Sundays this Spring | Meet @ FENTSTER at 11 AM
Stories of Spadina with a Spin
Sunday, May 6
Travel back in time to an era when Kensington Market was a thriving Jewish village teeming with kosher bakeries, synagogues, and social clubs. On this tour, Jewish Toronto's past is brought to life. Visits to the architectural gems are supplemented by photographs from the OJA's holdings as vivid reminders of a once vibrant community. In honour of the annual Jane's Walk, we're putting a new spin on the Ontario Jewish Archive's popular Stories of Spadina walking tour - departing from FENTSTER and making a special stop at the former home of the Standard Theatre and the Golden Harvest Theatre..
FREE | No registration required
Discover Little-Known Stories of Toronto's Chinese & Jewish Past & Present
Sunday, April 29 and May 13
Inspired by Shellie Zhang's FENTSTER installation, the Ontario Jewish Archives and FENTSTER have teamed up with Toronto's leading historian on Chinatown and experienced tour guide, Arlene Chan. She has published seven books about the history, culture, and traditions of the Chinese in Canada. Chan and the Ontario Jewish Archive's Miriam Borden will share insights into the Jewish and Chinese past of Kensington Market and Spadina with a special focus on the building at the corner of Dundas and Spadina that is the subject of our exhibition, A Place for Wholesome Amusement. The tour will begin with a brief curator talk at FENTSTER.
$15 ($12 for students / seniors)
To get walking tour tickets, click here
Presented by FENTSTER & Ontario Jewish Archives, Blankenstein Family Heritage Centre
ROUTE NOTES
These walks take 90-120 minutes. We'll meet at FENTSTER (402 College St.) in front of the window gallery and end the walk at the site of the former The Standard Theatre, northeast corner of Spadina Ave. and Dundas St. There are busy sidewalks on this route. Please note that one stop includes a special visit inside an existing synagogue that has stairs leading up the sanctuary. Accommodation can be made for those with mobility issues.
[IMAGE: Stories of Spadina walking tour in front of the historic Beth Israel Anshei Minsk synagogue on St. Andrew’s Street in Kensington Market. Photo: Jeremy Kohm, 2013]