Evergreen resurrected its Wild in the City gala Thursday for an al fresco dinner and an evening of entertainment in the factory buildings at the Evergreen Brick Works, which will undergo a massive renovation project set to begin this fall. "It's an old industrial building—it's not a building that's really set for events yet—so it's a very special occasion. In addition, in September we're breaking ground on phase one of the space,” said Marilotte Bloemen, director of public relations for Evergreen, a national charity dedicated to making cities more liveable. "This is a unique opportunity for people to see the inside before it gets closed off."
Bloemen reported that the organization "wanted to do an event to create some buzz [about the project and the $55 million capital campaign]...the intent is to educate this group and jazz them for it," she said. In the late 1990s, Evergreen held Wild in the City as an annual event in the atrium at BCE Place. And Bloemen said it will likely become an annual fund-raiser again in the future. "Although talk of the event started in the fall, the real work started in February," she said, adding that the nature of the venue presented a number of challenges.
"Absolutely there have been challenges from a permit point of view," she said, noting that organizers had to fence in the area because the licensed event was adjacent to a public park. Bringing the vision for the event, including the fire and water theme, to life also presented a challenge. "It's not a hotel where all the services are available. So we're talking about long extension cords and generators," Bloemen said, noting that the venue also impacted the dress code for the evening and prompted organizers to advise female attendees to leave their heels at home.
Event producer Nathalie Niddam consulted with Evergreen's artistic director, Ferruccio Sardella, on the event. "We're talking about the past and the future at a point in time when the site is going to transform forever, so we want to bring everyone in here to celebrate this moment," Sardella said of the former factory building, pointing out that the evening's fire and water theme is representative of the building's past (as a brickyard) and future (as an environmental centre).
Organizers placed outdoor fireplaces throughout the venue and Jamie Kennedy—who is opening a slow-food restaurant focused on chef training as part of phase one of the new venue—cooked a meal on an outdoor barbecue beside Building 8, where the 445 guests dined al fresco. Appetizers included asparagus with wild-leek shooters, lobster canapés, cold smoked-whitefish canapés, and green-pea arancini. The meal began with chilled sorrel soup with beet glaze followed by hot smoked lake trout with new potato salad and honey-mustard sauce, and Dingo farms braise and roast beef with root vegetables and horseradish. Kennedy served a rhubarb millefeuille with strawberry ice cream for dessert.
The zero-waste event included a host of entertainers such as the Canadian Tenors, who performed during the cocktail reception, and circus acts with acrobats hanging from the rafters of Building 15, the heritage building where the kilns were located when the site operated as a brick yard. Toronto set designer Glenn Davidson lit the building for the event. "This is an immense space. It's 300 by 300 feet," he said, explaining that the size of the venue presented a challenge. "That was the main task, deciding how to light this space and still keep an air of mystery about it." Davidson concentrated on lighting the architectural elements, using warm colours on one side of the venue and cool on the other.
As the renovations move forward Evergreen is preparing to market the venue for special events, Bloemen said. "It will be the end of illegal raves and the beginning of special event planning," she said. The site will be home to Evergreen Gardens, a demonstration garden showcasing the latest innovations in greening and pesticide-free landscaping; the Evergreen Plant Nursery; a weekend farmer’s market; space for community programming; a large public rooftop garden; and event spaces for theatre, art exhibitions, and private functions.
Event sponsors included Wines of France, Steam Whistle, Diageo, and Merchants of Green Coffee.
