The Gladstone is a 210-seat rental theatre in Ottawa’s Little Italy. Dozens of local theatre companies (and a few commercial companies) produce work at the theatre, making it the busiest theatre in Canada.
Our Mission
The Gladstone Theatre (TGT) provides a unique and inclusive space for independent local companies to create theatre which welcomes and supports our city’s diversity.
TGT is committed to providing a caring, healthy and safe environment for its employees, volunteers and associates, together with outstanding service and quality theatrical entertainment for its patrons.
TGT’s mission is to operate a recognized, sustainable and affordable facility for Ottawa’s independent theatre companies where shared services, programming and opportunities for artistic development and professional work can be coordinated, realized and presented to local audiences.
What keeps The Gladstone afloat? The Gladstone’s revenue is a combination of the rent paid by presenting companies; the facility fee that is added to each ticket; bar sales; grants; and generous donations from patrons.
History
Once upon a time . . .
910 Gladstone Avenue was originally a truck-repair garage. It has been used as a theatre, through various incarnations, since 1982. That was the year when the Great Canadian Theatre Company (founded in 1975 at Carleton University) established its first permanent home here.
In 2007, the GCTC moved to its new, purpose-built home on Wellington Street West. Local businessfolk Marilisa Granzotto and Steve Martin acquired 910 Gladstone, and began an ambitious renovation. In 2008, the revitalized theatre opened, rebranded as a new independent theatre called The Gladstone, with the vision of bringing accessible, thought-provoking, and above all entertaining professional theatre to Ottawa audiences.
In 2011, the Gladstone began to formalize a model of offering affordable rental space to indie theatre companies that had been struggling to find venues. Plosive Productions and SevenThirty Productions joined forces to organize programming, with David Whiteley of Plosive leading the venue’s shared use by theatre companies and individual artists from Ottawa and beyond. This partnership quickly expanded to include shows by Black Sheep Theatre, Bear & Co., Vanity Project Productions, Same Day Theatre, Three Sisters Theatre Company, and several other independent and community theatre companies. Gladstone audiences enjoyed light-hearted musicals and comedies, gripping dramas, classics, and new works by Ottawa playwrights.
In 2015, the theatre building was sold again, and a lease was signed to keep The Gladstone a theatre for years to come. In 2016, a volunteer steering committee was formed and held a community consultation, distributing an online survey on the subject of the future of The Gladstone. The responses revealed a shared community perception of The Gladstone as warm, accessible, and welcoming.
In November 2016, The Gladstone Theatre Inc. was incorporated as a not-for-profit. By this time, The Gladstone was regularly housing twelve stylistically diverse theatre companies, with more than 27,000 tickets sold per year.
During the process of incorporation, five Resident Companies were named: four professional indie companies, and one community theatre company. The newly minted Resident Companies had to have produced at least three shows at The Gladstone, and to make a commitment to continue producing at least one show per year. These five inaugural Resident Companies were Bear & Co., Black Sheep Theatre, Phoenix Players, Plosive Productions, and Three Sisters Theatre Company.
As of March 2022, the Resident Companies are SevenThirty Productions, Plosive Productions, Three Sisters Theatre Company, Bear & Co., Phoenix Players
Join Us
Would you like to roll up your sleeves and help this theatre thrive? Volunteer to join one of our committees.
Are you interested in volunteering at The Gladstone? Please contact our volunteer coordinator at volunteers@thegladstone.ca.
We invite you to join our mailing list for upcoming show information and all the latest news of how we’re keeping live (and lively!) theatre thriving in the heart of Little Italy.
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