Category: News

Future Lands 2017

Posted on by Kasandra Lippens

On June 21st the future landed at The Great Hall. In conjunction with Porsche, the NXNE Music Festival presented Future Land, a cutting edge series of panel discussions and workshops covering a multitude of pressing topics.

The conference addressed a wide spectrum of issues in the music, digital, gaming, and interactive worlds and gave industry experts and festival participants a chance to dive deep into the future of culture and technology.

The hot topics were paired with cool cocktails to keep the conversations flowing all day during this one-of-a-kind forum.

 

 

 

Luminato x Jean Michel Blais & CFCF

Posted on by Kasandra Lippens

 

Luminato landed in Longboat Hall on June 24th with a tour de force performance by two of Montreal’s finest musical talents.

Presented in conjunction with Red Bull Music Academy, the evening showcased virtuoso neo-classical pianist Jean-Michel Blais and eclectic electro producer Mike Silver (aka CFCF), who combined forces to present Cascades. This 5 song, 30 minute musical journey displayed each artist’s unique approach to their craft, intertwining to produce a one of a kind aural experience.

 

Kijiji – Cannes-Tenders 2017

Posted on by Kasandra Lippens

On June 8th, Strategy and Kijiji teamed up and took over Longboat Hall for an evening honouring the Cannes-Tenders. The event showcased the cream of crop from Toronto’s incredibly strong marketing sector and their Cannes-worthy campaigns from the last year.

 

The 20 featured campaigns, curated by strategy, were on display in gallery-style installations across both levels of Longboat Hall, delighting attendees with their provocative and intriguing concepts.

 

Creative overdrive was the theme of the night, according to Kijiji’s GM, Matt McKenzie, “It was a night of exceptional creativity – from the atmosphere, to the food and drink, to the individuals and the Cannes-worthy campaigns being honoured.”

 

And he wasn’t exaggerating. Longboat Hall was dramatically decked out for the occasion, and the best in class event featured best in class eats with Rodney’s, purveyors of Toronto’s finest mollusks, supplying the fresh-shucked oysters and The Food Dudes outdoing themselves once again with an eclectic array of mouthwatering treats.

 

It was night to shine for all in attendance, and McKenzie hinted it won’t be the last time – “We’re already excited to host Cannes-Tenders again and look forward to the show-stopping campaigns that are sure to emerge in the coming year.”

 

It’s a date, Matt. See you in a year!

EVENTS: UNMASKED 2017 – CAMH FOUNDATION’S SIGNATURE BIENNIAL FUNDRAISING EVENT

Posted on by Kasandra Lippens

This past week we had the great privilege of hosting a truly worthwhile event –UnMasked 2017 – CAMH Foundation’s signature biennial fundraiser.

Mental health and the treatment of mental illness affects us all, and CAMH continues to lead the way on this issue. The UnMasked theme encourages openness, in an attempt to shed the stigma that surrounds conversations about mental health.

It was in this spirit that 600 attendees came together at The Great Hall and were treated to an extraordinary evening of dialogue, entertainment, fashion, and fundraising.

UnMasked 2017 was a feast for the senses that included keynote speakers and live music in the Main Hall, otherworldly fashion designs by Mad Couture modeled throughout the building, and sumptuous edibles from Treeline Catering, while the Conversation Room hosted a bourbon tasting curated by the experts from Bar Chef on the west side and a black and white portrait studio run by The Collective You on the east.

Of course, the reason we were all here was to support our good friends and neighbours CAMH, and this year’s extraordinary fundraising effort were highlighted by the raffle draw for Ron Bolt’s magnificent painting, “Surf Solar”.

We want to thank both CAMH and Fluid Events for allowing us to host the evening, and to thank everyone who came out and, through their great generosity, made UnMasked 2017 such a tremendous success!

Events: The Collections™ RE\SET Fashion at The Great Hall, February 6 & 7, 2017

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The Great Hall is proud to serve as the host venue and a production partner when THE COLLECTIONS™ presents RE\SET Fashion, in collaboration with Robin Kay, on February 6 and 7, 2017. Held over two nights, RE\SET will feature a curated group of Canadian designers showcasing influential fashion throughout our recently restored historic Toronto venue at 1087 Queen St. W.

RE/SET is designed around three main objectives: to allow designer to connect with buyers, media and consumers; to re-form the traditional designer presentation model in a fresh direction, and to rethink Canada’s fashion identity while inspiring awareness.

Notable RE\SET designers include: Vogue’s Designer to Watch and DHL Exported winner, Sid Neigum; Forbes’ 2017 Art and Style ‘30 Under 30’ design duo, Beaufille; Toronto-based duo, Markoo; contemporary womenswear Hilary MacMillan; signature avant-garde brand, Pedram Karimi; satirical contemporary street brand WRKDEPT, and menswear lines Thomas Bálint and Klaxon Howl. RE\SET will also present a two-day showroom featuring ready-to-wear designers Namesake, Tara Rivas for TMR, S.P. Badu, Triarchy, accessory designers Dean Davidson, Krane, Cuchara, Dolorous, Uncuffed Leather, and shoes by Zvelle.

“The Great Hall has long been committed to supporting, nurturing and showcasing world-class artistic talent,” said Steve Metlitski, president of Triangle Development and owner of The Great Hall.

“Canada’s fashion industry is an integral part of our country’s arts and culture, and we are thrilled to provide the backdrop for Canada’s top design talent to showcase their collections this season.” READ FULL RE\SET PRESS RELEASE

Join the RE\SET Fashion event conversation by following or tagging @resetFSN and #resetFSN and via our The Great Hall Instagram, Twitter and Facebook feeds.

If you are interested in a production site or booking one of our four restored heritage venues, simply email bookings@thegreathall.ca.
 

Weddings: Corynn Fowler Photography Styled Shoot, Conversation Room

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At The Great Hall, we are fortunate to host both many weddings and celebrations, and, also, a growing number of  engagement, wedding and wedding fashion and industry photo shoots. Recently, we welcomed Corynn Fowler Photography, a wedding, engagement and lifestyle photographer based in Toronto and Collingwood, to our Conversation Room,  for a styled shoot with her friend Amy from Bridal Hair Collective.

Here’s some of what Corynn had to say about that shoot day:
“We were working at The Great Hall, one of Toronto’s stunning new venues this season.  It has just been renovated and re-opened as a beautiful, classic old Queen St. West building, with an elegant and minimalist vibe inside the airy white rooms.  It has tall windows and even taller ceilings, as well as a spectacular old stage theater complete with balconies and velvet drapes that filter in the most dreamy dramatic light.

I had no idea what a treat I was about to experience my first time shooting here, and immediately hopped-to scheduling more time to shoot at this amazing venue with the most inspiring light and a fabulous team of talented Toronto vendors.  This is the first part of 3 shoots from our work at The Great Hall, and I already can’t wait to share the rest with you!” SEE FULL STORY

Credits:
Photography:katebackdrop
Hair: NewHairLine
Makeup: HairBro
Dress:  SAJA from Lunss.com
Venue: The Great Hall, Conversation Room
Florals: Leaf and Bloom
Jewellery: Lilliane’s Fine Jewellery
Model: Rachel from Carolyn’s Talent

Interested in The Great Hall as a wedding or social event venue? For more information or to book a site visit, please email weddings@thegreathall.ca including your preferred wedding dates, approximate number of guests and any other key questions or requirements.

If you are looking at reserving one of our four restored heritage venues for a wedding or engagement photo shoot, trunk show or other professional booking, direct your request to bookings@thegreathall.ca. We look forward to collaborating with you to find your ideal event space.

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Events: The Great Hall Hosts Nike Air Jordan XI (11) “Space Jam” Launch

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Just in time for the 2016 holiday gift season, The Great Hall hosted the December release party for the latest remastered version of the Nike Air Jordan XI (11) “Space Jam.”

Designed to mark the 20th anniversary of the Space Jam movie opening, this iconic “Monstars Mash” shoe updates the classic originally worn by Michael Jordan in the film, and later on court. Similar to what Jordan originally wore during his 1995 NBA Playoffs return, with its traditional all-black mesh and high cut black patent leather upper, unique new shoe details include a stitched ’45’ on the back heel, and the Concord Jumpman on both the upper back of the shoe and the tongue tab.

Décor for the Nike Space Jam event in The Great Hall’s Main Hall also highlighted elements from the special edition Looney Tunes and Bugs Bunny themed box, with a graphic of Bugs Bunny’s and The Monstar’s arms wrapping around each other to create the number ’23.’ Graphic banners were hung all along Main Hall’s U-shaped balcony to celebrate the movie tie-ins.

Other interactive areas spread out across the 10,00 sq. ft. venue included a lounge section with video array, a basketball hoop, and, of course, a shoe display case. A large scale screen filled the Main Hall stage and colour-themed lighting made full use of The Great Hall’s all-new Adamson and Westbury A/V system.

Outside, more Nike Space Jam graphics wrapped the entire lower floor of this corner-situated heritage building, creating an eye-catching exterior arrival experience for the event and generating  plenty of interest from passing Queen St. W traffic.

This Nike corporate event for street style stars, retail partners and Toronto tastemakers was a score from start to finish.
For more event back story, watch DEFY, a 90-second Nike Space Jam video spot, here.

If you’d like to connect with us about booking your own product launch or shoot in one of The Great Hall’s four restored 1889 venues, simply email  bookings@thegreathall.ca with your event details and preferred dates.

Press: Red Bull, River Tiber and Charlotte Day Wilson in Concert

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Red Bull Music recaps the Toronto artists’ sold-out hometown show at The Great Hall, from sound check to conclusion.

“For River Tiber and Charlotte Day Wilson, it was time for something big. Both just came off the road – River Tiber touring overseas, Charlotte Day Wilson stateside with Local Natives – and both were overdue on a hometown headlining show. Riding a similar tide of critical and popular acclaim from their most recent releases, it was time for Toronto’s next-in-line to solidify their mark on the city’s landscape with a statement. For the artists, a co-headlining show was just that statement.

The date: December 3. The location: The Great Hall. The atmosphere: unparalleled.

Click here for an intimate take on the evening through resident photographer Devon Little’s lens. If you’re in Toronto, check out Little’s collaborative show with photographer Keavan Yazdani featuring over 250 photos from the last 12 months in the life of River Tiber and Charlotte Day Wilson. The show runs from December 6 through December 10 at DAIS.” VIEW FULL ALBUM

Press: Lithium Magazine, CRX — The Great Hall Toronto

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“CRX is the less obvious (but in my opinion, far superior) side project that has spun out of New York five-piece garage rockers The Strokes. Formed by guitarist Nick Valensi, the band features Ralph Alexander of The Dose, Richie Follin of Guards, along with Darian Zahedi and Jon Safley of The Reflections. Unlike the solo albums from Julian Casablancas and Albert Hammond, Jr. (which are decent, but ultimately reside in the nether regions of my basement music horde – unplayed), CRX is a 10 song, 30-minute opus that hits the listener like a bucket of cold water in the face. In the weeks since it’s release, I’ve played it way more than everything by Casablancas and Hammond, Jr. combined.

This evening’s Toronto performance was very much like the recently released CRX debut album, entitled New Skin; It was rife with wonderful uptempo buzz-saw guitar riffs, boasted an excellent array of original songs, ended too soon and ultimately left everyone wanting more. Not a bad way to deliver an album, and not a bad way to end a show, really.

Cast amidst some muted lighting (hardly any front lights and green, blue, red and yellow back flood lighting), The five members of CRX played all but one of the songs on their new album out of sequence, stopping briefly between songs to chat a bit with the audience. Nick commented on the venue, how happy he was to be back in Canada, touched on the US Presidential Election results, and joked a bit about their tour-mates, Streets of Laredo and The Gloomies.

Streets of Laredo (New York by way of New Zealand) and The Gloomies (California) both offered up quality sets this evening. Streets of Laredo, an uptempo folk band, heavy on the percussion, put on a cool 30 minute set of music. The band are on our very own Dine Alone Records, and were quite entertaining to watch and hear. The Gloomies took the stage at 8pm all decked out in white pants and shirts and played a half hour of fresh indie-pop, rife with some cool guitar riffs and a vibe that can only come from the hot southern California locale.

This was an up-close-and-personal evening featuring three cool bands in a lovely venue for not a lot of money! A great evening of music – I’m feeling a post-concert glow today that only comes from a winning evening of live music.” By Mike Bax SET LIST & SHOW PHOTOS

Press: NOW Magazine, Canadian Acts Come Home for the Holidays

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From NOW Magazine’s round-up of holiday 2016 shows in Toronto…

“Many musicians call Toronto home, but many others leave to pursue their dreams in Los Angeles, London or Berlin. That’s why statutory holidays are a great time for local music fans: everyone comes home for a festive family dinner, and many of them book a gig or two.

This year, Toronto’s music calendar in the lead-up to Christmas is looking especially busy. Jason Collett is bringing his weekly Basement Revue series to the Dakota Tavern (249 Ossington) for a 10th year. To mark the milestone, Collett once again hosts a star-studded special edition of the part-music, part-literary variety show at the Great Hall (1087 Queen West) on December 22.

…Non-holiday local shows happening in December include rising R&B talents River Tiber and Charlotte Day Wilson’s co-headliner at the Great Hall on December 3, Etobicoke indie rockers Rheostatics’ gig at the Horseshoe (370 Queen West) on December 9, and Holy Fuck’s December 17 date at Lee’s Palace…” READ FULL STORY