About us

Meridian Theatres @ Centrepointe History

Meridian Theatres @ Centrepointe opened on May 3, 1988 as Centrepointe Theatre. The grand opening starred “local boy” and internationally renowned entertainer and impressionist, Rich Little. Since then the theatre has hosted an extensive list of truly great artists performing to sold-out houses, including Sir Peter Ustinov, Christopher Plummer, Liona Boyd, Sarah McLachlan, Matthew Good, Our Lady Peace, Buddy Guy, Tom Cochrane, Boyz II Men, Bruce Cockburn, Andrea Martin, The Temptations, Rick Mercer, The Wild Kratts, Blue Rodeo, the Barenaked Ladies, Kids in the Hall, the Rankins, Leahy, Lyle Lovett, the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, Howie Mandel, Craig Ferguson, Steven Wright, The Trailer Park Boys, Jim Gaffigan, Richie Havens, Cowboy Junkies, Art Garfunkel, Gerry Dee, Norm MacDonald, Tom Green, Brent Butt, Randy Newman, John Prine, Irish Rovers, Mike MacDonald, Black Violin, Randy Bachman, Burton Cummings, Jim Belushi, Tokyo Police Club, Lisa Loeb, Ricky Skaggs, Graham Nash, Joe Jackson, Shaun Majumder, Indigo Girls, Kacey Musgraves, Harlem Gospel Choir, Russell Peters, Fred Penner and a great many others.

Les Lye Studio Theatre

In 2010, as part of the Centrepointe Expansion a 199-seat studio theatre was added. Well received by the emergent artist community, the studio theatre is versatile and offers many configuration options to clients. With the addition of the new theatre space, Centrepointe Theatre, at the time, changed its logo and name to include both venues rebranding as Centrepointe Theatres, which in 2018 was rebranded as Meridian Theatres @ Centrepointe. The studio theatre was renamed in 2019 in honour of Ottawa’s own Les Lye.  Mr. Lye was recognized for his acting and entertainment career that spanned more than half a century in Ottawa. Mr. Lye started his career in radio but is probably best known for his TV work with CJOH-Ottawa and Nickelodeon. He was a star on You Can’t Do That on Television and Uncle Willy & Floyd, which he created with his friend and fellow entertainer Bill Luxton. In 2003, Mr. Lye was recognized by the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists with a lifetime achievement award. Mr. Lye is also known for his voice work and has appeared in animated works including The Raccoons, several Care Bears specials, The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin and Dennis the Menace.

The Les Lye Studio Theatre is a green building and has been designed and built following a stringent set of environmental performance criteria. As such, the studio theatre falls into the LEED rating system and has a Silver level of LEED certification!

What does it mean to have LEED certification?

LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is an internationally recognized green building certification system, providing third-party verification that a building or community was designed and built using strategies aimed at improving performance across all the metrics that matter most: energy savings, water efficiency, CO2 emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality, and stewardship of resources. (www.usgbc.org)

Staff and volunteers

The multiple award-winning Meridian Theatres @ Centrepointe Volunteer Company operates in partnership with professional theatre staff and links the theatre and its artists to the community. Over 200 dedicated individuals contribute their energy and creativity to make the theatres and its shows more accessible and affordable, by donating time and skills to stage, house, and creative resources crews. Since 1988, when the volunteer company was created as the Centrepointe Theatre Volunteer Company, the volunteers have donated services worth over $1.5 million and are among Meridian Theatres @ Centrepointe’s most valued assets.

Meridian Theatres @ Centrepointe are owned and operated by the City of Ottawa.