The Home Depot Skating Rink
to be Cool New Centrepiece
and home to The Cadbury Challenge

Toronto - First Night® Toronto unveiled plans today for the 14^th Annual First Night® Toronto, December 29-31, 2004, at a press conference in The Distillery Historic District Visitor Centre. Joining Jeffrey Latimer, Senior Advisor & Director Development, First Night® Toronto to present this year’s plans for Toronto’s favourite year-end choice for fun, safe and affordable family entertainment were Tim Peterson, Parliamentary Assistant, Ministry of Tourism, Kathleen O’Day Wynne, Parliamentary Assistant, Ministry of Education, John Hinds, Ontario Trillium Foundation, Michael O’Mahoney, President, Sick Kids Foundation, David Sculthorpe, President, Cadbury Adams Canada Inc.; and special guests the Sattalites, renown children’s entertainer Jack Grunsky, and Canadian rap superstar Choclair.

In addition to launching First Night® Toronto’s inaugural year in the Distillery Historic District, organizers announced the names of partners and partnerships joining in First Night® Toronto’s efforts to share the greatest celebration of family, culture, community, diversity and wellness through arts, youth, education and fun. Some of this year’s partners include Cadbury Adams, Black Diamond Cheestrings, Rogers Media, CHFI, The Home Depot, Toronto Transit Commission,, Sick Kids Foundation, The Ministry of Culture, OMNI Television, and TD Canada Trust, The Delta Chelsea Hotel and VIA Rail. Among the programming highlights this year at First Night® Toronto include The Home Depot Skating Rink, a concert by The Jim Cuddy Band on the outdoor Festival Stage on the evening of December 30 presented by Rogers, Canadian reggae favourites The Sattalites performing on New Year’s Eve and TVO’s Toy Castle will entertain the kids.

"First Night Toronto is about partnerships with all levels of Government, our corporate sponsors, private citizens and the communities that make up this great city. We have been able to create a festival that celebrates family, youth and wellness through arts and cultural performances and programs that inspire and bring people together."

"As the leading confectionery manufacturer in Canada it’s one of our priorities to give back to our communities and support families through the joy and simple pleasures we can bring into their lives," said David Sculthorpe, President, Cadbury Adams Canada. "Cadbury Adams is proud to support First Night Toronto, a much-anticipated tradition within the city, and we encourage people of all ages to come down and enjoy a safe, tasteful family celebration."

During First Night® Toronto 2004, The Distillery, a recognized historical Heritage site, will play host to a bevy of new attractions and returning favourites. Over 350 professional and community performers, including roaming buckers, with many more from local schools and youth organizations will be featured throughout the Distillery grounds and buildings. Each day of the festival will be themed: DECEMBER 29, 2004 - YOUTH DAY: First Night® Toronto opens the 2004 festival with a day that features some of the best children’s performers and artists around. Following the City of Toronto proclamation designating our opening day as "First Night® International Youth Day", First Night® kicks off the celebration at 1 p.m. with a kids scavenger hunt and the official opening of the skating rink, followed by performances on indoor and outdoor stages around the Distillery site by the likes of Majinx, Mad Science, TVO favourite Toy Castle, plus the showcase of Malvern Youth for the Arts, featuring the creative results of First Night® Toronto’s outreach efforts with partners Inner City Angels, Mariposa in the Schools and Prologue to the Performing Arts.

DECEMBER 30 - TORONTO CULTURE DAY: According to the United Nations, Toronto is the most multicultural city in the world. The second day of our festival celebrates the city’s multiculturalism, with presentations by 10 multicultural music and dance troupes and a performance of The Gift by the Native performing troupe, De-ba-jeh-mu-jig. The day will culminate with the opening of the outdoor stage at 8 p.m. with a concert by The Jim Cuddy Band.

DECEMBER 31 - NEW YEAR’S EVE: All-day celebration on both indoor and outdoor stages. Events include close-up and stage magic, cirque, comedy, a variety of music including jazz, blues, world, Celtic and reggae. Create a costume in Imagination Market and join in the People’s Parade (7:30 p.m.), kids countdown with Juno award-winning Jack Grunsky (8:15 p.m.) and final countdown (11:55 p.m.) with The Sattalites and fireworks at midnight.

FIRST NIGHT® TORONTO
PROGRAMMING VENUES

First Night Indoor Mainstage (Fermenting Cellar-- Stone Distillery)

The Distillery Historic District’s most celebrated indoor event centre, The Fermenting Cellar in the Stone Distillery will be transformed into the largest indoor performance space at this year’s festival. The First Night® Indoor Mainstage will feature a wide range of artists and entertainers over the three days, including festival headliners, popular children’s performers as well as dance troupes, magicians, contortionists, cirque and other acts that will delight and amaze.

The Home Depot Skating Rink (Case Goods Building/ Pure Spirits Stage)

Open skate for all patrons will be the seasonal highlight of the Distillery District throughout the winter! Buy your admission pass to First Night® and enjoy pleasure skating as well as special First Night® Festival celebrity and skating show events to take place over the three days.

Festival Stage-Trinity Square (December 30 & 31 operational only)

Opening our outdoor Festival Stage on the evening of December 30 will be a concert by The Jim Cuddy Band. On December 31, from 4 p.m. until midnight, the Festival Stage will dazzle and entertain ticket holders with performances and entertainment by some of our city’s greatest, including kids’ favourite Jack Grunsky, Tall Pine Native Drum and Dance and Toronto’s favourite reggae band, The Sattalites. If that’s not enough, our grand finale featuring spectacular fireworks and countdown on New Year’s Eve will be held at this stage.

Artcore Gallery (Tank House Lane)

Artcore offers an intimate setting for an eclectic mix of children’s music, aboriginal theatre, urban music and dance, theatre and comedy. From the comedy of Winston Spear and Simon B Cotter to the prodigy talent of Jordan-Blair Francis to the mask performance of Faustworks, Artcore will feature something for everyone.

This year, the OMNI Television Variety Stage will feature a variety of local and national talent from different ethnic backgrounds and artistic disciplines, as well as a showcase for local district school talent, including the showcase of the creativity of our community outreach project Malvern Youth for the Arts, as well as children’s programming.

Dancemakers Centre for Creation will showcase some of the most exciting programming First Night® Toronto has to offer, from kids’ puppeteers, juggling busker comedy to local high school bands. Ticket holders won’t be disappointed.

Located along Case Goods Lane, Grand Piano Pastries provides patrons excellent food at reasonable prices in the perfect intimate setting for awe inspiring performances of close-up magic.

A staple of First Night®, Imagination Market is an interactive exhibit and playground for children of all ages. Our Imagination Market Coordinator will lead a series of make and take craft creations which kids can proudly display in the People’s Parade throughout the Distillery site in the early evening of December 31.

As previously announced, First Night® Toronto has entered into partnerships with Inner City Angels, Prologue to the Performing Arts and Mariposa in the Schools to launch an innovative interdisciplinary, creative arts education experience for young people of the Malvern community that is generously supported by the Ministry of Culture’s Cultural Strategic Investment Fund. The creative results of this program, titled Malvern Youth for the Arts, will be showcased at this year’s festival on December 29. In addition, First Night® Toronto has expanded its educational outreach with the generous support of Ontario Trillium Foundation to include tall puppet building (to be featured in the People’s Parade on December 31) and Lighter Than Air Artistic Objects (giant inflatables created by secondary students that will be launched onsite on December 29).
 

About First Night® Toronto

Celebrating its 14th year, First Night® Toronto is a not for profit charitable organization that produces a year-end, three-day family festival at Toronto’s Distillery Historic District, conveniently located at Front Street East and Parliament Street. First Night® Toronto is one of over 200 family-oriented First Night® events in cities worldwide where the young-and the young at heart-gather for an alcohol-free celebration, community festival, and enjoy a broad spectrum of arts and performance: from magicians to musicians, poets to puppeteers, storytellers to singers, actors to artists, and more. The three-day multicultural extravaganza is a culmination of a year-round series of outreach programmes, festival performances, and collaborative visual, performing, and folk art projects with community, youth, and other cultural organizations. First Night® Toronto is made possible through funding by grants such as Ontario Tourism Marketing Plan, Ontario Trillium Foundation, Toronto Arts Council, Canadian Heritage, Ontario Arts Council, private and corporate sponsorship, foundation bursaries, and festival admission sales.