FirstOntario Concert Hall is a music and performing arts venue in downtown Hamilton,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

, Canada. The venue was originally known as Hamilton Place, and in 1998, became known as the Ronald V. Joyce Centre for the Performing Arts at Hamilton Place after receiving a donation from the Joyce Family Foundation. In 2016 FirstOntario Credit Union made a $2.5 million deal for the naming rights. The venue is the permanent home of the

Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra The Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra (HPO) is a Canadian orchestra based in Hamilton, Ontario. The orchestra gives concerts primarily at the FirstOntario Concert Hall. History The Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra was founded in 1949. Its first c ...

and

Opera Hamilton Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libretti ...

Description

There are 2 theatres located within FirstOntario Concert Hall. The main theatre (known as the ''Great Hall'') features 2 suspended balconies and has a seating capacity of 2,193. The stage is 37.35 m wide, and has an adjustable depth from 11.4 m to 16.2 m. The Great Hall is recognized internationally for its outstanding acoustics. The smaller theatre is known as ''The Studio'' (formerly ''The Studio at Hamilton Place'') and can accommodate up to 350 people. The venue also features rehearsal, break, and dressing rooms, as well as a private courtyard and a large

loading dock A loading dock or loading bay is an area of a building where goods vehicles (usually road or rail) are loaded and unloaded. They are commonly found on commercial and industrial buildings, and warehouses in particular. Loading docks may be exterio ...

that is shared with the Hamilton Convention Centre and the Ellen Fairclough Building. FirstOntario Concert Hall is directly connected to the Hamilton Convention Centre via the theatre's main lobby, and shares a common outdoor plaza and sculpture court with the Convention Centre and the Art Gallery of Hamilton known as Commonwealth Square, located above Summers Lane, and accessible via the theatre's

mezzanine A mezzanine (; or in Italian, a ''mezzanino'') is an intermediate floor in a building which is partly open to the double-height ceilinged floor below, or which does not extend over the whole floorspace of the building, a loft with non-sloped ...

Performances

FirstOntario Concert Hall has hosted musicians and performing artists including

Tony Bennett Anthony Dominick Benedetto (born August 3, 1926), known professionally as Tony Bennett, is an American retired singer of traditional pop standards, big band, show tunes, and jazz. Bennett is also a painter, having created works under his bir ...

Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist. His work explored religion, politics, isolation, depression, sexuality, loss, death, and romantic relationships. He was inducted in ...

, Morrissey, Chris de Burgh,

Sarah McLachlan Sarah Ann McLachlan OC OBC (born January 28, 1968) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. As of 2015, she had sold over 40 million albums worldwide. McLachlan's best-selling album to date is '' Surfacing'', for which she won two Grammy Awards (ou ...

Sharon, Lois & Bram Sharon, Lois & Bram (also known as Sharon, Bram & Friends, Sharon & Bram or Sharon & Randi) are a Canadian children's music group founded in Toronto, Ontario, 1978. The group's original lineup consisted of Sharon (née Trostin) Hampson, Lo ...

Tangerine Dream Tangerine Dream is a German electronic music band founded in 1967 by Edgar Froese. The group has seen many personnel changes over the years, with Froese having been the only constant member until his death in January 2015. The best-known lineu ...

The Proclaimers ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in ...

and

The Tragically Hip The Tragically Hip, often referred to simply as the Hip, were a Canadian rock band formed in Kingston, Ontario in 1984, consisting of vocalist Gord Downie, guitarist Paul Langlois, guitarist Rob Baker (known as Bobby Baker until 1994), bassi ...

. Comedians

Billy Connolly Sir William Connolly (born 24 November 1942) is a Scottish actor, retired comedian, artist, writer, musician, and presenter. He is sometimes known, especially in his homeland, by the Scots nickname the Big Yin ("the Big One"). Known for his ...

Margaret Cho Margaret Moran Cho (born December 5, 1968) is an American comedian, actress, LGBT social activist, and musician. She is known for her stand-up routines, through which she critiques social and political problems, especially regarding race and se ...

and

Norm Macdonald Norman Gene MacdonaldThe capitalization of Norm Macdonald's surname has been inconsistently reported in publications such as ''TV Guide''. Books that discuss him, such as ''Shales'' (2003) and Crawford' (2000), as well as other sources such as ...

have performed at the venue, as well as classic rockers

Heart The heart is a muscular organ found in most animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body, while carrying metabolic waste such as carbon diox ...

. Theatrical runs have included performances of

A Chorus Line ''A Chorus Line'' is a 1975 musical with music by Marvin Hamlisch, lyrics by Edward Kleban, and a book by James Kirkwood Jr. and Nicholas Dante. Set on the bare stage of a Broadway theater, the musical is centered on seventeen Broadway dan ...

, Evita and The Color Purple, in addition to dance-based shows such as Moulin Rouge: The Ballet and

Michael Flatley Michael Ryan Flatley (born July 16, 1958) is an Irish-American dancer. He became known for Irish dance shows ''Riverdance'', '' Lord of the Dance'', ''Feet of Flames'', and '' Celtic Tiger Live''. Flatley's shows have played to more than 60 mil ...

's '' Lord of the Dance''. In 1983 both the live concert video '' Chris de Burgh The Video'' and the stand-up comedy film '' Bill Cosby: Himself'' were recorded at the Hamilton Place Concert Hall.

Images

File:FirstOntarioConcertHall GreatHall1.jpg, The Great Hall at FirstOntario Concert Hall's stage viewed from the first balcony File:FirstOntarioConcerHall GreatHall2.jpg, Great Hall at FirstOntario Concert Hall's Seating viewed from the stage File:FirstOntarioConcertHallBackstage.jpg, Great Hall at FirstOntario Concert Hall's backstage area File:FirstOntarioConcertHall FlySystem.jpg, Great Hall at FirstOntario Concert Hall's

Fly system A fly system, or theatrical rigging system, is a system of rope lines, blocks ( pulleys), counterweights and related devices within a theater that enables a stage crew to fly (hoist) quickly, quietly and safely components such as curtains, li ...

File:Steinway & Sons Square Grand.jpg,

Steinway & Sons Steinway & Sons, also known as Steinway (), is a German-American piano company, founded in 1853 in Manhattan by German piano builder Henry E. Steinway, Heinrich Engelhard Steinweg (later known as Henry E. Steinway). The company's growth led to ...

square grand piano in the Great Hall of FirstOntario Concert Hall File:FirstOntarioConcertHall Atrium.jpg, Lobby and mezzanine located within FirstOntario Concert Hall's atrium. The connection to the Hamilton Convention Centre is located in the lobby, and the exit to Commonwealth Square is located on the mezzanine level File:Canadac.jpg, "Canadac", a

Stelco Stelco Holdings Inc. (known as U.S. Steel Canada from 2007 to 2016) is a Canadian steel company based in Hamilton, Ontario. Stelco was founded in 1910 from the amalgamation of several smaller firms. It continued on for almost 100 years, until i ...

loy sculpture by

Kosso Eloul Kosso Eloul born in Russia, 1920–1995, was an Israeli sculptor. His work displays a combination between the influence of " Canaanite" art and the abstractionism of the Ofakim Hadashim movement. He won the Dizengoff Prize for Sculpture in 19 ...

located at Commonwealth Square

References

External links

* {{Authority control Culture of Hamilton, Ontario Tourist attractions in Hamilton, Ontario Buildings and structures in Hamilton, Ontario Theatres in Ontario 1973 establishments in Ontario Concert halls in Canada Music venues completed in 1973 Theatres completed in 1973

Description

Performances

Images

See also

References

External links