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Cirque du Soleil moves show to port lands
www.insidetoronto.ca/to/b...?loc=beach
JOANNA LAVOIE
02/01/07 12:06:00
A site in the port lands will be the new home of Cirque du Soleil's blue and yellow big top tent for a limited engagement showcase this August.
For more than 10 years, Cirque du Soleil held shows in a large parking lot at Ontario Place. However, to better serve its customers, the company has now decided to relocate its Toronto run to the port lands.
The production, which encompasses scores of tents including a 2,500-seat big top, trailers and other materials, will be housed near Cherry and Commissioners streets on land owned by the Toronto Economic Development Corporation (TEDCO).
"We've been in touch with (Cirque du Soleil) a lot over the years and bringing people down to the port lands is what TEDCO, the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corporation and the city is interested in doing," said Jeffrey Steiner, TEDCO's president and CEO, noting the organization is a big supporter of Toronto's tourism industry and the arts community.
He also said Cirque du Soleil's environmentally conscious mandate meshes well with TEDCO's goals as an arm's length branch of the City of Toronto, which owns numerous brownfield sites across the city.
Michael Kraljevic, the corporation's vice-president of real estate, said he reviewed TEDCO's list of properties and came up with the suitable location, a mild brownfield site in the port lands.
"The site is 45 to 50 acres. It was the former Imperial Oil site and a portion - maybe two or three acres - will be used for Cirque du Soleil's tents, offices, parking and other staging," he said.
"The land for the tent area is called hard surface and it is clean and usable. TEDCO and Cirque du Soleil will do some clean up of another portion of the site, which will be used for some parking."
Kraljevic also said the new site has several advantages over the Ontario Place.
"It's much better. It's bringing people to the port lands and it's safer for traffic and pedestrians," he said, noting any last-minute paperwork is currently being finalized.
The Toronto premier of the theatre company's new live touring show, titled Cirque 2007, will take place Aug. 9.
The presentation will run anywhere between four to six weeks depending on ticket sales and could be extended a few weeks longer based on high demand.
A recent press release described Cirque 2007, the show's working title, as "an energetic, compelling, funny and slightly provocative show" that "tells of the encounter between characters living in two parallel worlds."
The show will kick off in Montreal in the spring and make a stop in Quebec City before heading to Toronto and will then travel to various cities in the United States.
Tickets will be on sale for Cirque 2007 starting tomorrow at 9 a.m. and will range in price from $45 to $225. Those who purchase tickets online at www.cirquedusoleil.com also have the option of selecting their seats.
Cirque du Soleil, which is headquartered in Montreal, will present 13 different shows around the world in 2007.
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I think this is the site for the proposed arena and ice pads.
www.insidetoronto.ca/to/b...?loc=beach
JOANNA LAVOIE
02/01/07 12:06:00
A site in the port lands will be the new home of Cirque du Soleil's blue and yellow big top tent for a limited engagement showcase this August.
For more than 10 years, Cirque du Soleil held shows in a large parking lot at Ontario Place. However, to better serve its customers, the company has now decided to relocate its Toronto run to the port lands.
The production, which encompasses scores of tents including a 2,500-seat big top, trailers and other materials, will be housed near Cherry and Commissioners streets on land owned by the Toronto Economic Development Corporation (TEDCO).
"We've been in touch with (Cirque du Soleil) a lot over the years and bringing people down to the port lands is what TEDCO, the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corporation and the city is interested in doing," said Jeffrey Steiner, TEDCO's president and CEO, noting the organization is a big supporter of Toronto's tourism industry and the arts community.
He also said Cirque du Soleil's environmentally conscious mandate meshes well with TEDCO's goals as an arm's length branch of the City of Toronto, which owns numerous brownfield sites across the city.
Michael Kraljevic, the corporation's vice-president of real estate, said he reviewed TEDCO's list of properties and came up with the suitable location, a mild brownfield site in the port lands.
"The site is 45 to 50 acres. It was the former Imperial Oil site and a portion - maybe two or three acres - will be used for Cirque du Soleil's tents, offices, parking and other staging," he said.
"The land for the tent area is called hard surface and it is clean and usable. TEDCO and Cirque du Soleil will do some clean up of another portion of the site, which will be used for some parking."
Kraljevic also said the new site has several advantages over the Ontario Place.
"It's much better. It's bringing people to the port lands and it's safer for traffic and pedestrians," he said, noting any last-minute paperwork is currently being finalized.
The Toronto premier of the theatre company's new live touring show, titled Cirque 2007, will take place Aug. 9.
The presentation will run anywhere between four to six weeks depending on ticket sales and could be extended a few weeks longer based on high demand.
A recent press release described Cirque 2007, the show's working title, as "an energetic, compelling, funny and slightly provocative show" that "tells of the encounter between characters living in two parallel worlds."
The show will kick off in Montreal in the spring and make a stop in Quebec City before heading to Toronto and will then travel to various cities in the United States.
Tickets will be on sale for Cirque 2007 starting tomorrow at 9 a.m. and will range in price from $45 to $225. Those who purchase tickets online at www.cirquedusoleil.com also have the option of selecting their seats.
Cirque du Soleil, which is headquartered in Montreal, will present 13 different shows around the world in 2007.
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I think this is the site for the proposed arena and ice pads.