When Peterborough’s Showplace Performance Centre opened on October 3rd, 1996, what the future held for the performance venue was anyone’s guess.
Countless music concerts, theatre staging’s and dance recitals later, staff, board members, volunteers and supporters celebrated Showplace’s 30th anniversary on Monday with a reception at the George Street venue.
Among those on hand was Beth McMaster, Showplace’s inaugural board chair and, with a few others, one of the early drivers of the effort to see a location for a downtown performance venue identified and pursued.
She says the group pursued the idea despite the fact that an earlier referendum revealed most in Peterborough weren’t in support of a performance centre.
McMaster says number of potential locations for Showplace were visited before the former Odeon Theatre was purchased in 1995 and renovated into a 650-seat performance space.
McMaster recalls a live performance of the song, This Is The Moment, opened Showplace before a packed audience.
After Showplace opened, capital fundraising began in earnest, eventually leading to the mortgage being burned with four years of the opening.
(Written by: Paul Rellinger)
