Local artists and performers will soon have a new place to call home. Live on Elgin, a rentable performance venue, is set to open on Elgin Street in about three months.
Mayor Jim Watson and Somerset Coun. Catherine McKenney welcomed the new business to Centretown, at the groundbreaking ceremony on Feb. 8. The mayor awarded the founders, Lawrence and Jon-Rhys Evenchick – a father and son duo – with a ceremonial plaque.
The idea is to provide a more accessible performance space for anyone in the preforming arts industry, explains Jon-Rhys Evenchick.
The venue, located at 220 Elgin St., will be available to be rented out for various events –– including plays, rehearsals, and live recordings – from one night to a full week. Evenchick emphasized that his focus is on creating an affordable place where members of the arts community can come together – not only to perform but also to network with one another.
He says downtown Ottawa is “a very artsy community, yet there is nowhere really to express that.” While the National Arts Centre is located at the north end of Elgin Street, that venue isn’t really intended for the city’s grassroots arts community. Arts Court, located just east of Centretown, is slated for a major expansion, but the city’s artists have long sought other venues to perform or display their works.
Evenchick says there is a limited number of places where local artists can perform live because most cannot afford the high rental costs that come with larger venues.
With the emergence of other rentable spaces in Centretown, the Ottawa community is seeing a rise in entrepreneurial niches that did not exist 20 years ago, explains James Bowen, a business professor at the University of Ottawa.
“To create an entrepreneurial community or culture, you have to give people the tools where the risk is mitigated and (rentable spaces) is one of those tools,” says Bowen.
This “rentable spaces” trend originated from the tech industry as individuals working from home would often rent out boardrooms or office spaces on an hourly-basis, with no further obligations after the allotted time was up. Since then, many other fields – arts being one of them – have adopted this business model, explains Bowen.
“I think that it is a tremendous step forward in any kind of industry . . . if we can lower the barrier of entry . . . we can get more people to try it,” says Bowen.
The space is currently undergoing major renovations before the scheduled opening night on May 1.
The vision entails an open-concept, 80-person seating arrangement, a bar/schmoozing area, a small dressing room for the performers, and a large stage set at the back of the room.
Part of Evenchick’s plan for helping struggling local artists is to also hire them as Live on Elgin staff members. “It’s going to be a really cool place,” says Danielle Allard, a local musician. “I love how community focused it is.”
Live on Elgin is already showing signs of success as two full months of available time are already rented. Evenchick says he is now taking reservations for July and August.
With opening night just a few months away, Live on Elgin has announced its grand opening with a free concert from The Peptides and The Hornets.