Edmonton - Arts and Culture

Arts and Culture

Many events are anchored in the downtown Arts District, centred around the recently renovated Churchill Square (named in honour of Sir Winston Churchill). On the south side of the river, the University district and Whyte Avenue contain theatres, concert halls, and various live music venues. Edmonton's current poet laureate is Ann Marie Swell.

• The Francis Winspear Centre for Music was opened in 1997 after years of planning and fundraising. Described as one of the most acoustically perfect concert halls in Canada, it is home to the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra and hosts a wide variety of shows every year. It seats 1,932 patrons and houses the $3-million Davis Concert Organ, the largest concert organ in Canada. An interesting aspect of the hall's design is its separation into acoustically separate areas that are insulated from each other through acoustical barriers built into the structure. Patrons and artists can see these in the form of double-door "sound locks."
• Across 102 Avenue is the Citadel Theatre, named after The Salvation Army Citadel in which Joe Shoctor first started the Citadel Theatre Company in 1965. It is now one of the largest theatre complexes in Canada, with five halls, each specializing in different kinds of productions. For instance, the Maclab Theatre features a thrust stage surrounded by a U-shaped seating arrangement, while the Shoctor Theatre is a traditional stage setup.
• On the University of Alberta grounds is the 2,534-seat Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium, which recently went through a year of heavy renovations carried out as part of the province's centennial celebrations. Both it and its southern twin in Calgary were constructed in 1955 for the province's golden jubilee and have hosted many concerts, musicals, and ballets. The Edmonton Opera uses the Jubilee as its base of operations. On the front of the building is a quote from Suetonius' Life of Augustus: "He found a city built of brick—left it built of marble."
• Old Strathcona is home to the Theatre District, which holds the Transalta Arts Barns (headquarters of the Edmonton International Fringe Festival), The Walterdale Playhouse, Catalyst Theatre, and the Varscona Theatre (base of operations for several theatre companies, including Teatro la Quindicina, Shadow Theatre, Rapid Fire Theatre, Die-Nasty, and Oh Susanna!). Edmonton was named cultural capital of Canada in 2007.
• Ukrainian Dnipro Ensemble of Edmonton, organized in 1953, preserves the Ukrainian musical culture within the parameters of the Canadian multicultural identity.
• Edmonton is home to world famous Ukrainian Dance ensembles such as the Cheremosh Ukrainian Dance Company and Shumka.
• In 1917 the hadrosaur Edmontosaurus was named after the Edmonton Formation in Central Alberta, Edmontosaurus's name means "reptile from Edmonton".