The Shaw Festival has three theatres, two within the same building, and one in downtown Niagara-on-the-Lake a short walk from the main theatre. And a beautiful stage on the Festival Theatre grounds – the Spiegeltent. Addresses and parking information for each theatre are listed below. Or, set your GPS to the Memorial Clock Tower at 26 Queen St, Niagara-on-the-Lake — it’ll situate you nicely in the middle of town.
Niagara-on-the-Lake sees many visitors, especially in the summer months. We highly recommend arriving early in case of heavy traffic and to find parking, especially on weekends. And the bonus? You get to enjoy more time in our beautiful historic town!
Flying in to see us?
From Toronto, Niagara Airbus offers door-to-door frequent shuttle service, or private car if flying to Billy Bishop, Hamilton or Niagara-on-the-Lake airports.
Information and booking at [email protected] | niagaraairbus.com
The Jackie Maxwell Studio Theatre is a 267-seat theatre located in the Shaw Festival’s Production Centre (same location as the Festival Theatre).
To access the theatre, use the Production Centre entrance – the furthest set of doors adjacent to our driveway. The Jackie Maxwell Studio Theatre offers an intimate theatre experience and shares an outdoor patio with the Festival Theatre which overlooks beautiful gardens and grounds which are ideal for a stroll. You can pre-order your drink for intermission and it will be waiting for you, giving you more time to enjoy our serene and stunning surroundings.
This 305-seat theatre – right in the heart of the old town – was built as a vaudeville house to entertain the troops stationed in Niagara-on-the-Lake during World War I. The Royal George presents a modest exterior, but inside it’s all Edwardian gilt mouldings, red walls and golden lions! Enjoy the atmospheric basement bar and lounge lined with black and white photographs from past productions.
The Festival Theatre is The Shaw’s flagship theatre. This beautiful proscenium-arch theatre, lined with British Columbia cedar, seats 856, and features a Café and The Shawp, a retail shop featuring theatre memorabilia and the work of theatre and Niagara artisans. Enjoy your lunch or dinner or even just a light snack on our beautiful outdoor patio, with indoor seating also available. Pre-show and at intermission, sit under the wisteria and take in the peaceful grounds and reflecting pond, wander to our secret garden or shop for theatre souvenirs to bring home.
Follow the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW) toward Niagara. The QEW from Toronto can sometimes be heavy, please allow at least two hours for your drive. Once across the Garden City Skyway at St Catharines, take the Niagara-on-the-Lake exit, RR89 Glendale Ave North (38b). At the traffic light at York Road, turn left onto York Rd, then right onto Airport Rd. At Regional Road 55 (Niagara Stone Rd) turn right and follow 55 until it ends at the golf course (Queen St). Turn right for Old Town and all three theatres.
Take highways 401 and 403 to Hamilton, Ontario (402, 401 and 403 if coming through Sarnia). Line-ups at border crossings can cause delays. For border wait times at Windsor-Detroit, Sault Ste Marie and Sarnia-Port Huron, visit cbsa.gc.ca. Exit Hwy 403 to the Lincoln M. Alexander Pkwy, which becomes the Red Hill Valley Pkwy. Join the QEW and then follow directions from Toronto.
Cross the Niagara River into Canada at Buffalo (Peace Bridge), Niagara Falls, or Lewiston, NY. Line-ups at border crossings can cause delays. For border wait times, visit cbsa.gc.ca or contact the Niagara Falls Bridge Commission at 1-800-715-6722 (press option 4) for traffic conditions on bridges at Queenston–Lewiston, Niagara Falls and Buffalo – Fort Erie, Peace Bridge. You can take the QEW to Regional Road 55 (exit 38) if you like, but we recommend the scenic Niagara Parkway instead. It may take a little longer, especially in the summer months, but it’s an incredibly beautiful drive – down the Niagara River gorge, past orchards and vineyards, right to the door of the Festival Theatre and the Old Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake.
