Winnipeg’s historic Pantages Playhouse Theatre, which has been shuttered since 2018, will be getting a new lease on life as part of an estimated $62 million revitalization project. With a $15 million investment from the Province of Manitoba, that $62 million goal is that much closer.
Downtown has long needed investment and upkeep. Premier Wab Kinew said this investment reflects both a cultural and economic opportunity for the province. “We have a vision for a downtown that’s safe and friendly and welcoming, where the safety is advanced by bringing more people downtown,” said the Premier. “When there’s a great group of people advancing a project like this, it’s easy to say yes to that kind of investment.”
For more than a century, the Pantages has stood as a significant landmark on Main Street, as a piece of Manitoba’s history. Built in 1914 as a vaudeville house, the Pantages has hosted legendary performers including Charlie Chaplin and Harry Houdini. Before radio and television, theatres like Pantages were the primary source of entertainment. Throughout the years, the Pantages Playhouse Theatre has adapted to the needs of Winnipeg, but has always been a home for music, theatre, dance and community gatherings.
Minister of Sport, Culture and Heritage Nellie Kennedy said, “This investment reflects our commitment to preserving our cultural heritage while building for the future.”
While the funding announcement marks a major milestone, transforming the theatre into a modern multi-use facility will take time, coordination, and continued investment. Curt Vossen, chair of the Performing Arts Consortium (PAC) of Winnipeg, said it’s taken years, but they’re finally on the right track.
“This is a project that’s been a long time in the making, more years than I would have liked to have seen. But here, in a very material way, we have traction, and we’re going to go forward with great resolve and focus to see this project to its conclusion.
He added that PAC and the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra are committed to developing and revitalizing the Pantages, and to maintaining the theatre’s historic charm while upgrading it into a state-of-the-art venue. “We want to reanimate this corner. We want to program this theatre successfully for 250 to 300 plus days and nights a year, and bring over a thousand people downtown, back to our core, back to our city.”
Angela Birdsell, CEO of the WSO, said momentum is heading in the right direction with the project entering its detailed design phases. These phases include the environmental remediation and selective demolition, followed by the creation of construction drawings. “Right now, I think our earliest timeline is 2029 to open.” But, to make it all possible, Birdsell said more funding will be needed. “We’re focusing all of our attention on the last frontier. I think of public-sector funding, which the federal government should handle. And we have a very ambitious ask of the federal government right now. We feel that it’s great timing. This is a shovel-ready project. It’s a community-significant project. It’s going to be a creative hub for not just the WSO, but communities all across the city.”
Historians like Gordon Goldsborough of the Manitoba Historical Society hope the Pantages project sets the trend for reimaging historic sites to better serve neighbourhoods, instead of just tearing them down. Goldsborough explained that the Pantages is a rare surviving example of early theatre architecture in Winnipeg. “It was a spectacular building. Well, no, it is a spectacular building. But unfortunately, like a lot of theatres around the city, this is another example of a category of building that was once common, but is now much less common.”
Goldsborough believes the project demonstrates the importance of “creative reuse,” adapting older structures to meet contemporary needs. Winnipeg’s downtown is remarkably intact in terms of historic architecture, and he said he would be ecstatic if those original facades could remain.
“I think creative reuse is a fundamentally important thing to keep in mind that you can honour the past, but still change the buildings. Like they don’t have to remain precisely as they were when they were built. You know, as long as there’s some element of the original preserved, I think that’s sufficient.”
A trend he does have concern about is cities’ push for increased density, often at the cost of older, historic structures, many of which are at risk of demolition. Goldsborough cautioned that while growth is necessary, it can come at the cost of architectural heritage if not carefully managed.
As planning continues and fundraising efforts move forward, the redevelopment of the Pantages Theatre could become a model for balancing modernization and preservation.
– Ryan Funk, U Multicultural
