23 Hop was a warehouse event space in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
, Ontario, Canada.
It was an early venue for electronic music and a venue for raves. It was located at 318 Richmond Street West in the city's former Garment District which had recently become re-zoned into the city's
Entertainment District
An entertainment district is a type of arts district with a high concentration of movie theaters, theatres or other entertainment venues. Such areas may be officially designated by local governments with functional zoning regulations, as well as ...
.
Although the space was active in the late 80s, it would not come to be known as 23 Hop until 1990, when it was taken over by
Wesley Thuro, a club and restaurant owner, who would showcase his lighting and sound equipment, and
Chris Sheppard, a notable Canadian
DJ who would occasionally perform.
The unlicensed venue's second and third floors would often be rented out as an after-hours club for
house music events. Eventually, it would hold regular events by Exodus Productions and many other similar production companies that would signal the birth of the
rave movement in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
.
23 Hop closed in the summer of 1995.
Following 23 Hop's closure, the 318 Richmond building's interior and exterior underwent significant renovation—including addition of rooftop patio as well as conversion of adjacent parking lot into street-side patio—as part of the launch of The Joker, a mega nightclub playing commercial dance music. By the end of the 1990s, the property was sold to a
developer
Developer may refer to:
Computers
* Software developer, a person or organization who develop programs/applications
* Video game developer, a person or business involved in video game development, the process of designing and creating games
* Web d ...
that promptly demolished it in anticipation of starting construction of a new condo building. After several years as a parking lot, a 39-floor, 402-unit condominium building known as Picasso on Richmond was built.
In 2019, ''The Legend of 23 Hop'', a documentary film was released citing the importance of the club on the city's
electronic music
Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroa ...
cultural history.
List of performers
*
Moby
*Mark Oliver
*Dino & Terry
*Sean L.
*Dr. No
*Malik X
*DJ Ruffneck
*Jungle PhD
*Kenny Glasgow
*Matt C
*John E
*Danny Henry
*David Crooke
Source: ''Then and Now Toronto''
References
External links
23 Hop , Rave, Warehouse and Afterhours VenueThen & Now: 23 HopThe Legend of 23 Hop: A Documentary on the Murky Origins of Toronto’s Rave Scene.
Demolished buildings and structures in Toronto
Music venues in Toronto
1990 establishments in Ontario
1995 disestablishments in Ontario
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