Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium
Encyclopedia
General information and history
The auditorium was built in 1955, on a 13 acres (52,609.2 m²) site adjacent to the University of AlbertaUniversity of Alberta
The University of Alberta is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta and Henry Marshall Tory, its first president, it is widely recognized as one of the best universities in Canada...
to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Alberta. It is owned and operated by the Government of Alberta. The Jubilee is home to the Edmonton Opera
Edmonton Opera
The Edmonton Opera is a Canadian professional opera company in Edmonton, Alberta, it performs in the Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium. The opera was founded in 1963 as the Edmonton Professional Opera Association. The name was latter shortened to the current name in 1966. It was born out of its...
and the Alberta Ballet
Alberta Ballet Company
The Alberta Ballet is located in Calgary and Edmonton, Alberta. It is Canada’s third largest dance company. Alberta Ballet has developed a distinctive repertoire and performance quality that has brought it to the forefront of national and international stages.- Creation :The Alberta Ballet was...
. For many years it has hosted Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
shows, stand-up comedians, theatre productions, bands, orchestras, dance festivals and awards ceremonies.
The main theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
hosts 2,538 people on three levels, or 2,416 if the Orchestra pit
Orchestra pit
An orchestra pit is the area in a theater in which musicians perform. Orchestral pits are utilized in forms of theatre that require music or in cases when incidental music is required...
is in use. There is also a banquet room, meeting room, rehearsal hall and luxury suite available to rent, along with being able to hold trade shows and meetings in the theatre proper and its lobbies. In 2005 as part of the celebrations for the Alberta Centennial, the auditorium underwent extensive renovations totalling a cost of $91 million.
British rock band Procol Harum
Procol Harum
Procol Harum are a British rock band, formed in 1967, which contributed to the development of progressive rock, and by extension, symphonic rock. Their best-known recording is their 1967 single "A Whiter Shade of Pale"...
performed on November 17, 1972, along with The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra
Edmonton Symphony Orchestra
As the professional orchestra of Alberta's creative capital city, the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra presents over 85 concerts a year of symphonic music in all genres, from classical to country...
, the show was recorded and later released as a live album, entitled Procol Harum Live with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra
Procol Harum Live with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra
Procol Harum Live with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, by the UK band Procol Harum, was released in 1972; it was recorded at the Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada on 18 November 1971. It is the band's best selling album, certified Gold by the RIAA...
.
In January 2010, theatre reviewer Pollstar revealed that the Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium was the busiest theatre in Canada, selling 146,555 tickets in 2009, beating its twin, the Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium in Calgary (138,515 tickets) and Toronto’s Massey Hall (93,742 tickets).