Thousands came out to watch 8,000 giant dominoes fall throughout downtown Toronto

Thousands of Torontonians came out to witness 8,000 giant dominoes swiftly fall throughout downtown Toronto.

On Sunday, The Bentway hosted one of its public art projects, Dominoes, by world-renowned artists from Station House Opera. The project involved 300 volunteers who set up massive dominoes overlooking one another in several neighbourhoods on a 2.5km trail. 

Courtesy: Sarah Holman

Co-Executive Director of The Bentway Ilana Altman said the project first originated in London, United Kingdom in response to a call for projects to celebrate the London 2012 Olympics. From there, its success led it to 20 different cities across the world, paving the way for its inaugural arrival in North America.

“The Bentway is committed to furthering connections across Toronto and removing barriers like the Gardiner Expressway that have divided our neighbourhoods for too long. Dominoes is a project that emulates those goals. It stitches the city together in new and creative ways and, even more importantly, fosters new social connections between community members,” she said to Now Toronto via email statement on Monday.

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Between 1 to 5 p.m., large crowds of the community formed to see the dominoes fall and tumble across city streets, sidewalks, public spaces, inside homes and businesses, and through local landmarks. 

The first push occurred at Wellington at Niagara St, midway, the domino trail sprinted through Canoe Landing Park and into Bentway Staging Grounds under the Gardiner Expressway. Finally, the last block fell after a 30-minute run at the city’s waterfront, east of Bathurst St. 

Courtesy: Francis Jun

Altman says the process of organizing the dominoes at its 15 placements in the city took days and hundreds of volunteers.

“Some of the special and more complicated structures along the route were set up in the days prior to the event, but the vast majority of the route was built on Sunday over a 5 hour window by the 300 volunteers who lent their time and energy to the project’s success,” she said. 

As a result, organizers say the turnout for Dominoes was a monumental success with up to 20,000 spectators in attendance. 

For those interested in more art displays, Altman says the Bentway is working on bringing further projects such as this for the near future. 

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