The Matador Ballroom is finally reopening in Toronto
The historic, 102-year-old assembly hall on Dovercourt just north of College is finally set to open again after years of false starts and licensing woes.
Get ready to fall back in love with the Matador Ballroom: A dance hall-turned-bowling alley turned after-hours rock and country club graced by the likes of Johnny Cash, Joni Mitchell, Stompin' Tom Connors and Leonard Cohen.
Fun fact: The latter singer's song "Closing Time" is said to have been inspired by this very venue.
In 2018, we celebrate our legacy music venue, which saw the Paul Whiteman Orchestra in 1920, Leonard Cohen's 'Closing Time' in 1992, and @r0bbier0berts0n in 2017, three among many artists to play our 1916 hall!@JohnTory @anabailaoTO @musiccityTO @abbottheleme #torontocandoit pic.twitter.com/H1BjMZQIrI
— Matador Ballroom (@MatadorBallroom) January 5, 2018
The Matador closed down as a club in 2006 and it's been a kind of will-they-won't-they sitch ever since (featuring at least one brush with death in the form of a proposed Green P parking lot.)
When owner Paul McCaughey bought the space in 2012, he toyed with the idea of turning The Matador into a wellness centre. Then, in 2015, it was to become a sophisticated live music and events venue.
Zoning, permit and approval issues halted the process—a lot— but McCaughey now appears to have everything all worked out. Enough, at least, for the building to function as a "place of assembly," "eating establishment" and "custom workshop."
Sneak peek! 👀
— FIVARS (@fivarstories) September 2, 2018
The stage is being set for #FIVARS2018. We are transforming the @matadorballroom w/ incredible experiences. Discover stories from around the 🌎 that you won't see anywhere else.
Get tix before ⏰runs out https://t.co/qd7ztkQXWv #TIFF #FilmFestival #longweekend pic.twitter.com/IFS3PTKz2t
McCaughey told The Star this week that he hopes to have the space up and running as a restaurant, wine bar and event hall by the time his liquor license kicks in on March 15 of 2019.
As for now, it's being rented for private events, the first of which is an "immersive technologies stories festival" called FIVARS, running from September 14 - 16.
The International Festival of Virtual Reality & Augmented Reality Stories kicks off its fourth year with "dozens of high-quality VR and AR experiences" at the historic Matador Ballroom tomorrow.
