Education

The main building of Victoria College in the University of Toronto.

Toronto is home to a diverse range of public and private educational institutions. The Toronto District School Board operates more than 500 public schools and is the largest school board in Canada. Additionally, the Toronto Catholic District School Board manages the city's publicly-funded Roman Catholic schools, while the Conseil scolaire de district catholique Centre-Sud manages public French-language schools. There are also numerous private university-preparatory schools, such as Upper Canada College, St. Michael's College School, Havergal College, Bishop Strachan School, Toronto French School, De La Salle College, and Crescent School.

The University of Toronto, established in 1827, is the oldest university in the province of Ontario and a leading public research institution. The city is also home to Ryerson University, York University and the Ontario College of Art & Design.

There are five diploma-granting community colleges in Toronto: Seneca College, Humber College, Centennial College, Sheridan College and George Brown College. The Royal Conservatory of Music, which includes The Glenn Gould School, is a major music school located in downtown. The Canadian Film Centre is a film, television and new media training institute founded by filmmaker Norman Jewison.

The Toronto Public Library is the largest public library system in Canada, consisting of 99 branches with more than 11 million items in its collection.

Culture

Roy Thomson Hall, home of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra.

The Hockey Hall of Fame, built in 1885, is located at the intersection of Front Street and Yonge Street in Downtown Toronto.

Toronto is a major scene for theatre and other performing arts, with more than fifty ballet and dance companies, six opera companies and two symphony orchestras. The city is home to the Canadian Opera Company and the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. Major performance venues include the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, Roy Thomson Hall, the Princess of Wales Theatre, the Royal Alexandra Theatre, Massey Hall, the Toronto Centre for the Arts, the Elgin Teatre, the Winter Garden Theatre and the Hummingbird Centre (formerly the "O'Keefe Centre"). Ontario Place features the world's first permanent IMAX movie theatre, the Cinesphere, as well as the Molson Amphitheatre, an open-air venue for large-scale music concerts. Each summer, the Canadian Stage Company presents an outdoor Shakespeare production in Toronto’s High Park called "Dream in High Park". Canada's Walk of Fame acknowledges the achievements of successful Canadians, with of a series of stars on designated blocks of sidewalks along King Street and Simcoe Street.

The Distillery District is a pedestrian village containing boutiques, art galleries, restaurants, artist studios and small breweries, including the well-known Mill Street Brewery. A new theatre in the district, the Young Centre for the Performing Arts, is the home of the Soulpepper Theatre Company and the drama productions of nearby George Brown College.

The production of domestic and foreign film and television is a major local industry. Toronto often stands in on screen for large American cities like New York and Chicago. Many movie releases are screened in Toronto prior to wider release in North America. The Toronto International Film Festival is one of the most important annual events for the international film industry.