In a blow to Toronto’s dance community, Harbourfront Centre has announced that they will not be renewing the lease on Fleck Dance Theatre. The Theatre will close as of March 31, 2025.
It’s the only theatre that was built expressly for dance in the city, and some companies, such as ProArteDanza, use Fleck as their primary venue, leaving their future seasons on uncertain ground.
“This is devastating news for the dance community,” Amy Hampton, executive director of service organization Dance Ontario, told The Toronto Star.
Harbourfront Centre had managed the Theatre under a lease since 1983, an agreement which would have renewed in 2025.
The stage at Fleck Dance Theatre saw an impressive range of performances from local, national, and international companies. Harbourfront Centre will continue to honour commitments already made to dance companies and others up to the closure date of March 31.
The organization cites, “The economic realities at Harbourfront Centre, combined with those facing the arts and culture sector have led the organization to make this difficult decision.”
“We did not come to this decision easily, like many, we are facing challenging financial circumstances. We are grateful for the understanding our dance partners have shown us over the past few days,” said Cathy Loblaw, CEO of Harbourfront Centre in a statement. “Dance will always have a home and priority at Harbourfront Centre, and we will continue to program and present dance at Harbourfront Centre Theatre, at our Studio Theatre and during the summer months on our concert stage.”
Crunching the Numbers
Harbourfront Centre shares some of the numbers that led to the decision:
- Annual operating expenses for Fleck Dance Theatre at over $400,000 at a time when the organization is facing funding challenges overall;
- 292 bookable days annually, of which only 90 days were actually booked in the past year;
- A look at the average days booked per year reveals only a 40% occupancy over the last decade (2014 through 2024), including both rentals and Harbourfront Centre programs.
It’s clear the revenue stream just didn’t cover the expenses.
As for Dr. James D. Fleck, the Theatre’s namesake and champion, he and other seat donors of Fleck Theatre will be recognized at one of Harbourfront Centre’s other theatres.
Harbourfront Centre: Programming
Dance will still form a portion of the programming at Harbourfront Centre, along with theatre, visual arts, and music. While the Fleck Theatre was designed to be ideal for performance, the historic Harbourfront Centre Theatre also features a dance-friendly sprung floor.
DJ Skate nights are making a comeback for winter 2024/25, along with February’s annual KUUMBA celebrations, (one of which is a contemporary dance performance), among other ongoing events.
Summer Music in the Garden will be back, and plans still hold for the summertime series of partner festivals that bring crowds to the waterfront, including Halal Fest, National Indigenous Peoples Day, Unity Fest, Fun Philippines, Habari Africa, Taiwanfest, Cinco Fest, and Tirgan.
- Find Harbourfront Centre programming and other details [HERE].
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Anya Wassenberg is a Toronto City Editor at Ludwig Van. She is an experienced freelance writer, blogger and writing instructor.
