Jalynn Bennett Amphitheatre
A Dynamic Outdoor Theatre in the Heart of the Community
The Jalynn Bennett Amphitheatre is a new, three-season performance space situated in the courtyard of Traill College. The Amphitheatre meets a longstanding community need for a centrally located, outdoor stage.
As a dynamic space of performance and exhibition, the Amphitheatre will also provide increased and improved access for Canadians (particularly youth, seniors, and Indigenous peoples) to arts and culture in the heart of downtown Peterborough.
Nestled amongst the designated heritage buildings of Traill College, the new, yet sympathetically-designed performance space offers artists, creators, and heritage practitioners a professional cultural facility for a rich variety of arts and heritage experiences accessible to a wide range of communities and interests.
The Amphitheatre is named after the late Jalynn Bennett, a dynamic community booster who ardently believed in the value of both arts and heritage and the importance for all Canadians to access collaborative spaces of creation and presentation in their community.
Picture a walk to the Jalynn Bennett Amphitheatre...on a warm summer evening to take in a Shakespearean play or an acoustic music performance. Our new Amphitheatre features:
- A dynamic, three-season performance space, situated in the courtyard of Traill College
- Tiered seating for 140 people, professional lighting, and carefully directed sound, utilizing the designs of ancient Greece that contain acoustics.
- An opportunity to provide increased and improved access to arts and culture in the heart of downtown Peterborough
- A tribute to Jalynn Bennet, a dynamic community booster who ardently believed in the value of both arts and heritage
Interested in booking the Jalynn Bennett Amphitheatre for your next event?
For more information please contact the Traill College Office at traillbooking@trentu.ca.
Catharine Parr Traill College is located in the heart of Peterborough, Ontario. It offers an important physical connection between the University and the greater Peterborough community.
For over five decades, the College has been a hub for cultural expression, music, theatre, film, and debate where youth and community members mingle and engage with professional artists and scholars.
For a calendar view or list of upcoming events and programming at the Jalynn Bennett Amphitheatre please click on the link provided below.
The new amphitheatre is the first phase of a longer-term vision that would see Traill College become Trent’s centre for arts and culture in the heart of Peterborough. In the future, a second phase of the project could include the improvement of adjacent Wallis Hall and Bagnani Hall to support the activities of the Amphitheatre. This could entail the extension of accessible walkways on the site; the creation of expanded seating and facilities in the Amphitheatre; the addition of much-needed acoustical improvements at Bagnani Hall; as well the renovation of existing spaces for the storage of additional sets, equipment, and costumes.
The Amphitheatre at Traill College is the first step in Trent University’s fostering of a larger community space for performance and expression. The projected cost for the Amphitheatre will be approximately $1.4 million (which includes landscaping, theatrical sound and lighting, a professional stage, and accessible pathways). Currently, almost $900,000 has been raised for the project. Efforts continue to raise funds to assist with the completion and continued operation of the Jalynn Bennett Amphitheatre.
Specific naming opportunities still exist for key aspects of the build and include:
- Outdoor patio in front of The Trend restaurant
- Main stage
- Sound, lighting, and cabling
- Backstage and storage
Jalynn Bennett, CM (1943-2015) was a trailblazer. In an era when men dominated corporate Canada, she was a prominent fixture in the boardrooms of the nation’s most prominent institutions.
As a Director of the Bank of Canada, the CIBC, CanWest Global, or as the chair of the Trent University Board of Governors, she possessed boundless energy and vision in everything she did. Throughout her many roles, she realized great success while empowering the dreams of others.
After her death, the Jalynn Bennett Estate placed a call for “bold” and empowering project ideas. The executors recognized the Amphitheatre, proposed at Traill College, as a project that could bring the University and community together through a shared love of cultural expression.
For more information about the Jalynn Bennett Amphitheatre, or about Trent’s commitment to arts, culture, and heritage in the community, please contact:
Traill College
Traill College Office, SH106
Phone: 705.748.1011 x7020
Dr. Michael Eamon
Principal, Catharine Parr Traill College, Trent University
Phone: 705.748.1011 x6218