The CAA Theatre, formerly the Panasonic Theatre, is a theatre located at 651 Yonge Street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is owned and operated by Mirvish Productions. On December 1, 2017, Mirvish Productions announced a marketing partnership with CAA South Central Ontario, which included renaming the venue that was known as the Panasonic Theatre.[1]
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| Former names | Panasonic Theatre |
|---|---|
| Address | 651 Yonge Street Toronto, Ontario Canada |
| Owner | Mirvish Productions |
| Capacity | 700 |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 1911 |
| Rebuilt | 2005 |
| Website | |
| mirvish.com/caa-theatre | |
Early years
The original building was built in 1911 as a private residence, then converted to a movie theatre in 1919 and known as The Victory.[2][3] It was renamed The Embassy in 1934 and a number of other names over the next sixty years:
- The Astor
- The Showcase
- The Festival
In the 1970s, the Festival Theatre was a key venue of the Toronto International Film Festival (then known as the Festival of Festivals).[3]
Rebirth
In 1993, the building was renovated for live theatre productions and renamed The New Yorker Theatre.[3]
Second rebirth
In 2004 and 2005, most of the building was demolished, with only the facade preserved. The old building was replaced by a new state-of-the-art live theatre and concert venue, and it was known as The Panasonic Theatre. In 2005, the building was acquired by Live Nation and in 2008 by Mirvish Productions.
A list of theatrical productions at the Panasonic:
See also
With the complete rebuilding of the Panasonic, Toronto is left with a handful of early 20th-century theatres (both movie and live):
- Bloor Cinema, 1940
- Ed Mirvish Theatre, 1920
- Elgin and Winter Garden Theatres, 1913
- Revue Cinema, 1911–1912
- Royal Alexandra Theatre, 1907
A list of lost or rebuilt theatres:
- Standard Theatre (Toronto), opened in 1921 and operated as a theatre until the 1990s; now a retail store
- University Theatre (Toronto), built in 1949 and like the Panasonic only the facade was preserved; it is now a retail store
- Uptown Theatre (Toronto), built in 1920 and demolished in 2003
References
- ^ "New partnership between CAA and Mirvish Productions". www.newswire.ca. Retrieved 2017-12-27.
- ^ Doug Taylor (2016). Toronto's Local Movie Theatres of Yesteryear: Brought Back to Thrill You Again. Dundurn Press. pp. 36–37. ISBN 9781459733428.
- ^ a b c The CAA Theatre