Ed O’Brien makes his solo debut at The Great Hall

Photo by @concertfitzzz on Instagram

Radiohead’s Ed O’Brien graced our Main Hall stage on Friday February 7th for his solo debut. EOB performed tracks from his forthcoming album Earth, and was received with open arms by a sold-out crowd.

Eager Radiohead fans were lining up as early as 7:30AM to secure the best view of the show.

Perched at the front of the line was Lynn Bernardi, a fan from Detroit who met EOB for the first time following the show.

Bernardi wrote, “I’ve been seeing Radiohead shows for 19 years, they are my favorite band of all time and I’ve never had the opportunity to meet anyone from the band, much less have a leisurely chat. Our group has been going to shows together for a few years now and it made it even more meaningful that we all got to meet him together. I just want to say thanks to [The Great Hall team].

 

Eatertainment Top Weddings of 2019 Feature

Congratulations to Camille and Adrian, who secured a coveted spot on Eatertainment’s Top Weddings of 2019 list. Camille and Adrian hosted their summer wedding reception in The Great Hall’s Main Hall, celebrating their special day among their closest friends and family.

Camille and Adrian worked closely with our Director of Production, Mark Foster as well as our Sales and Event Coordinator, Victoria Papp to help make their dream wedding come to life.

“Camille & Adrian were dream clients and an absolute pleasure to work with. They had a wonderful vision for their day and was our privilege to be a part of it! We wish them all the best in the future.”
– Mark Foster, Director of Production.

View Eatertainment’s complete list of Top Weddings of 2019 here.

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Source: Eatertainment’s Top Weddings of 2019

2018 PEN Gala Dinner with special guest, Martin Amis

Brilliant, incisive and savagely funny, award-winning author Martin Amis, named by the Times as one of the greatest British writers since 1945, is frequently controversial but never dull.

On February 20th, 2018 PEN Canada and Martin Amis hosted an intimate evening of conversation ranging from Saul Bellow to Donald Trump: incendiary politics, literature, and the madness of crowds in the Main Hall. This event was hosted in support of PEN Canada and authors worldwide, advocating for the peaceful exercise of their right to freedom of expression.

PEN Canada is one of the 148 centres of PEN International. Founded in 1926, it has a membership of over 1,000 writers and supporters who campaign on behalf of writers around the world who are persecuted, imprisoned and exiled for exercising their right to freedom of expression.

Check out the PEN Canada website for more information here!

 

Choir! Choir! Choir! and Jesus Christ Superstar!

This St. Patrick’s Day 400 patrons lined up outside The Great Hall’s Longboat Hall venue as Nobu Adilman and Daveed Goldman presented the official “Choir! Choir! Choir! Epic! Night” for the NBC Universal production of Jesus Christ Superstar!

Erik Gronwall & Brandon Victor Dixon (Hamilton on Broadway) – singers from the NBC production of JCS flew up from NYC to Toronto to sing “Simon Zealotes” and “Superstar” with all the patrons.

Choir! Choir! Choir! is a Toronto based choir which originally started off on West Queen West practicing in Nobu’s living room, but on March 25th, they had fans travelling in from LA and NYC to sing along to Universal’s broadway Jesus Christ Superstar. It’s come a long and fans truly came together over the years to make it the performance it was. Don’t miss Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert this Easter Sunday, APRIL 1 on NBC.

https://www.facebook.com/choirx3/videos/10156596412956535/

https://www.facebook.com/choirx3/videos/10156583893796535/

 

 

Behaviour’s Nice n’ Naughty Holiday Party

MPOSSIBLE Events blew us away once again with Behaviour‘s Nice n’ Naughty holiday party!

The Bavarian-themed market truly came to life this December at The Great Hall. The Main Hall was decked out with thousands of lights, multiple trees and snow!  As some guests tucked away by the fire, others explored the food stalls where Citizen Catering was offering Bavarian delicacies.

Throughout the evening, guest chose from the naughty or nice specialty cocktail list and grabbed a chair next to Santa for a photo.  Like the cocktails, the music went from nice to naughty as the night progressed and it didn’t take long for everyone to start busting a move, the snowman included.

Another wonderful holiday party to nicely wrap up the 2017 holiday season!

 

Mosaic’s Home Alone Holiday Party

As the decor items began to load in, we all knew this night would go down in The Great Hall‘s history books as one of the most clever holiday party ideas- Home Alone.

Mosaic brought the McCallister’s home to life this December in the Main Hall and Conversation Room and no detail was missed. From Kevin in his tree house placed perfectly on stage to Little Nero’s Pizza boy passing hot slices to guests throughout the night to a few boobie traps strategically placed in the venue, guests were fully immersed in the Home Alone experience.  The whole McCallister family was with us through family portraits and quotes on the walls, to the photo booth taking pictures of guests in a recreated living room.

The Food Dudes passed delicious Kevin McCallister approved bites while guests picked a cocktail from the naughty or nice bar list.  As the eggnog was flowing, so was the dance floor as guests sang along to all the holiday classics performed by the live band and DJ.

Mosaic’s corporate holiday party set the bar high but we can’t wait to see what else is in store for The Great Hall this holiday season!

 

 

Ronald McDonald House Charity Fundraiser

Nothing feels better than giving back. The Great Hall cherishes being able to host fundraising events like this Falls Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) 4th Annual House Party.

The Main Hall was the perfect host for RMHC’s Hollywood inspired evening of dancing and dining.  As the young philanthropists excitedly bid on the silent auction items and took advantage of the movie star inspired photo booth, The Food Dudes were busily passing delicious canapes around the dancefloor.

The Main Hall’s mezzanine was buzzing with VIP guests as they enjoyed the delicious cocktails Station Cold Brew and Viritus Vodka created and The Food Dudes exclusive stations were not to be missed.

The Main Hall’s dance floor was full of energy when the last surprise of the evening arrived.   McDonald’s midnight tasty treats were a perfect way to wrap up the evening and sent everyone home with a smile.

 

The Great Hall at The Heritage Toronto Awards

The Great Hall was proud to receive an honourable mention at The 2017 Heritage Toronto Awards this Monday, October 24, 2017.  The beautiful renovations to our historic Victorian venue containing four unique spaces has not gone unnoticed.  Being recognized as an influential landmark on Queen Street West and within the Toronto Heritage community was an honour.

The winners of the 2017 Heritage Toronto Awards were announced during a ceremony hosted by award-winning journalist Christopher Hume. More than 500 guests attended the awards alongside The Great Hall team.  The best from Toronto’s city-building community attended this flagship networking event to discuss restoration and it’s positive effect on the city. In its 43rd year, the Heritage Toronto Awards recognize extraordinary contributions to the conservation and celebration of Toronto’s heritage.

The Great Hall would like to congratulate all the award winners of the night and thank Heritage Toronto for the recognition.

Starbucks x Nitro Cold Brew

Honestly, we think it’s impossible to have a great day without great coffee. Lucky for us, on July 13th the fine folks from Starbucks came to The Great Hall to share with us the “taste and craft” of their fine coffee with the launch of their new Nitro Cold Brew!

They transformed our Main Hall into a caffeine cathedral where energetic attendees learned about the quality and process involved in Starbucks’ latest essential offering. Oh, and they got to drink A LOT of fantastic coffee.

Our friends The Food Dudes joined in with edible delights to perfectly complement the  bean-based drinks on offer. And to round out the feast for the senses, everyone was able to take advantage of the truly unique “make your own terrarium” and facial exfoliant stations.

It goes without saying that Starbucks did the right thing by teaming with Behaviour and M Possible Events in putting together this amazing day for all involved.

As for us, we’re still buzzing.