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Lee's Palace is a rock concert hall located on the south side of
Bloor Street Bloor Street is an east–west arterial road in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Bloor Street runs from the Prince Edward Viaduct, which spans the Don River (Ontario), Don River Valley, westward into Mississauga where it ends at Central Parkway. East ...
West east of Lippincott Street in
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, Canada. The two-floor facility in
The Annex The Annex is a neighbourhood in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The traditional boundaries of the neighbourhood extend north to Dupont Street, south to Bloor Street, west to Bathurst Street (Toronto), Bathurst Street and east to Avenue Road, ...
neighbourhood has a long history prior to being adapted in September 1985 for its current use as a concert venue and nightclub. While the Lee's Palace live performance venue that accommodates just over 500 guest is on the ground floor, the top floor is occupied by The Dance Cave, a nightclub that on weekends mostly caters to university and college students from the nearby downtown Toronto schools such as
University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...
,
Toronto Metropolitan University Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU, or Toronto Met), formerly Ryerson University, is a Public university, public research university located in Toronto, Canada. The university's core campus is situated within the Garden District, Toronto, Gar ...
,
OCAD University Ontario College of Art & Design University, commonly known as OCAD University or OCAD U, is a public university, public art school, art university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its main campus is located within Toronto's Grange Park (neighbourh ...
, and George Brown College with
alt-rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...
while attracting older patrons during the work week with a fare that includes goth rock, mod music,
punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
, and indie. Having been established and owned for 16 years by the Korean Canadian entrepreneur Chong Su Lee a.k.a. Mr. Lee, the venue was purchased 2001 by Jeff Cohen with partners Ben Pearlman and Bruce Bennett that also has the
Horseshoe Tavern The Horseshoe Tavern (known as The Horseshoe, The 'Shoe', The 'Toronto Tavern' and The 'Triple T' to Toronto locals) is a concert venue at 370 Queen Street West (northeast corner of Queen at Spadina) in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and h ...
, another iconic Toronto music venue, among its list of assets. In December 2023, Lee's Palace was acquired b
MODO LIVE
a Canadian based concert and live entertainment production company, as part of their venue portfolio which include
The Pearl
on Granville in Vancouver, BC.


History

The building at 529 Bloor Street West, which currently consists of two floors of 5,000 square feet each, dates back to early 1900s and was reportedly a bank at one point as well as a shoemaker shop.


Allen's Bloor Theatre

During late 1910s, the building's redesign was initiated by its new owners—Canadian-based Allen Theatres chain that decided to turn it into a
silent film A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...
theater. With the redesign executed by the
Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...
-based Howard Crane's company, the 782-seat Allen's Bloor Theatre became one of Toronto's (a city of some 200,000 inhabitants at the time) most luxurious suburban movie houses. The undertaking came as part of Allen Theatres' aggressive 1917-1920 expansion into the Toronto marketplace, a period during which they built/redesigned many buildings around the city into theaters such as Allen's Danforth on the Danforth and Allen's Beach Theatre in the
Beaches A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from Rock (geology), rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle beach, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological s ...
neighbourhood. Allen Theatres additionally purchased many existing Toronto theaters like the nearby Madison Picture Palace across the road on Bloor Street West and the 1,100-seat Beaver Theatre in the Junction neighbourhood. Allen's Bloor Theatre's premiere screening was held on 10 March 1919 with Cecil B. De Mille's '' Don't Change Your Husband'' starring
Gloria Swanson Gloria Mae Josephine Swanson (March 27, 1899April 4, 1983) was an American actress. She first achieved fame acting in dozens of silent films in the 1920s and was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Actress, most famously for h ...
. In 1923, the Allen Theatres chain was sold to
Famous Players Famous Players Limited Partnership was a Canadian-based subsidiary of Cineplex Entertainment. As an independent company, it existed as a film exhibitor and cable television service provider. Famous Players operated numerous film, movie theatre ...
, which by 1928 financed major renovations to the theatre including building an
orchestra pit An orchestra pit is an area in a theatre (usually located in a lowered area in front of the stage) in which musicians perform. The orchestra plays mostly out of sight in the pit, rather than on the stage as for a concert, when providing music fo ...
. The venue remained an active movie theatre until 1957.


The Blue Orchid

Following a period of almost ten years during which the property remained vacant, in 1967, the venue was purchased for
Can$ The Canadian dollar (currency symbol, symbol: $; ISO 4217, code: CAD; ) is the currency of Canada. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $. There is no standard disambiguating form, but the abbreviations Can$, CA$ and C$ are frequently used f ...
129,000 by local entrepreneur Ed Silverberg who then invested further Can$250,000 in order to convert it into a
cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...
named the Blue Orchid. Inspired by the
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
drag show A drag show is a form of entertainment performed by drag (entertainment), drag artists impersonating men or women, typically in a bar or nightclub as a burlesque-style, adult-themed nightclub event. The modern drag show originated in the speake ...
s, it functioned as a dinner theatre featuring
burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.
shows and plays with all-male casts. It was Silverberg who decided to turn the venue's upper balcony level into a tucked away,
speakeasy A speakeasy, also called a beer flat or blind pig or blind tiger, was an illicit establishment that sold alcoholic beverages. The term may also refer to a retro style bar that replicates aspects of historical speakeasies. In the United State ...
-type bar with a dance floor. The Blue Orchid went away by 1976 and was replaced with Oriental Palace, a dinner and dance hospitality venue.


Lee's Palace

By mid 1980s, the building was purchased by Chong Su Lee a.k.a. Mr. Lee, owner of a nearby Stop & Go corner store on Bathurst and Harbord, who had become interested in the music venue concept through The Cameron House and the rest of the 1980s Queen West scene. On Thursday 5 September 1985, Lee's Palace was opened as a music club by Mr. Lee, the venue's namesake, with dancing on the top floor and live music on the main floor, much as it is today. The very first live show at the new venue on its opening night was Handsome Ned. The second live show— Blue Rodeo, who were booked on Handsome Ned's recommendation—took place two weeks later on 19 September 1985. The club was open seven days a week initially with Sundays becoming its signature night featuring local Toronto entertainer Frank Fazi's recurring Sunday Night Jam showcase with various local scene participants such as members of Greg Godovitz's Goddo. The venue's early live concert booking policy—bringing fledgling local rock bands plus emerging international (mostly
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
and American) indie acts—established a formula that would be continued throughout the decades that followed. Initially, local Toronto-area and other Canadian acts were routinely recruited from the nearby Queen West scene: doing well at Queen West spots such as The Cameron House, Horseshoe Tavern, and The Rivoli would usually result in being booked at Lee's Palace. The venue's chief booker Craig Morrison—hired by and answering directly to the owner Mr. Lee—was reportedly extremely diligent about determining a local young band's popularity and viability by scouting their Toronto bar and club gigs ahead of booking them at Lee's, including subsequently keeping meticulous records on each booked act with information on the number of tickets sold and associated bar sales during the show.
The Tragically Hip The Tragically Hip, often referred to simply as the Hip, was a Canadian rock band formed in Kingston, Ontario in 1984, consisting of vocalist Gord Downie, guitarist Paul Langlois, guitarist Rob Baker (known as Bobby Baker until 1994), bassis ...
—five youngsters in their early-to-mid-20s from nearby Kingston gigging locally in bars throughout
Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
with no releases yet—played Lee's Palace in late October 1986, years before becoming a best-selling and celebrated musical act in Canada. Ahead of the show, their manager Jake Gold reportedly phoned Morrison in order to try to negotiate a
Can$ The Canadian dollar (currency symbol, symbol: $; ISO 4217, code: CAD; ) is the currency of Canada. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $. There is no standard disambiguating form, but the abbreviations Can$, CA$ and C$ are frequently used f ...
75 fixed payout on top of the door intake but got flatly rejected. Later that year, on Wednesday 3 December 1986, the venue hosted
Red Hot Chili Peppers The Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1982, consisting of Anthony Kiedis (vocals), Flea (musician), Flea (bass), John Frusciante (guitar), and Chad Smith (drums). Their music incorporates elements of a ...
, a young band from
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that would go on to great commercial success within a few years. Supporting their second album and making their Toronto debut with a lineup featuring the band's twenty-four-year-old founding member and original guitarist Hillel Slovak who would die of
drug overdose A drug overdose (overdose or OD) is the ingestion or application of a drug or other substance in quantities much greater than are recommended. Retrieved on September 20, 2014.
eighteen months later, the show—opened by fellow
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punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...
ers T.S.O.L. and Thelonious Monster and closed with the Peppers infamous and soon-to-become
signature A signature (; from , "to sign") is a depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. Signatures are often, but not always, Handwriting, handwritt ...
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'
sock A sock is a piece of clothing worn on the feet and often covering the ankle or some part of the Calf (leg), calf. Some types of shoes or boots are typically worn over socks. In ancient times, socks were made from leather or matted animal hair. ...
s-on- cocks' stage performance during an encore of
Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...
's "
Fire Fire is the rapid oxidation of a fuel in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction Product (chemistry), products. Flames, the most visible portion of the fire, are produced in the combustion re ...
"—marked the first instance of a future globally-known musical act playing Lee's Palace.


Artists who have played at Lee's Palace

The capacity of Lee's Palace is roughly 600 people in the concert area, and more upstairs in the "Dance Cave", the dance club under the same roof. The Dance Cave caters to the alternative rock crowd, playing retro rock, Mod, '60s, Britpop, and indie rock during the week, and straight alternative on the weekends. Here is a selection of artists who have played at Lee's Palace: International artists Canadian artists


Regulatory agencies

As the venue serves alcohol, attendance at concerts and events at Lee's Palace is generally restricted by the laws of the province of
Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
to those 19 years of age or older, although the venue occasionally hosts all-ages shows (usually on weekend afternoons or early evenings) where alcohol is not served.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lees Palace Music venues in Toronto Nightclubs in Toronto Former cinemas in Toronto