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Place des Arts

Coordinates:45°30′29″N73°34′01″W/ 45.508°N 73.567°W/45.508; -73.567
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the performing arts centre in Montreal. For the teaching arts centre in British Columbia, seePlace des Arts (Coquitlam).For the arts centre in Greater Sudbury, seePlace des Arts (Sudbury).For the Montreal Metro station, seePlace-des-Arts (Montreal Metro).
Place des Arts
Place des Arts de Montréal esplanade
Map
Location260,boulevard de Maisonneuve Ouest
Montreal,Quebec
H2X 1Y9
Coordinates45°30′29″N73°34′01″W/ 45.508°N 73.567°W/45.508; -73.567
Created1963(1963)
StatusOpen all year
Public transit accessatPlace-des-Arts station
Place-des-Arts Terminus
View of the Place des Arts esplanade. The Musée d'art contemporain is on the left; behind it is the Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, with the Théâtre Maisonneuve on the right.
Place des Arts cultural complex entrance, view from Sainte-Catherine Street.

Place des Artsis a majorperforming arts centreinMontreal,Quebec,Canada, and the largest cultural and artistic complex in Canada.[1]

Home to theMontreal Symphony Orchestra,theOrchestre Métropolitain,Les Grands Ballets Canadiens,and theOpéra de Montréal,the complex is situated betweenSaint Catherineandde Maisonneuvestreets, andSaint-Urbainand Jeanne-Mance streets, in an area now known as theQuartier des spectaclesin the borough ofVille-Marie.

Place des Arts was an initiative of MayorJean Drapeau,a noted lover of opera, as part of a project to expand the downtown core eastward from the concentration of business and financial activity in the centre-west part of downtown. The Corporation George-Étienne-Cartier, named in honour ofGeorge-Étienne Cartier,aFather of Confederationand opera lover, was set up to build it, and the first part of the complex (including the Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier) was inaugurated on September 21, 1963. The other theatres were added progressively.

Additions[edit]

TheMusée d'art contemporain de Montréalwas added to the complex on May 28, 1992, and in 2009, construction began on a new concert hall for theMontreal Symphony Orchestra.The 1,900-seat facility opened in 2011 at the cost ofC$105 million.

In 2015, the Quebec government announced it would spend $34.2 million to remodel the esplanade into a large outdoor stage that will host big events year round. Work is to be complete in 2018.[2]

Theatres[edit]

The Place des Arts includes six halls of various sizes:

This wealth of theatres permits the staging ofopera,symphony,balletand otherdance,chamber music,choral music,theatre,filmpresentation, and various other presentations and ceremonies. In addition to the theatres, the complex hosts theMusée d'art contemporain de Montréal,a museum ofcontemporary art,as well as rehearsal halls, shops, services, and a large, popular esplanade decorated with original fountains and water cascades.

All the facilities are connected by an underground mall, also linked toPlace-des-ArtsMetrostation andUniversité du Québec à Montréal(UQAM) to the north and theComplexe Desjardinsto the south as part of theUnderground City.

The site is decorated with several works ofpublic artincludingL'artiste est celui qui fait voir l'autre côté des chosesbyClaude Bettinger,Comme si le temps… de la ruebyPierre Granche,andLa voie lactéebyGeneviève Cadieux.A bust of conductorWilfrid Pelletierby sculptorArto Tchakmaktchianis on permanent display in the entrance hall.

In the summer, the esplanade and adjacent street comprise one of the important outdoor sites of theFestival International de Jazz de Montréal.

Works[edit]

Gallery[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^Haskell, Richard."Place des Arts".The Canadian Encyclopedia(in French).Retrieved2018-04-17.
  2. ^McCallum, Lauren (March 31, 2015)."Place des Arts in Montreal to get $34.2M makeover".CBC News.RetrievedSeptember 28,2017.

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related toPlace des Arts.
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