Event Details

Located in its multi-venue home the Young Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto's Distillery Historic District, Soulpepper is one of Canada's largest urban theatre companies. Founded and guided by artists, under the leadership of Artistic Director Albert Schultz and Executive Director Leslie Lester, Soulpepper has an integrated mission which includes: industry-leading youth outreach initiatives; the Soulpepper Academy, Canada's only multi-year paid professional training program for theatre artists of all disciplines; and a year-round diverse repertory season which is grounded in the classics and committed to the creation of new works, new forms and innovative practices.

This application is for the “Summer Of Song Festival and Winter Village”, taking place July 13 to December 31, 2025, in Toronto’s Distillery District. Programming includes:

(1) Summer of Song Festival (July 13 – August 15, 2025) will feature programming held in both indoor and outdoor spaces: (i) Courtyard Concerts, a series of concerts that explore a variety of themes and musical genres such as ‘Fierce Femmes’ or ‘Summertime Classics’ performed by Soulpepper’s Slaight Music Residents including Raha Javanfar, Beau Dixon, Andrew Penner, Divine Brown, and Hailey Gillis; (ii) Distillery Stage Concerts where Soulpepper will partner with the Distillery District to present on the outdoor stage in Trinity Square; (iii) Open Mic lead by the cohort of 5 emerging actor-musician resident artists at Soulpepper, featuring emerging musicians in the courtyard; and (iv) Kids Sunday Jams will have Soulpepper’s artist educators facilitate workshops and jam sessions to help kids develop their love for music and collaboration from an early age; and

(2) Winter Village (November 14 – December 31, 2025) will offer activities in the courtyard in partnership with the Distillery Winter Village featuring (i) Photos with Santa; (ii) Family Room, a dedicated space for families that fills a gap in the Distillery’s Winter Village offering; (iii) Production-themed Space Activation will transform Soulpepper's courtyard to match the theme of the family show on stage for the holidays; and (iv) Outdoor Winter Village – a place for families to gather with guided activities, pop-up performances and carolling, storytelling hour for children, and hot chocolate.