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Third Spaces
Third spaces disrupt the cycle of home, work (or school), then home again. Third spaces take us away from our to do lists and the noise of daily life. In a third space, we can just be. More than that, we can connect, we can explore, we can experience, we can even make-believe.
Book stores – like Yellowed Pages in Primary Trust – play this important role for many of us. Whether it’s browsing the shelves, settling in for a read, or joining a rousing Book Club debate.
Others find it in a coffee or donut shop, local pub, or – in Kenneth’s case – a tiki hut called Wally’s. A third space might be a public park, library, concert hall, place of worship, or the theatre.
Maybe it’s a knitting circle at your favourite café, or trivia night at a nearby brewery. Maybe it’s a local walking or running group. What matters is finding a place to put home and work aside, a place that meets you with whatever connection, playfulness, and self-expression mean to you.
We asked the company of Primary Trust to share their favourite Third Spaces with us …
Cherissa Richards – Director
“As a director, I travel across the country and find myself in new cities throughout the year. Every city has its own brand of unique coffee shops that have delicious pastries to try and a local pub with local beer on tap! Learning and getting to know these third spaces makes me feel like I’m part of that city and I look forward to revisiting them when I return!”
Ryan Hollyman – Clay / Sam / Le Pousselet Bartender
“For me, it’s any park space in the concrete surroundings of Toronto that will always bring me peace and comfort. And being with my son, at a Leafs game at the Scotiabank arena, when they are winning (which is not enough lately!), always brings me joy and excitement.”
Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah – Corinna
“It's OK Studios – a for BIPOC by BIPOC community hub and co-working space. The Toronto Reference Library – the resources go beyond what can be found on their shelves. It's thanks to a grant writing workshop I took there years ago, that I felt equipped to write my very first grant application. Office Coffee on Bathurst, and Space Unltd., the event space behind it – run by the coolest, kindest people, Brendan Philip and Leila Medina. Cities need spaces like these.”
Kai-Yueh Chen – Stage Manager
“There's a little hidden spot I bike to at Tommy Thompson Park in Toronto. It's very hidden, I set up my hammock and sometimes I'd just sit there for hours to read, or just watch the Toronto skyline ‘til sunset.”
Emma Jo Conlin – Assistant Stage Manager
“For a while, I would go to the AGO in Toronto to crochet, it was nice to create while I was around art. Third Spaces have become less present in my life since the pandemic. It is something I miss and would love to integrate back into my routine. Lately it feels that my friend's houses have become third spaces to each other - a space to exist together.”
Each time you join us at the Grand - in the red velvet seats of the Spriet Stage, in the Auburn for a workshop or performance, or in the Drewlo Lounge for a post-show talk - you are making space for that important third dimension of your life. And it means the world to us when you do.
Primary Trust, directed by Cherissa Richards, will have its opening night at the Grand Theatre later this month – giving London audiences first access to one of the most exciting new scripts to grip modern theatre before the production continues on to Crow’s Theatre in Toronto. Primary Trust will run from January 20 until February 7 on the Spriet Stage at the Grand Theatre. Tickets range from $25 to $97 and are available at www.grandtheatre.com, by phone at 519-672-8800, or at the Box Office, 471 Richmond Street.
The Grand Theatre is grateful to offer Canada Life Pay What You Can pricing, presented on Sunday, January 25 at 2:00 p.m., as well as a performance with ASL Interpretation on Saturday, January 31 at 2:00 p.m.
