Massey Hall

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Massey Hall, Main Entrance as seen from across Shuter Street, December 2005.

Massey Hall, as seen from Yonge St.

Massey Hall, located at 178 Victoria Street, downtown Toronto, was built in 1894 by architect Sidney Badgley and financed by Hart Massey of Massey-Harris (later Massey Ferguson, then Varity Corporation). In 1933, the Massey Foundation undertook the further renovations to the hall. It is currently used for a variety of events and is operated by the same corporation as Roy Thomson Hall. The concert hall's debut concert was on June 14, 1894.

Massey Hall was the site of the legendary Charlie Parker-Dizzy Gillespie concert recorded as Jazz at Massey Hall in May 1953. Accompanying Gillespie and Parker in this acoustically sound hall were Bud Powell, Max Roach, and Charles Mingus.

Many famous figures have stood on the broad stage of this stately hall, including Winston Churchill, Enrico Caruso, Luciano Pavarotti, Sir Edward Elgar, Toscanini, George Gershwin, Oscar Peterson, Glenn Gould, the Dalai Lama, Maria Callas, and many more. The hall has also hosted more contemporary entertainers and public figures, including Hawksley Workman, Our Lady Peace, Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Gordon Lightfoot, Rush, the Smashing Pumpkins, James Brown, Aerosmith, Eric Clapton and Cream, Marilyn Manson, Alice Cooper, Diana Krall, Brian Wilson, Elvis Costello, U2, Barenaked Ladies, The Whitlams, Sigur Rós, Alanis Morissette, comedians Margaret Cho, Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Rock, Jon Stewart, David Gilmour, and many, many more.

Many important people have taken in performances at the Hall since its inauguration. King George V and his wife Queen Mary, Canadian Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier have all visited.

The theatre seats up to 2,752 patrons, down from 3,500 after extensive renovations in the 1940s.

Toronto City Council designated Massey Hall under the Ontario Heritage Act in 1975.

In 1994, to commemorate the Hall's 100th anniversary, the basement was completely refurbished to include Centuries, a fully-stocked bar. Prior to this addition, alcohol was not permitted in the hall. The decor of Centuries includes hundreds of photos of artists who have performed there over the years (largely collecting portraits of popular music stars since the eighties) including many autographs. Centuries has a capacity of 220 people, and often hosts CD release parties and post-show parties for the visiting artists. Roughly five years after Centuries was created, an additional bar in the balcony lounge was added.

At some point in its renovation history, three of the windows at the front of the venue were converted into doors, and a pair of Fire escape staircases were installed along the front face of the building. The doors at the front of the venue were painted red (from their earlier brown-gold colour), a large neon lit sign was hung about the main entrance, and notice boards listing upcoming acts were revamped on either side of those doors.