The Beaches’ energetic set kicks off a peek behind the curtains at Niagara Falls’ OLG Stage
Published February 17, 2023 at 11:04 am
The first thing you notice about the 200,000-square-foot OLG Stage at Fallsviews Casino Resort in Niagara Falls is that if you’re standing on stage looking out at the seats, it seems huge, cavernous in size.
The truth, however, is that it really isn’t. For starters, compared to stadiums and arenas, 5,000 seats is actually an intimate venue.
However, the truly amazing thing is learning that because of the tiered seating and two balconies, no seat among those 5,000 is further away than 150 feet from the performers.
The second thing you notice are that the acoustics in the venue are phenomenal.
It turned out that even the performers who have played there in the past have noticed the sound is crystal clear. That sentiment was echoed by Juno-awarding winning band, The Beaches, when they put on an energetic eight-song set for the media, who were invited to the venue yesterday (Feb. 16) for an exclusive look behind the curtain.
After their set, the band’s four members – singer-bass player Jordan Miller, drummer Eliza Enman-McDaniel and keyboard-guitarist Leandra Earl and guitarist Kylie Miller – did a Q-and-A with the assembled throng and one of their first comments was about the sound clarity.
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“The biggest thing I noticed was how amazing it sounds on stage,” said Enman-McDaniel sitting on the 6,400 square foot stage. “And it’s a pretty leveled-up venue compared to some of the places we’ve played at.”
The members of The Beaches do a Q-and-A with members of the media after their show and noted that the sound in the venue was phenomenal.
That’s not surprising given the time and effort put into the construction of the $130 million OLG stage, which started back in October 2017.
After three years of construction, it was ready to roll out the red carpet for bands and performers in June 2020 but got stopped cold by the world-wide pandemic.
In fact, it took so long for restrictions to be lifted that the first show – tapings of the TV show Canada’s Got Talent – were the first to grace the stage back in October 2022.
However, that two-year gap gave venue management some time to tinker and that included optimizing the acoustics.
OLG spokesman Tony Bitonti said every performing arts facility of this size continually needs to be adjusted and monitored. With the extra time afforded by the pandemic, “We had that opportunity.”
With a dozen or so acts having already performed there, the stage will see it Grand Opening night on Feb. 25 with the legendary Billy Joel.
Yesterday’s look behind the curtain took members of the media through all the backstage rooms – from sound to dressing rooms – and gave a rare opportunity to see what goes on behind a single performance on stage.
While to many, the OLG Stage seems to be part of Fallsview Casino’s physical structure, it’s actually a separate building that’s built directly above the existing Hilton Hotel parking garage. It’s attached to the casino property by two glass-enclosed walkways.
But to concert-goers, factoids like the venue using eight million pounds of steel during its construction are likely less relevant. What matters the most to the paying public is that no matter where they’re sitting, even in the far reaches of the “nose-bleeds,” they could throw a softball and hit the stage square-centre.
That and the fact that regardless of their vantage point, the acoustics will make the show sound like they’re sitting where that softball hit the stage.
Here’s the stage view from the top row of the top balcony. Regardless of your seats, you’re never more than 150 feet from the action at the OLG Stage.