© 2009 Christian Cassidy. Updated December 2012, August 2026
Address: 281 Donald Street (Map)
Architect: C. Howard Crane (Detroit)
Contractor: Alex McDonald (Vancouver)
Interior Designer: Theodore Jagmin (Detroit)
Opened: January 2, 1920
Cost: $300,000
Source: Toronto History on Flickr
After relocating the headquarters of their theatre chain from the U.S. to Toronto in 1915, the Allen family went on a Canadian expansion spree.
In November 1917, their luxurious new flagship theatre opened in downtown Toronto. Designed by Detroit architect C. Howard Crane, who is credited with over 300 theatres around the world, it was used as the prototype for theatres in Vancouver, Calgary, and Winnipeg.
April 2, 1919, Manitoba Free Press
The Allen chain purchased a number of existing Manitoba properties between 1917 and 1919. In July 1917, Brandon's Palace Theatre was renovated into an Allen Theatre. In Winnipeg, it took over the Province, Dominion, Bijou, Gaiety, and Rex.
The company was constructing new theatres in Edmonton and Regina in the spring of 1918 when word came out of Toronto that Winnipeg would be next in line. J. J. Allen, company vice-president, told the Free Press: "The site for the new Winnipeg theatre has not yet been decided upon. Although, several central locations are under consideration.”
April 12, 1919, Manitoba Free Press
The company chose a site on Donald Street for the new venue. Herb Gage, Allen's advance man for Western projects, relocated here from Regina to oversee the planning and construction.
The initial construction estimate was $300,000 (about $5.3 million in 2026 dollars). To help finance the project, "Allen's Theatres Winnipeg Ltd." was created and sold $200,000 in shares.
Construction was delayed early in the process due to labour strife that culminated in the Winnipeg General Strike. It resumed on June 27, 1919 and was Winnipeg's first major post-strike project.
Two shifts of construction workers were hired in order to meet the original construction deadline of the end of 1919. Things were on track by August, and contracts for the interior work were let. By October, there were three shifts of men working day and night to complete the building.
Things were set for a Christmas Day opening with one major exception: the 2,000 theatre chairs had not arrived! They had been shipped from Minneapolis, but went missing en route to Winnipeg. Opening night had to be pushed back to New Year's Eve, then into January, while the search for the furniture continued.
Company president Bernard Allen, who was visiting the city in advance of the opening, dispatched Herb Gage, now the supervisor of all of Allen's Canadian construction projects, to Minneapolis to purchase more chairs.
While delayed at a small town in rural Minnesota, Gage looked out at his surroundings and noticed some boxcars sitting on a siding. He checked the car numbers and found that they were the ones containing the Allen Theatre's chairs.
The chairs were soon back on track to Winnipeg, and a new opening date of January 2, 1920 was announced.
Winnipeg's Allen Theatre. Source: (The Year Past 1986)
Though the Winnipeg venue replicated Allen's 1917 flagship Toronto theatre, the company's continued financial success and new technologies introduced in the years since were incorporated into the Winnipeg building's design to make it Allen's new standard in luxury theatres.
Its National Historic Site write-up considers it "one of Canada's first great movie palaces." There were some lovely old live theatres also showing movies at the time, but there were no purpose-built movie houses built to that level of grandeur.
Allen Theatre interior. R. McInnis postcard collection.
Moviegoers would arrive at the theatre protected from rain and snow by the marquee that ran the length of the building. The ticket booth and lineup area were located inside. Beyond that was the main lobby.
The 2,000-seat hall had two floors, a modification on the other Western Allen theatres. The main floor, which held the majority of the seats, offered roomy, oversized chairs covered in leather. The second-floor mezzanine had a large lounge area outfitted by Eaton's with plush carpets, couches, and settees. This led to a small balcony fronted by a series of eight loges with wicker chairs.
Technological advances included a new style of ventilation system that cost $52,000 ($905k in 2026 dollars). There was an oil heating system fed by an 8,000-gallon fuel tank buried under the back lane that eliminated the need for coal. The building was cooled geothermally.
January 2, 1920, Manitoba Free Press
Particular attention was paid to the lighting.
The hall's massive dome light was fitted with red, blue and amber bulbs that reflected light down onto the audience to give a warm glow. All lights were set on dimmers so as not to suddenly come on or off, allowing the eyes to adjust to the change. Aisle chairs had a light built into the underside of the armrest to provide floor lighting.
The Free Press noted: "The indirect lighting is massive and handsome. The great high-air spaces give evidence of the broadness of vision in the designer. The rich but unobtrusive decorations, the hand-worked plaster ornaments, show the genuineness which has marked the entire progress of the work."
The lights were never completely turned off, even during the film, which offered safety for workers and " ...complete protection from the 'dark houses' that offer temptations."
January 3, 1920, Manitoba Free Press
The Allen Theatre's doors opened at 7 p.m. on January 2nd, 1920 to a lavish affair.
In attendance were company president Bernard Allen, his sons Jay and Jules, and a who's who of Winnipeg society. After a series of musical numbers, it was time for speeches. Ex-mayor Richard Waugh declared, "It was buildings like this one which allowed the distinct difference between a town and a metropolis."
When the formal part of the program ended, it was time for a newsreel, a Mutt and Jeff short, and the feature film "Upstairs" with Mabel Normand.
Music was an important part of a theatre in the days of silent film. The Allen boasted a large pipe organ, which hadn't yet arrived on opening night, and an orchestra pit for the 15-member Allen Theatre Orchestra.
The Allen's first conductor was 23-year-old Joseph Shadwick.
Despite his age, he was already a popular figure on Winnipeg's musical scene. The son of violinist Philip Shadwick, he had been performing at recitals and winning national awards since the age of 8. He led the Allen's orchestra for at least a couple of years before moving on to a career that included being concertmaster for the London Symphony Orchestra and the Royal Opera House in London.
May 19, 1923, Manitoba Free Press
At the time of the Allen's opening, there seemed to be no end to its theatre empire. It operated over 200 venues in North America and made forays into the British market. That quick growth, however, meant huge debt, and within a couple of years, the corporation began to fail.
The Allen theatre chain declared bankruptcy in 1923. Famous Players Canadian Corporation stepped in and leased many of the Allen properties, eventually buying most of them.
Questioned as to why they chose to take over the Met, considering that it was just a block away from their own flagship theatre, the Capitol, a Famous Players official explained that the Allen always performed well and had introduced a number of innovations to the theatre market that had been rolled out across the country.
June 23, 1923, Manitoba Free Press
The change in ownership brought a number of other changes to the theatre.
On June 23, 1923, it was closed for six weeks to be redecorated. One of the major changes made was to refit the small stage area to allow for larger, live productions, thus making it a more versatile venue.
The theatre also needed a new name. For this, Famous Players teamed up with the Manitoba Free Press for a naming contest with a $200 grand prize. In just a month, the paper received 43,100 entries that had to be sifted through!
The front-runner was the Prince of Wales with 800 votes, but Mayor S. J. Farmer, who was one of the judges, pushed for Metropolitan, which received 194 votes. He felt it was modern and reflected the growing, modern city in which it was located. He won over the other judges, and the selection was sent to Famous Players in Toronto for final approval.
Each of the 194 winners received a cheque for their portion of the $200 and were hosted to a night at the theatre during the opening week.
"The Met" reopened on August 4, 1923, with a trombone concert by vaudeville musician Grace Brewer Allen and the Jackie Coogan feature film Circus Days.
October 25, 1928, Manitoba Free Press
The next big change came in 1928 when the Met was again closed and refitted with the Movietone Sound System, which synchronized film with a soundtrack.
On October 26th at 6 pm, it reopened to show Winnipeg's first "talking picture." The program consisted of a newsreel, a comedy short, and the Janet Gaynor feature film The Street Angel. The film itself contained no dialogue, just a synchronized musical score.
The theatre closed for major renovations again in 1942, which included replacing the chairs that caused such a headache back in 1919!
In the 1930s and 40s, it was home to Winnipeg's version of Eaton's Good Deed Club, a Saturday morning radio program.
November 21, 1987, Winnipeg Free PressThe theatre remained a first-run movie house until November 1987, when Famous Players closed it in favour of their newly constructed triplex in Portage Place.
In 1990, the Amy Street Steam Plant, which provided heat to many of Winnipeg's older buildings, closed. Famous Players declined to put a central heating system into the vacant building.
The Met became a National Historic Site in 1991, and it became property of the city in 1996.
Over the years there have been several failed attempts to revive the Metropolitan. They include:
1989 - Famous Players said there were two groups negotiating a takeover to make it a dinner theatre venue. (April 13, 1989, Winnipeg Free Press)
1993 - The Historically Aware Theatre Arts Group wanted to purchase the Met and Capitol to create a theatre and training centre for the arts (August 16, 1993, Winnipeg Free Press)
1996 - The owner of Mr. Canada, a local tour bus company, reached an agreement in principle with the Forks North Portage Corporation to take over the Met and Capitol as part of a "Nashville North" live music district. (December 6, 1996, Winnipeg Free Press)
1997 - The Friends of the Metropolitan Theatre wanted to turn it into a performing arts venue. (September 2, 1997, Winnipeg Free Press)
2005 - A group of investors wanted to create a Canadian Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ( Nov 13, 2005, Winnipeg Free Press) but that idea died the following year.
June 30, 2011, Winnipeg Free Press
The Metropolitan was sold to Leo Ledowhowski's CanadInns hotel company in 2007, and initial work was done to to replace the heating system to save further deterioration of the interior. The following year, the company purchased the nearby Radisson Hotel. In 2018, it purchased the Somerset Building that sits between the two.
Ledohowski told the Free Press in June 2011 that work was underway on a $16 million multi-function event space with a lobby lounge, and the main hall hall, which would have its sloped floor evened out, could be used as a theatre or banquet space. A kitchen and washrooms would be located in a new extension constructed to the south.
The project would be led by Number TEN Architectural Group. (This is their project page.)
The Metropolitan Entertainment Centre opened in December 2012.
From CanadInns on Facebook
Leo Ledohowski died in August 2025. One year later, the company put the Met and adjoining Radisson Hotel and Somerset Building up for sale as a single lot or individual buildings.
Historic Building Links:
Metropolitan Theatre City of Winnipeg historic building report (an excellent source on the architectural details and layout of the building)
Federal Historic Site description Parks Canada
Metropolitan Entertainment Centre Winnipeg Architecture Foundation
Metropolitan Theatre Silver Screens on the Prairies (excerpt)
Media (some links may be broken due to time):
Winnipeg's Met theatre set to reopen CBC (Dec 2012)
Old Met Theatre makes a comeback Winnipeg Free Press (Dec 2012)
Historic Met gets $1.5 m grant CBC (June 2011)
Met makeover about to begin WFP (Mar 2009)
Work underway on Met Theatre WFP (Dec 2007)
Sale of Met to CanadInns CanadInns News Release (Apr 2007)
Also see My Met Theatre Photo album
Media (some links may be broken due to time):
Winnipeg's Met theatre set to reopen CBC (Dec 2012)
Old Met Theatre makes a comeback Winnipeg Free Press (Dec 2012)
Historic Met gets $1.5 m grant CBC (June 2011)
Met makeover about to begin WFP (Mar 2009)
Work underway on Met Theatre WFP (Dec 2007)
Sale of Met to CanadInns CanadInns News Release (Apr 2007)
Also see My Met Theatre Photo album
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