The Ivy takes live music to new heights as an addition to CMW’s venue roster.
Heading up to the 12th floor of the Balfour Building at 119 Spadina Ave. on a weekday, one would hardly mistake the standard cubicle office space for a live music venue.
From Monday to Friday, this supposedly standard workplace is home to Canadian media company WOMBO Studios Inc. But when the weekend rolls around, it’s a far cry from office-casual.
After 5 o’clock, the space is reimagined as The Ivy: Toronto’s innovative concert venue with a view-, where the party’s at the front, and business stays in the back.
This year, as the Toronto entertainment industry gears up to host its 48th annual Canadian Music Week (CMW) from June 1-8, The Ivy is participating in the festival’s venue circuit for the very first time. They’ll be joining over 25 other city-wide venues in showcasing the up-and-comers of Canadian musical talent.
Jay Atlas is the artistic director of Get Loud Concerts, and a key figure in establishing The Ivy for live music bookings. By collaborating with the office’s resident media company, he’s able to provide an inclusive artistic experience on Friday and Saturday nights that’s unlike any other performance space in the city.
The Ivy’s industrial architecture, panoramic windows, contemporary art fixtures and sparkling downtown views make it an appealing spot for audiences to come for a show-, but stay for the afterparty.
It’s as resourceful an event space as it is unconventional, which can be attributed to the inventive vision of its artistic director. Atlas says his primary goal is to revive and protect the social atmosphere of live music events.
“The biggest thing about The Ivy is that we’re not just this room with four walls and speakers. We’re trying to create this experience where people come out before the bands play.”
“Come before the openers, enjoy the openers, enjoy the headliner, stick around, meet new people- we’ve found this has become a place where artists and creatives can all meet each other during and after shows,” says Atlas.
On a Saturday night, when the office cubicles are cleared and the space opens up, The Ivy offers artists the chance to play to mid-sized crowds in a uniquely intimate setting.
Their space fills a significant size gap within Toronto’s live music venues; the room is bigger than a bar stage, smaller than Lee’s Palace, and ideal for the artists stuck in between.
“We found there was a need for the under-300 [capacity] rooms in Toronto. For artists to grow they have to play to smaller rooms, but we found that there was not a lot of accessibility to those,” says Atlas.
“Now our vision is to grow with the artists and make sure they’re not facing barriers along the way, because artists already have to deal with so much.”
This proved to be an important asset when Atlas reached out to CMW programmers and volunteered The Ivy to host their highly-anticipated events in June.
Get Loud Concerts was approved for both Saturdays of CMW, with a total of six artists scheduled to perform at The Ivy on the festival’s opening and closing night.
Venues like The Ivy are an important stepping-stone for artists on the rise. These event spaces help preserve the natural life cycle of live music; acting as the next step up from playing in a bar, and encouraging the progression of artists’ careers while they gain performance experience.
Atlas explains that one of The Ivy’s top priorities is ensuring affordability and accessibility in booking the state-of-the-art entertainment space.
According to CBC, Toronto lost 15 per cent of its local live music hubs since 2020, and most of the venues left standing have had to dramatically increase their rates to keep up with demand.
“We’re hoping to bring more awareness that there can be spaces like this around the city. Now there are 30 million square feet of offices not being used in Toronto, and we’re in a city where artists are struggling to pay rent,” says Atlas.
“We have so much talent in Canada, and so many spaces can be created- including The Ivy, which is, like, an office converted into a pop-up music venue. We kind of just want to show people that this kind of support is possible.”
As long as they aren’t afraid of heights, CMW concert-goers can catch Toronto-based alt-rock band Augusta’s set live at The Ivy on Saturday, June 1, 2024, with supporting acts Joseph of Mercury and Oliver Forest.
On the following Saturday, June 8, 2024, the venue will host fellow Toronto-native Alec Ray Sherman, along with Emma Campbell and Holly Clausius. As the final night of CMW, audiences can ensure the festival concludes on a high note at The Ivy.
Jess Bertan for The B-Side
