Things to do in Canada – IAMNOTASTALKER

A few months back, while fellow stalker Owen and I were doing research on Michael J. Fox’s childhood home which I blogged about yesterday, I came across some information about a place called “the Michael J. Fox Theatre” which is located on the campus of Burnaby South Secondary School and, let me tell you, I just about passed out from excitement. I absolutely could NOT WAIT to tell Owen about the location, as he just so happens to be MJF’s biggest fan. Apparently, in November of 1995 Burnaby South renamed their 613-seat professional theatre, which originally opened in 1993, in recognition of the Canadian-born actor and his many achievements in the entertainment industry and contributions to the community that he once called home. Owen was extremely excited to hear about the theatre and I immediately added it to my list of Must-Stalk locations in Vancouver. So, Owen, this one’s for you! 🙂

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As I mentioned above, the Michael J. Fox Theatre is located on the campus of Burnaby South Secondary School, which is not actually the high school that Michael J. Fox attended as a teen. The actor was actually enrolled at the similarly-named Burnaby Central Secondary School, which is located about three miles north of Burnaby South. I’m not entirely sure why city officials did not dedicate a theatre in his honor at his actual alma mater, but I believe the reasoning behind the decision had to do with the fact that Burnaby South is a very technologically advanced institution that offers several communications and broadcasting courses to its 1,700-member student body. The school also televises its morning announcements via a daily news program each morning and offers a broadcasting class in which theatrically-inclined students can create and film short movies and television series which are then broadcast over the school’s airwaves during each lunch hour. Add to that the fact that the British Columbia School for the Deaf was moved to the Burnaby South campus in 1995 and that the theatre which now bears MJF’s name was designed with the hearing-impaired, and other special needs students, in mind, and it’s obvious why they chose the campus as the location of the Michael J. Fox Theatre.

And, let me tell you, I just about died when we pulled up to the Burnaby South campus and spotted the above sign. So darn cool! 🙂

Because the theatre is located on a high school campus and because we were stalking the place on a Saturday, I didn’t have high hopes that we would actually be able to see the inside of it. So, imagine my surprise when we pulled up and found the front doors standing wide open, thanks to a dance recital that was taking place inside. YAY!

The Michael J. Fox Theatre is truly beautiful inside, but my favorite part had to be the huge tile wall mosaic made up of brightly-colored musicians and dancers which greets patrons as they enter (pictured above).

And while the theatre’s logo, which consists of MJF’s initials written in his own handwriting – which I think is just about the coolest thing ever! – appears in numerous spots throughout the theatre, sadly there are no photographs of the actor displayed anywhere on the premises. Nor could I find any information about him or about the history of the theatre. I had expected there to be, at the very least, some sort of plaque honoring the theatre’s namesake along with a photograph of him at the theatre’s dedication ceremony, but all we could find was the above display which lists the names of those who have donated to the property at one time or another. Such a bummer!

Due to the dance recital which was taking place while we were there, the interior of the actual auditorium was far too dark for us to be able to snap any photographs. 🙁 Which is such a bummer as I had so wanted to see the Michael J. Fox and Tracy Pollan honorary chair! You can see what the auditorium looks like on the official Michael J. Fox Theatre website here, which is where I got the two photographs pictured above.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: The Michael J. Fox Theatre is located on the campus of Burnaby South Secondary School at 7373 Macpherson Avenue in Burnaby, British Columbia. You can visit the office Michael J. Fox Theatre website here.

The third and final filming location that I stalked from the 1993 thriller The Crush while I was visiting Vancouver two weeks ago was the Brockton Point Lighthouse – the spot where 14-year old Adrian Forrester (aka Alicia Silverstone) tried to seduce Nick Eliot (aka Cary Elwes), the much older man who was leasing her parents’ guest house in the flick. I found this location, once again, thanks to fellow stalker Owen, who in turn tracked it down via one of the movie’s crew members. Thank you, Owen! Brockton Point Lighthouse is one of three lighthouses that currently serve the Port of Vancouver and is located in British Columbia’s extremely popular, 1,000-acre Stanley Park. The original Brockton Point Lighthouse tower was built in 1890, but it was replaced in 1914 with the tower that is currently standing today. The lighthouse was designed by Canadian Colonel William P. Anderson, a civil engineer who over his lifetime designed more than 500 lighthouses situated along the Canadian waterfront.

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Brockton Point Lighthouse only pops up in one scene in The Crush, but it is a rather pivotal scene which provides the movie’s turning point. In the scene, the seemingly innocent Adrian begs Nick to take her for a ride in his Valiant, claiming that there is a place she really wants to show him. That place is the Brockton Point Lighthouse and it is there that Adrian first confides in Nick, telling him that she has no friends and that most people treat her like a freak due to her abnormally high intelligence. When Nick promises to be a friend to her, Adrian immediately kisses him and the story takes off from there.

As I mentioned in last Thursday’s post about the Forrester mansion, while The Crush was set in Seattle, the entire movie was actually filmed on location in Vancouver, British Columbia. Ironically enough, though, when Nick and Adrian first pull up to the lighthouse, you can clearly see the word “Brockton” painted on the ground. I am very surprised that producers didn’t have the lettering digitally removed in post-production, being that the Brockton Point Lighthouse is a fairly well-known Canadian landmark. In fact, Stanley Park, where the lighthouse is located, is pretty much known as Vancouver’s number one tourist attraction and is visited by over eight million people per year.

Sadly, though, when we got there, we discovered that the lighthouse is currently fenced in and closed to the public while it undergoes an extensive, $2 million federal restoration project. And, while the lighthouse tower is still visible, the area where Adrian kissed Nick is, unfortunately, not. Such a bummer!!

Brockton Point Lighthouse features unparalleled views of Burrard Inlet and the Lions Gate Bridge and is a truly beautiful place. I so wish I could have seen it at night as the view of the lights of the North Vancouver skyline is supposed to be spectacular. In fact, I’m fairly certain that the lighthouse’s spectacular views are the main reason that it was chosen as the site of Adrian and Nick’s first kiss.

Big THANK YOU to Owen for finding this location! 🙂

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: Brockton Point Lighthouse is located on Brockton Point at the far east end of Stanley Park, off of Stanley Park Drive, in Vancouver, British Columbia. Its exact location is denoted with the blue arrow in the above aerial map.

Tag: Things to do in Canada

The Michael J. Fox Theatre

Brockton Point Lighthouse from “The Crush”