A group of actors who built a classical repertory company in the Distillery District
Soulpepper Theatre
Founded in 1998 by a group of Toronto actors, Soulpepper built a year-round classical repertory company inside the then-newly redeveloped Distillery District.
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Soulpepper Theatre Company was founded in 1998 by a group of Toronto actors who wanted to build a year-round classical repertory company in a city that, at the time, had little in the way of ongoing rotating-repertory theatre. The company staged its early seasons in temporary venues before settling into the Distillery District, the redeveloped Victorian-era whisky distillery complex that was itself just beginning its transformation into an arts and entertainment precinct in the early 2000s.
A permanent home in the Distillery District
Soulpepper's move into the Distillery District tied the company's growth directly to the neighbourhood's redevelopment, and its Young Centre for the Performing Arts, opened in 2006, gave it a permanent multi-stage home. The company built its identity around a mix of classic plays, new Canadian work, and cross-disciplinary programming, becoming one of the anchor cultural tenants of a district that transformed from an industrial site into one of Toronto's most visited heritage areas.
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