The very first IMAX theater has gone dark, as the Cinesphere Ontario Place IMAX in Toronto, Ontario has closed due to a 5-year "revitalization" project of the Ontario Place waterfront park.

The closure appears to have happened with the announcement on February 1, 2012 that the provincial government was closing most of Ontario Place while plans for the park are pursued. While some areas of the park will remain open, the IMAX theater will not. They are planning to reopen the new Ontario Place in 2017 to celebrate Canada's 150th anniversary.

The IMAX web site states that the first permanent IMAX projection system was installed at Ontario Place's Cinesphere in Toronto in 1971.

The Ontario Place web site documented a renovation that happened to the IMAX theater in 2011, where a new IMAX 3D (film) projector was installed, as well as a new sound system, screen, and 615 stadium-style seats (down from 752).

The Cinesphere is a geodesic dome, but its 80' wide by 60' high screen was flat (not an IMAX Dome). Digital sound was added in 1991 for the Toronto premiere of Rolling Stones: At the Max.

IMAX movie fans in the Toronto area are going to have to look elsewhere for their really-big-screen fix. The nearest IMAX theaters are now AMC Yonge & Dundas 24, Scotiabank Theatre Toronto, and Ontario Science Centre IMAX (a dome). We're not sure about the sizes of these screens, however, so beware the less-than-really-big IMAX experience.

Related News Articles

• Ontario Place to Shut Down, Effective Immediately; Revitalization Effort to be Led by John Tory -- torontoist.com

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