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Lost & Found 

May 1–6, 2012  12pm to 8pm daily

RECEPTION: Wednesday, May 2nd, 6 to 9pm

Beaver Hall Gallery 29 McCaul Street, Toronto

The nine visual artists in the 2012 graduating class at the Art Centre of Central Tech welcome you to their year-end show at Beaver Hall Gallery. 

Starting Line

April 25 - 28, 2013

OPENING RECEPTION: April 25th, 6:30pm to 9pm

Beaver Hall Gallery 29 McCaul Street, Toronto

An exhibition of work by the class of 2013 graduates of the Central Technical School Adult Visual Art Program.

Why I Love Randolph Centre for the Arts: An artful conversion

Converted

A while back I wrote a post in regards to churches being converted into condominiums. Today I present another use for churches once they close - a theatre. The Randolph Centre for the Arts occupies the former Bathurst Street Wesleyan Methodist Church, which was built in 1888 in a Gothic style of architecture. The church is famous because the first Prime Minister of Canada, Sir John A. MacDonald, laid the buildings cornerstone. In the ‘20s the church became a United Church. 

A faith testing challenge

The church began seeing a decline in attendance and therefore began renting its space out. In the 1950′s the church was rented out for art performances such as concerts and plays. In 1985 the congregation abandoned the church and it became a permanent theatre. In 2001 the Randolph Academy for the Performing Arts called the building home.

In with the dramatics

There are two theatres on the site. The Randolph Theatre, which was one The Bathurst Theatre, has two levels for seating. The main floor seats up to 263, while the  the balcony has pews which seat up to 255 patrons. The Randolph Theatre has many stunning Gothic features including spiral staircases and stunning stained glass windows.

(Courtesy of Randolph Academy)

The Annex Theatre, the smaller of the two has a rather similar set up as the Ossington Theatre. Mind you this is just from pictures, I have never been to this portion. From what I noticed the most striking feature was these two staircases that converge onto the stage which could make for some pretty dramatic entrances and scenes. It also seats 100 people. 

(Courtesy of Randolph Academy)

Staying true to 1888

The church itself has everything I love: 

Gothic windows with rectangular and circular glass.

A bellow tower, which is the focal point of the whole building. 

A spiral tower which gives a captivating medieval feel.  

What I truly adore is the building is relatively true to its former life. Sure churches turned into condominiums maintain the exterior, but the interiors, even though they retain some features, lose something in the transformation process.  That is why when a building, like the Randolph Centre for the Arts, is able to somewhat preserve the interior it truly makes you feel as though you are still in a church and not just entering a shell.  

Also going to a theatre is like going to mass. Theatre goers have a theatre ritual and even though it is not every week at a certain times, the church still maintains a part of its former life in that manner.

I've been learning some neat things about Central Tech, where I'm currently a full-time Multimedia Technician. Here are our key messages that we want the public to know:

On a yearly basis, Central Tech:

Students impact the local economy by more than $24 million.

Empowers more than 20,000 students through full-time, TDT, BIS, & ACD

Has a placement rating of more than 95%

Students earn more than 2,300 college credits

Graduates have an average starting salary of more than $31,000

You can find more information at www.centraltech.edu