Luminato ~ Toronto 2007
Luminato
A festival of literature, music, art, theatre and dance June 1 to 10
May 24, 2007 04:00 AM
Your guide to the inaugural Luminato festival.
ANDREW WALLACE/TORONTO STAR
Pulse, an artwork by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, features 10 sculptures with electronic sensors, a computer and 20 searchlights. The public touches the sensors in the sculptures near The Power Plant art gallery and their pulse is converted into a flashing searchlight beam.
PERFORMERS ROLL INTO TOWN
TheStar.com – News – Concert lights up festival
Spectators on a closed Front St. applaud an opening act at Luminato’s free outdoor concert at BCE Place,
June 1, 2007.
Jun 02, 2007 04:30 AM
Thulasi Srikanthan
STAFF REPORTER
Under the dim lights, hundreds of Torontonians spilled into the streets for Toronto’s first Luminato festival of “arts and creativity.”
On this warm night, gone was the hustle and bustle of the once-gridlocked downtown core. All that was left were the pounding drums, the blazing multicoloured lights and the swaying crowds filling up the sidewalks.
“It’s about time we take advantage of the entertainment that Toronto offers,” said Aubrey Bannister, a long-time Toronto resident who had come out for the event.
Bannister said more events promoting culture like this are needed, adding “it makes Toronto a world-class city.”
The free concert was part of the 10-day festival that will last until June 10.
Last night’s event featured songwriter and singer Chantal Kreviazuk, East Coast singer/songwriter Gordie Sampson (who wrote the hit single “Jesus Takes the Wheel”) and vocalist Molly Johnson.
Other performers included the Muhtadi International Drummers and a “waist drum” group from Northern China.
The festival has been hyped as a “multi-genre celebration” combining classical and contemporary music, theatre and visual arts, dance and film.
More than $10 million was raised to hold the event, which organizers say is intended to be the world’s “newest international festival.”
“Anything that promotes culture is great,” said David Davidar, who works in the cultural industry and decided to spend the night with his wife at Luminato.
“It would be great if Toronto became a cultural destination of sorts.”
It’s a sentiment that Nazim Karmali echoed.
“It’s a good time for the tourists to visit,” he said. “There is so much going on here.”
SPOTLIGHT ON ROM CRYSTAL
TheStar.com – News – Has the cultural renaissance begun?
DAVID COOPER/TORONTO STAR
A gala fundraiser last night attracted the country’s political and artistic elite, raising millions for the ROM as Luminato, a city-wide festival, kicked off its 10-day run.
At last, controversial new Royal Ontario Museum opens its doors to the public for the first time tonight
Jun 02, 2007 04:30 AM
Christopher Hume
Toronto Star
Toronto has never seen anything like it. Suddenly, it seems, entertainment, arts and culture are everywhere around us.
After five years of hard work and considerable controversy, the much-anticipated Michael Lee-Chin Crystal opens tonight at the Royal Ontario Museum. The gala fundraiser took place yesterday, but this evening’s unveiling is the real thing. To mark the occasion, the ROM’s new Bloor St. entrance will become an outdoor concert venue and the museum will be open all night.
If that weren’t enough, Luminato, the city-wide, 10-day, mega-festival that offers something for everyone, also kicked off yesterday.
Are these the signs of a new Toronto, or the exception that proves the rule?
The Star examines this question and others in a comprehensive Entertainment series starting today.
At a time when cities are increasingly defined by their cultural infrastructure, the race to build ever more spectacular museums, galleries, opera houses and performance halls has grown intense. Will Toronto’s Cultural Renaissance enable us to keep pace? Or will it fall short? Find out today through Monday in Entertainment.
And don’t forget the Star’s daily Luminato coverage. This is the monster festival conceived as a means to thrust Toronto onto the international ranks of culture cities. It’s too early to tell if it will work, but there’s a lot riding on the success of this event, not just in terms of the economy and prestige, but also for the civic ego.
If we build it, will they come? If we mount it, will they show up? It may be too soon to say, but finding out has never been more fun.
Elite shine at Crystal fundraiser
ROM celebration draws cultural rich and famous, but it’s tonight’s party that will really make a statement
Jun 02, 2007 04:30 AM
Martin Knelman
entertainment columnist
The Royal Ontario Museum marched into the new century last night with one of the bubbliest gala fundraisers in the history of the Toronto arts world, celebrating the opening of the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal.
No doubt the $1,000-a-head price tag, the rich-and-famous names on the guest list, and the tantalizing menu were all part of the mix. But there was something with more resonance that made it special.
For the first time in its history, the ROM has become downright lovable.
In the end, what people will remember decades from now is the transformative impact on the entire city of architect Daniel Libeskind’s iconic building, which virtually shouts: “Stop thinking of museums as stuffy, austere places! This place is for everyone, not just the elite, and the adventure beings even before you step inside, when just the shape of it tells you something exciting is about to happen.”
Among the 500 guests at the sold-out dinner: Libeskind and his wife, Nina; $30 million lead donor Michael Lee-Chin and his parents, Gloria and Vincent Chen; campaign chair Hilary Weston and her family; finance minister Jim Flaherty; Mila and Brian Mulroney; Peter and Melanie Munk; Ivan Fecan and Sandra Faire; Murray Frum and Nancy Lockhart; Wallace McCain and Margaret Norrie McCain; Ontario culture minister Caroline Di Cocco.
The evening began outside the new main entrance on Bloor St. and flowed through the Spirit House lobby into the four-storey Hyacinth Gloria Chen Crystal Court.
Some women flew to Paris to buy couture dresses for the special event, while one guest reportedly paid as high as $2 million for a table of nine in the dining room, reports the Star’s Rita Daly.
“Toronto has all the ingredients to be a great city, it already is,” accomplished architect Bruce Kuwabara said as he walked up the red carpet, adding the Crystal has people all over the world talking about it.
“If Toronto wants to grow up … it has to get comfortable with debate.”
After dinner, an additional 500 guests arrived for a night of exploring and dancing at the Big Bang Party ($250 per person), which was to go on until 3 a.m.
While last night was a big-deal occasion for the privileged members of Toronto’s social and cultural elite, the true significance of the Crystal will shine even more brightly tonight, when thousands of ordinary people gather on Bloor St. for a free concert in collaboration with Luminato that begins at dusk.
After the concert, crowds will be welcomed through the doors of the Crystal, accepting the museum’s invitation to stay all night and explore its wonders.
That speaks to an anything-goes spirit of inclusiveness, diversity and democracy that Libeskind’s witty and surprising shapes and angles celebrate. It announces an end to the old Toronto, where museums belonged principally to members of the establishment club.
Michael Lee-Chin likes to tell the story of the day Mrs. Weston came to Burlington to say she wanted him to write that $30 million cheque.
He asked her why she went to the trouble of going all the way to Burlington when she could have looked across the breakfast table and asked her billionaire husband to take care of it.
“Well,” said Mrs. Weston, “if Galen wrote the cheque, it wouldn’t cause a ripple. But if you do it, it will be an inspiration to every immigrant.”
Mrs. Weston, of course, was absolutely right.
Yes, the elite had their special night last night. But now it’s time for the rest of the city to start the real party, which will go on for decades, making sure that Toronto will never be the same.
Elite shine at Crystal fundraiser
ROM celebration draws cultural rich and famous, but it’s tonight’s party that will really make a statement
Jun 02, 2007 04:30 AM
Martin Knelman
entertainment columnist
The Royal Ontario Museum marched into the new century last night with one of the bubbliest gala fundraisers in the history of the Toronto arts world, celebrating the opening of the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal.
No doubt the $1,000-a-head price tag, the rich-and-famous names on the guest list, and the tantalizing menu were all part of the mix. But there was something with more resonance that made it special.
For the first time in its history, the ROM has become downright lovable.
In the end, what people will remember decades from now is the transformative impact on the entire city of architect Daniel Libeskind’s iconic building, which virtually shouts: “Stop thinking of museums as stuffy, austere places! This place is for everyone, not just the elite, and the adventure beings even before you step inside, when just the shape of it tells you something exciting is about to happen.”
Among the 500 guests at the sold-out dinner: Libeskind and his wife, Nina; $30 million lead donor Michael Lee-Chin and his parents, Gloria and Vincent Chen; campaign chair Hilary Weston and her family; finance minister Jim Flaherty; Mila and Brian Mulroney; Peter and Melanie Munk; Ivan Fecan and Sandra Faire; Murray Frum and Nancy Lockhart; Wallace McCain and Margaret Norrie McCain; Ontario culture minister Caroline Di Cocco.
The evening began outside the new main entrance on Bloor St. and flowed through the Spirit House lobby into the four-storey Hyacinth Gloria Chen Crystal Court.
Some women flew to Paris to buy couture dresses for the special event, while one guest reportedly paid as high as $2 million for a table of nine in the dining room, reports the Star’s Rita Daly.
“Toronto has all the ingredients to be a great city, it already is,” accomplished architect Bruce Kuwabara said as he walked up the red carpet, adding the Crystal has people all over the world talking about it.
“If Toronto wants to grow up … it has to get comfortable with debate.”
After dinner, an additional 500 guests arrived for a night of exploring and dancing at the Big Bang Party ($250 per person), which was to go on until 3 a.m.
While last night was a big-deal occasion for the privileged members of Toronto’s social and cultural elite, the true significance of the Crystal will shine even more brightly tonight, when thousands of ordinary people gather on Bloor St. for a free concert in collaboration with Luminato that begins at dusk.
After the concert, crowds will be welcomed through the doors of the Crystal, accepting the museum’s invitation to stay all night and explore its wonders.
That speaks to an anything-goes spirit of inclusiveness, diversity and democracy that Libeskind’s witty and surprising shapes and angles celebrate. It announces an end to the old Toronto, where museums belonged principally to members of the establishment club.
Michael Lee-Chin likes to tell the story of the day Mrs. Weston came to Burlington to say she wanted him to write that $30 million cheque.
He asked her why she went to the trouble of going all the way to Burlington when she could have looked across the breakfast table and asked her billionaire husband to take care of it.
“Well,” said Mrs. Weston, “if Galen wrote the cheque, it wouldn’t cause a ripple. But if you do it, it will be an inspiration to every immigrant.”
Mrs. Weston, of course, was absolutely right.
Yes, the elite had their special night last night. But now it’s time for the rest of the city to start the real party, which will go on for decades, making sure that Toronto will never be the same.
Inside the ROM crystal
More than a thousand Royal Ontario Museum donors and supporters will be the first members of the public to visit the ROM’s new crystal expansion at a gala tonight. But you can take a virtual reality sneak peak now.
Full Story, video, 360 views
Cohen’s poetry music to Glass’s ear
In a new work at Luminato, 22 of Leonard Cohen’s poems have been set to music by Philip Glass, one of contemporary classical music’s most recognized and celebrated composers. By Vit Wagner
Full Story, video
Drawn to Cohen’s artistry
As part of the Luminato arts festival, the Drabinsky Gallery in Yorkville is featuring the debut exhibit of Leonard Cohen’s drawings. In this Star exclusive, we have several selections from that show. By Martin Knelman
Full Story, photo gallery
Action centres
Twenty pulsing, uber-bright searchlights will pierce the night sky May 31, flicking the switch on a 10-day Luminato festival downtown from June 1-10. By Matthew Chung
Full Story
Many activities geared to families
As most parents know, trying to get kids to enjoy art is a prospect that can be fraught with peril. Questions of appropriateness aside, there’s the fear of hearing “I’m bored.” By Raju Mudhar
Full Story
It all started over lunch
Tony Gagliano, it can be fairly said, enjoys a good lunch. “That’s my portion,” he laughs, full and body-shaking, as a platter of grilled breads with various tapenades arrives at his table. By Murray Whyte
Full Story
To life, Cuban-style
On a Monday afternoon in the third floor studio of Ballet Lizt Alfonso, the dancers – six girls, 15 women and Vadim, a male guest artist – gather for a run-through of Act I of Vida. Susan Walker
Full Story
Taking it to the streets
Don’t tell George F. Walker that you can’t go home again, because he’s been doing it for years. By Richard Ouzounian
Full Story
Legend gives voice to jazz
As is his way, Jon Hendricks was forthright about adapting the moniker of his famed ’50s trio for a new ensemble, Lambert, Hendrick & Ross Redux, which performs at the Art of Jazz Celebration on June 3. By Ashante Infantry
Full Story
Glenn Gould’s music brought to life on stage
It was shortly before midnight when John McGreevy’s phone rang. Glenn Gould was calling to thank the documentary filmmaker for his 50th birthday greetings and to invite him over to his studio at the Inn on the Park the following week. By William Littler
Full Story
Jun 01, 2007 01:28 PM
More than a thousand Royal Ontario Museum donors and supporters will be the first members of the public to visit the ROM’s new crystal expansion at a gala tonight.
They’ll attend a lavish dinner with architect Daniel Libeskind, who designed the crystal, and Michael Lee-Chin, the $30 million donor for whom the crystal is named.
Saturday, the museum will officially unveil the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal with a 9:30 p.m. concert featuring Jann Arden, Gordon Pinsent and other entertainers (doors open at 8 p.m.). Governor General Michaëlle Jean will dedicate the crystal at approximately 10:45 p.m.
From 12:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, members of the public can visit the museum free. They’re encouraged, though, to pick up their tickets between noon and 5 p.m. Saturday.
Take a virtual-reality tour of three new rooms inside the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal with our 360-degree panoramic images:
* Garfield Weston Exhibition Hall – With 1,670 sq. m. of space, the ROM claims it to be Canada’s largest hall for international exhibitions. Located on the lower level of the Lee-Chin Crystal, it is scheduled to display a collection of Japanese paintings from 1690 – 1850.
* The Crystal Five Restaurant Lounge or C5 for short is located on the top-most floor of the Lee-Chin Crystal. The space offers visitors a unique view of Toronto. Adjoining the restaurant is a cocktail lounge with soft leather seating. The main dining room will offer an a la carte menu and seating for 100.
* Work is still underway in what will be the Patricia Harris Gallery of Textiles and Costume. This 600-sq. m. gallery is located on level four of the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal
June 3, 2007 at 12:00 am
Re: “Governor General Michaëlle Jean …”
The Governor General of Canada is a “corporation sole”, according to Elizabeth II in this document. A “corporation sole” is defined and recognized as being a corporation.
It is a fiction that a corporation is a person.
“A corporation is a fiction, by definition, …”, according to Patrick Healy in a statement found here.
“A corporation is a ‘fiction’ as it has no separate existence, no physical body and no ‘mind’”, according to this presentation by Joanne Klineberg.