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When it comes to kicking off Toronto’s 2023 concert season, Dave Chappelle isn’t wasting any time.
A smattering of seats remained at the time of this writing for the controversial Washington, D.C. comedian’s Jan. 1 stand at Scotiabank Arena — a concert-in-the-round situation that offers an 18,623-seat capacity — and they’re not cheap: thanks to the “dynamic ticket pricing” that has drawn largely negative attention, a single ducat will set you back $514.88.
No wonder Chappelle’s labelling this show “In Your Dreams” — and unfortunately that may be the case for most of the big-ticket entertainment coming our way over the next 365 days.
There have been a couple of really big summer shows already announced for the Rogers Centre, currently being renovated: general floor admission to Ed Sheeran’s +-=÷× tour on June 17 and 18 costs $345.10 — $500 if you wish to sit in reserved sections — while P!nk’s July 24 Summer Carnival tour has front-of-stage VIP tickets peaking at $1,069 down to the cheapest option at $94.70 for the nosebleeds.
It’s probably a safe bet that at some point the Taylor Swift Eras Tour will make its way to Toronto as, logistically speaking, there are two five- and six-day gaps between Chicago and Detroit, and Detroit and Pittsburgh dates that make a quick border hop feasible. It should be noted that Swift’s last three appearances here dating back to 2013 have been two-date sellouts at the Rogers Centre; one could surmise she’ll go for a trio or quartet of dates this time around and still not quench the thirst of Swifties hankering to see their heroine in action.
The same logic could be applied to the first tour in seven years by perennial favourite Bruce Springsteen and the E. Street Band: the only somewhat local appearance by the Boss is a March 23 date at Buffalo’s KeyCenter Arena.
While the North American leg jumps the Atlantic for a late spring/early summer European tour following an April 14 date in Newark, N.J., live music plans beyond July 25 have yet to be announced, leaving plenty of summer and fall for Springsteen to squeeze in a date or two at either Scotiabank Arena or the Rogers Centre.
But again, don’t expect any breaks from the Swift or Springsteen camps if prices skyrocket into the mid-four-figure range: they will both take whatever the market can bear — and it really is about demand versus supply.
Hometown ambassador Drake has also announced his intention to tour and, whether it’s with 21 Savage to support their recent “Her Loss” effort or solo, he can easily sell out a couple of Scotiabank Arena dates or a Rogers Centre outing outside the parameters of his annual star-studded OVO Fest.
Other more concrete appearances include country music star Morgan Wallen, still riding the wave of 2021’s “Dangerous: The Double Album” and bouncing back from the career impact of uttering a racial slur, with three shows, Sept. 14 to 16 at Budweiser Stage (only VIP tickets ranging from $784 to $1,415 remain); and homegrown country pop royalty Shania Twain, with three Toronto dates: June 23 and 24 at Budweiser Stage — where verified resale lawn seats are $242.76 and official platinum tickets peak at $2,660.31 — and Oct. 22 at Scotiabank, where prices range from $105 to $1,141.40 platinum packages.
Rock aficionados will get two chances to see Arctic Monkeys: Aug. 30 and Sept. 1 at Budweiser Stage, with tickets ranging from $95.20 to $368.90.
On a smaller scale, there are successive sold-out gigs offered by local veteran guitar wiz David Wilcox (the Horseshoe, Jan. 27 to 28, $59.50); burlesque queen and Marilyn Manson ex Dita Von Teese (Queen Elizabeth Theatre, Feb. 4 to 5, $59.59 to $399), and Chicago comedian Matteo Lane (Queen Elizabeth, Feb. 9 to 11, $34.50 to $265).
- Montreal electro-soul combo Busty and the Bass is at the Drake Underground March 1 to 4 ($30 general admission).
- Toronto’s July Talk with opener Crown Lands is sold out at Massey Hall March 10 to 11.
- Respective Atlanta and St. Louis rappers JID and Smino play a sold-out History March 13 and 15.
- Chicago blues guitar legend and octogenarian Buddy Guy bring his Damn Right Farewell Tour to Massey Hall March 30 to 31 ($63.10 to $153.50).
- Toronto R&B duo dvsn has sold-out History dates April 6 to 7.
- A metalcore double bill of August Burns Red/The Devil Wears Prada is at the Danforth Music Hall May 9 to 10 ($97.50 to $186.83 the first night; $50.56 to $65.30 the second).
- California rockers Blink-182 have sold out Scotiabank Arena May 11 and 15.
- Delaware blues rock guitar grinder George Thorogood & the Destroyers are at the El Mocambo May 19 to 21 ($174.65 to $302.95).
- Santa Barbara, Calif., industrial trance DJ Seven Lions is at History May 20 to 21 ($217.42 to $315.06 the first night; $58.50 to $155.17 the second).
- British comedian Jimmy Carr plays Meridian Hall May 24 to 25 ($73.44 to $486.63).
- Death Cab for Cutie does Massey Hall June 2 to 3 ($65.93 to $113.33).
- And finally, Utah alt rockers the Backseat Lovers are at History June 3 to 4 ($94.01 to $180.84).
There are also some notable hip-hop and R&B arena debuts, commencing with St. Louis rapper SZA’s first headlining tour to support her highly acclaimed “SOS” album (Scotiabank Arena, Feb. 25, verified resale tickets only, $281.10 to $3,437); continuing with Nigeria’s Wizkid (Scotiabank Arena, March 19, sold out) and ending with local rapper NAV (Scotiabank Arena, April 11, $77.50 to $285.57).
Electronic legends Depeche Mode play their first Toronto gig since 2018 and the first since the May 2022 death of co-founder Andrew Fletcher at Scotiabank on April 7 ($163.25 standard ticket to $4,334.52 verified resale). And pop superstar Janet Jackson promises to deliver a new album before her May 23 Budweiser Stage date (official platinum ticket range $530.41 to $2102.17).
A few more highlights:
- “An Evening With Dan Mangan” at Longboat Hall (Jan. 19, $35)
- Composer Jean-Michel Blais (Jan. 20, Koerner Hall, $21 to $82)
- Kid Koala x Lealani (Feb. 2, the Axis Club, $32.83 to $43.63)
- The Charlatans/Ride double bill (Feb. 4, History, $71.40 verified resale tickets)
- U.K. rockers Bush (Feb. 9, History, $110.67 to $345.45)
- Unison Jam Karaoke Edition featuring members of Finger Eleven and I Mother Earth (Feb. 9, Phoenix Concert Theatre, $32.25, all proceeds to the Unison Fund)
- Blue Rodeo, “Songs Seldom Heard” deep catalogue performance (Feb. 25, Massey Hall, $393.76 to $775)
- Talking Heads alumnus Jerry Harrison and King Crimson guitarist Adrian Belew team up for selections from the Heads album “Remain in Light” (Danforth Music Hall, March 2, $39.50 to $69.50).
- The I Love the ’90s rap blowout with Vanilla Ice, Rob Base, the Sugarhill Gang and Young MC (Casino Rama, March 3, $68.96 to $96.55)
- The Toronto Symphony Orchestra teams up with the hit TV show “Murdoch Mysteries” for “Murder in F Major,” a screening of a new episode with a live performance of award-winning composer Robert Carli’s score (Roy Thomson Hall, March 10 to 11, $55 to $140).
- Comedian Sarah Silverman (March 12, Meridian Hall, $87.49 to $507.86)
- The Lemonheads perform “It’s a Shame About Ray” in its entirety (March 31, Phoenix Concert Theatre, $35 to $49.50).
- Punk rockers Black Flag perform “My War” in its entirety (April 17, the Rockpile, $45.70).
- The Mountain Goats (April 17, Phoenix Concert Theatre, $35 to $49.50)
- A vocal powerhouse double bill of Serena Ryder and KT Tunstall (April 21, Massey Hall, $39.40 to $86.80)
- Minimalist composer Steve Reich (March 25, Meridian Arts Centre, $31.50 to $96)
- The Dream House Quartet, featuring classical pianists Katia and Marielle Labèque, the National guitarist Bryce Dessner and guitarist David Chalmin perform new works from Radiohead’s Thom Yorke, Dessner, Philip Glass, Michael Nyman and others (May 3, Meridian Arts Centre, sold out).
- John Mellencamp at Massey Hall (June 19, $107.81 to $549 plus)
- Jazz legend Herbie Hancock performs at Meridian Hall as part of the Toronto Jazz Festival on June 29 following lengthy COVID-related delays ($63.34 to $171.59).
Finally, if you’re a Billy Joel fan, the “Piano Man” makes his first Canadian appearance in almost nine years as the grand opening act at the OLG Stage at Fallsview Casino in Niagara Falls, a new 5,000-seat entertainment venue. Tickets available either officially or through verified resale will cost you from $595 to $5,639.41.
Some consumer notes: don’t fret about the exorbitant ticket prices for some of these acts. The whole dynamic ticket pricing concept is determined by constantly shifting algorithms, so there’s a chance — a slim chance, mind you — that prices might drop a bit closer to the actual show dates as these so-called verified resellers try to dump their tickets.
For sold-out shows, keep in mind that groups of tickets held by the artist might be released at face value a day or two before showtime: for those, you have to monitor the box office closely and be ready to head to the venue and scoop them up.
As much as the concert season is beginning to heat up and many more choices will be announced in the days, weeks and months to come, the GTA could also have two or three new venues before the 2023 calendar year is wrapped.
The Pickering Casino has announced that its 2,500-seat theatre is pretty much finished; they have yet to book any acts. Toronto’s Casino Woodbine has projected that a new 5,000-seat theatre should be complete by the end of the year. And Massey Hall’s Allied Music Centre will open two new venues for developing artists sometime within the next six months or so.
The verdict: Toronto, one of the world’s busiest concert hubs, is about to get a whole lot busier.
Correction — Dec. 29, 2022: Minimalist composer Steve Reich’s appearance at Meridian Arts Centre is on March 25, 2023. A previous version of this article misstated the date of the event.
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