Meet Jo Rivas, the owner of True Taco and one of our Associate Participants! Located at the Market at Western Fair District, True Taco is an authentic comedor latino, specializing in authentic Mexican and Salvadorian foods. “Comedor is literally a dining table and Latino is all Latin America,” Rivas says. “We want to bring those kinds of flavors to the people, these authentic flavors, things that you don't typically see.” True Taco’s very first spot was at the Trails End Mark

Meet Lucy Wonjah, the owner of Umkulu Kitchen and one of our Associate Participants! Located at the Market at Western Fair District, Umkulu Kitchen specializes in South African street food and other African dishes. Wonjah started the business herself, and it stems from her love for cooking. “It started with my mom and my grandmother, one came from South Africa, one from Botswana, and my grandfather came from Zambia,” she says. “I have this huge love for Southern African food,

Meet Michaelanne Hathaway, the owner of Stache Fabrics & Notions and one of our Associate Participants! Located at the Market at Western Fair District, Stache Fabric and Notions is a community focused quilt shop focused on high quality and fun fabrics. “We’re also focused on helping people in the community be as creative as they possibly can with the fabric,” Hathaway says. Stache Fabrics has been located in the market for the past two years, but is coming up on its ninth ann

Harris Cashes Out  proves there’s always pleasure in watching quirky characters collide onstage! Directed by Julianna Goertzen, this light-hearted comedy of clashing personalities plays onstage at the Palace Theatre until March 15. The small but mighty cast of 'Harris Cashes Out!' Jasmine Gunkel as Kim, Sam Didi as Jason, Tim Bourgard as Harris, and Vivien King-Sherwood as Maggie. Photo by Ross Davidson. Forty years ago, Harris Wellborn (Tim Bourgard) watched his Broadway dre

Meet The London Cross-Cultural Learner Centre, London’s leading newcomer agency, one of our associate partners, and the agency behind one of the most exciting developments in Old East Village! Created in 1967, the CCLC’s mission is “Supporting newcomers, strengthening communities.” The CCLC provides integration services and support to newcomers and to promote intercultural awareness and understanding for others. “We provide temporary accommodation and find permanent accommoda

Without a doubt, Urinetown is the weirdest dystopia I’ve encountered. A decimated water supply. Public toilets owned by private companies. Entry fees charged for the “privilege to pee.” It’s weird, but it works. Directed and choreographed by Sydney Brockway, Urinetown  is a gleefully satiric and highly entertaining musical at the Palace Theatre. Bobby Strong (Henry Truong) watches Officer Lockstock (Kate Sepi). Photo by Ross Davidson. Urinetown ’s dystopian future is incredib

Meet Sam Donaldson, the owner of Retro Redhead Salon and one of our Neighbourhood Partners! Located at 635 Central Avenue, Retro Redhead is London’s first hair studio designed for neurodiverse, sensory-sensitive, and any other outliers. Donaldson opened the salon in 2022 after several years in boutique salons. “I opened here because I have health issues, so it’s catered to my illness, and I just kept attracting neurodiverse people,” she says. “It’s kind of evolved into it, I

Patrick Marber’s Closer may be a story about messy people, but director Dave Semple’s production is anything but. Refreshingly bold and cleanly staged, this show is unafraid to take risks as it tackles topics of love, sex, and power. 

Meet Charles Innis, the manager of Mystic Wisdom Tea and Bookshop! Located at 610 Dundas Street, Mystic Wisdom Tea and Bookshop is a one stop shop for your esoteric needs. Mystic Wisdom is actually the merging of two separate businesses; Wisdom Tea and Mystic Bookshop. The bookshop was opened in the mid to late 90s, with the tea shop opening in the early 2000s. “The shops were further apart and over the years, have moved closer together,” Innis says. “We're trying to maintain

Meet Grant Maltman, the curator of Banting House and one of the Old East Village BIA’s Associate Members! Located at 442 Adelaide Street North, Banting House almost needs no introduction. It’s the “Birthplace of Insulin”; a national historic site chronicling the life of Sir Frederick Banting and his major contribution to science that saved countless lives. Maltman has been the curator of Banting House for more than 30 years, but he says time hasn’t taken away any job satisfac

Meet John Kudelka, one of the co-owners of Junction Climbing Centre and one of the Old East Village BIA’s Neighbourhood Partners! Located at 1030 Elias Street, this is a full service climbing gym, featuring top rope climbs, auto belays, lead climbs, bouldering, and a fitness centre! With a background in climbing and outdoor recreation, Kudelka saw that London was lacking in a proper climbing gym “Growing up in London, there's a strong perception that if it's in London, the ve

Meet Hutton House and the PATCH! Hutton House is a non-profit that supports adults with disabilities through programming that develops valuable skills, and they’re one of the Old East Village BIA’s Associate Partners! Hutton House began life in 1952 as the Association for Handicapped Adults, and over the past 70 years has been providing a safe and comfortable environment where people can learn and achieve whatever goal they set their mind to. The PATCH was started as a subset

Meet LIFE*SPIN, a non-profit organization focused on helping low-income families throughout the year and one of the Old East Village BIA’s Associate Partners! LIFE*SPIN started out in 1989 as a group of sole-support mothers trying to do what they could to help alleviate poverty within the community. “They found pooling resources really helped each other get ahead,” says Meagen Ciufo, co-executive director of LIFE*SPIN. “One person had a car, they could car share. One person h

Meet Tristan Squire-Smith & Johnny Hewerdine, the co-owner’s of Coldwell Banker Beaver Realty! Located at 992 Dundas Street, this brokerage wants to lighten up the world of real estate. Both have worked at real estate brokerages in the past, but found the culture norm a bit too "stifling.” So, Squire-Smith and Hewerdine opened their own brokerage in June of 2023. “We don't want to be like them, and it made it very difficult for us to operate. So having our own brokerage now,

Would you kill for respect? For money? For glory? In the right hands, a creative idea can be all three, and in Deathtrap that’s worth dying for. The Palace’s latest production, directed by James Patterson, is packed with nail-biting combat, shocking twists, and memorable performances. Catch it before it closes on Dec. 7 ! Sydney (David Lamari) and Clifford (Marc Motiejunas) eye up the competition. Photo by Ross Davidson. Sydney Bruhl (David Lamari), a once-famed playwright o

After decades of artistic creation, Dave Semple is finally putting it all on one stage. “This has been 40 years in the making, really," he says. "Now I’m putting it all together, all of the things that I do, as opposed to just one at a time." Blending his many roles as a singer-songwriter, poet, actor, director, and guitar crafter, Dave stages an uplifting and experimental show at the Palace Theatre on Nov. 6. Songs & Stories with Dave Semple , a one-night-only event in Pr

Meet Vince Ianni, the president and general manager for Tony’s Pizza! Located at 980 Dundas Street, this family-owned business has been serving up classic Italian food for over 60 years. With a focus on good food at reasonable prices, Tony has become an Old East Village staple. “Really, it is about personal experience for our customers,” Ianni says. “Our customers, especially our long term customers, they actually end up becoming friends.” Tony’s was opened by Ianni’s father,

Give yourself over to absolute pleasure! The Rocky Horror Show , presented by Infuse Productions and the Palace Theatre, is unabashedly queer and packed with audience participation. After playing to sold-out crowds in its first week, tickets are limited for the remaining shows of this cult classic. Get yours  before it closes on Nov. 2! Dr. Frank-N-Furter (Shaidon Woods) surrounded by an ensemble of Phantoms. Photo by Ross Davidson. As a storm rages, straightlaced sweethearts

These days, with growing economic pressures both at home and on the national scale, shopping locally is more important than ever. Right in the heart of Old East Village, the Market at Western Fair District puts a focus on connecting with its community. “77% of everything you can get here is made right here in the Market and the balance is all locally sourced,” says Carole Sceli, the Business Development Manager at the Market. “It has over 100 permanent and pop-up shops, all l

Extra, extra, read all about it! The Front Page: SCOOPED  makes headlines as it opens the Palace Theatre’s 2025-2026 season. Directed by...