront Centre was in 1978.
- Cirque du Soleil performed at Harbourfront Centre in 1985 early in its infancy.
- The first WOMAD festival in Canada was held at Harbourfront Centre in 1988.[2]
- Some of the "big" names who have performed at Harbourfront Centre: Celine Dion, Oscar Peterson, Robert Lepage, STOMP, Julio Iglesias, Spalding Gray, Philip Glass, Ann Murray, k.d. lang, Jim Carrey, Feist, Lillian Allen, Gordon Lightfoot.
- The top portion of the CN Tower was housed at Harbourfront Centre in 1975; schoolchildren were asked to sign it before it was installed.
- In 2001, Harbourfront Centre organized "World Leaders: A Festival of Creative Genius," to pay homage to 14 renowned global cultural leaders. The participating artists included Issey Miyake, Guy Laliberté, Philippe Starck, Frank Gehry, Lily Tomlin, Stephen Sondheim, Bernardo Bertolucci, Robert Rauschenberg, Harold Pinter, Joni Mitchell, Robert Lepage, Peter Gabriel, Quincy Jones and Pina Bausch. Each artist had a dedicated night where they received an award and delivered a talk.
- Since 2004 Harbourfront Centre has hosted the Planet IndigenUS Festival, a multi-day celebration and global exploration of contemporary Indigenous civilizations.
- Governed by a 26-person community based volunteer Board of Directors.
- Assisted by approximately 2,000 volunteers who generously contribute their efforts and time.
See also
- Harbourfront - the neighbourhood surrounding Harbourfront Centre
- Toronto waterfront
- HTO Park
- Amsterdam Bridge, Toronto
- Authors at Harbourfront Centre
- Toronto Maritime Museum