Iconic waterfront theatre will be saved, months after Harbourfront Centre announced its closure

The 446-seat venue, fitted with dance-friendly sprung floors and located on the third level of the mixed-use development, first opened in 1983 as the Premiere Dance Theatre, and was widely regarded as the city’s most prestigious space for contemporary dance. 

The Harbourfront Centre had operated the venue for more than four decades, but announced last November it was ending its lease in the spring, citing difficulty filling the space. (Between 2014 and 2024, the theatre sat empty 60 per cent of the time.)

Northam Reality Advisors, which operates the Queen’s Quay Terminal, had said it wanted the space to remain as a performing arts venue, but also suggested it was open to converting the venue if it couldn’t find suitable tenants. 

“I wasn’t familiar with the space because it was primarily a dance theatre,” said Jon Chaters, the founder of the Toronto Stage Company. “But the more I looked into it, the more I realized it could be a really good fit for the shows we want to do.”

Chaters said he plans to present between four to six Toronto Stage Company productions at the venue each year. The theatre, which has been renamed the Terminal Theatre, will also be made available for other performing arts companies to rent, he said.

It will officially reopen Dec. 12 with the Canadian Contemporary Dance Theatre’s annual production of “Wintersong — Dances for a Sacred Season.” Then, in January, the Toronto Stage Company will mount a new revival of Jason Robert Brown’s chamber musical “The Last Five Years,” its first production in the theatre.

For the dance companies that were left without a home after the Harbourfront Centre announced the Fleck’s closure, the venue’s reopening is welcome news.

“I was stunned when I learned of Harbourfront’s announcement last year. I thought we lost our home,” said Deborah Lundmark, the co-founder and artistic director of the Canadian Contemporary Dance Theatre, which has performed in the space since the early ‘80s. “It just feels so good that it has been saved.” 

Chaters previously expressed interest in taking over the venue earlier this spring. At the time, he was looking to raise $400,000 through a grassroots fundraiser, with all donations held at the box office as a credit. 

Though he only ended up raising roughly $20,000, Chaters said the campaign did help him forge connections with other arts companies interested in renting the space. Having them on board, he said, made him feel confident going forward with the lease. 

Chaters, however, has acknowledged that his plans for the venue are ambitious. His company, established in 2017, has a limited track record. Its most significant production to date is a weeklong run of the Tony-winning comedy “God of Carnage” at Mirvish’s CAA Theatre in 2023. Prior to that, the Toronto Stage Company primarily produced shows for various Fringe festivals. 

“But I’m committed to saving this space and making it work for everybody,” Chaters said. “There’s so much potential for it.”