{"id":715194,"date":"2026-06-04T19:58:15","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T19:58:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/715194\/"},"modified":"2026-06-04T19:58:15","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T19:58:15","slug":"new-york-had-studio-54-canada-had-a-disco-in-the-cn-tower","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/715194\/","title":{"rendered":"New York had Studio 54. Canada had a disco in the CN Tower"},"content":{"rendered":"

More than 1.9 million people visit Toronto\u2019s CN Tower in an ordinary year. They come for the panoramic views, and on a good day, it\u2019s still possible to see the mists of Niagara Falls more than 100 km away. It was the same in the \u201880s and \u201890s, when George Andrew was working at the building, and he never tired of that particular perk of the job. <\/p>\n

So when Andrew found himself on the main observation deck last April, he was transfixed by the windows yet again. That night, the glass was foggy with condensation, but Andrew couldn\u2019t have been happier about it. \u201cIt took me right back,\u201d he says. For a DJ, that\u2019s a beautiful sight to behold; it means the dancefloor is packed and hopping.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In a moment when Toronto venues such as Sneaky Dee\u2019s are facing demolition<\/a> and headlines about Canadian spending habits suggest nightlife caught COVID<\/a> and never recovered, it can be hard to believe this chapter of Toronto history ever happened. But once upon a time, the CN Tower was home to Sparkles, the highest disco on the planet.<\/p>\n

For a little more than a decade, Sparkles was a place where locals could bump and wiggle with out-of-town party people, celebrities and even the occasional dancing bear \u2014 346 metres above the ground. And to mark the CN Tower\u2019s 50th anniversary, pop-up events have been planned to re-create the scene. The next party, in celebration of Pride, kicks off Friday<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Welcome to Sparkles, Toronto\u2019s \u2018loudest free-standing structure\u2019\"ArchivalIn 1979, the Toronto Star described Sparkles’ decor as “moody and exciting,” though fixtures such as the vinyl booths were designed to withstand daytime visitors to the CN Tower, including school children on field trips. As Star reporter Caitlin Kelly wrote, “presumably the tinted mirror, tivoli lights and cobalt blue bars can withstand jammy hands.” At night, visitors would dance in a room filled with neon sculptures and 7,000 lights. Here, the disco is seen in a promotional photo from the early ’80s when the space was also used for live-to-air radio broadcasts. (CN Tower archives)<\/p>\n

The club originally launched in 1979, three years after the CN Tower opened its doors<\/a>. It was a bid to keep the crowds coming after dark, and according to the New York Times<\/a>, which covered Sparkles\u2019 star-studded opening that October, the observation deck would undergo a quick change every night when the daytime tourists disappeared. <\/p>\n

To transform into a cutting-edge disco, the room relied on \u201cswinging doors, hidden cabinets and mirrors.\u201d Sparkles was outfitted with smoke machines, a motion-activated laser system and embedded strobe lights in the dance floor. According to the Toronto Star, the combined effect was \u201cabsolutely blinding\u201d (in a good way), and locals flocked there, ready to pay the cover charge ($2 to $5, depending on the night of the week).<\/p>\n

The Times raved about the room, calling it \u201can electronic wonderland of computerized effects, pulsating sounds and gyrating dancers.\u201d One of the bold-faced names in attendance for Sparkles\u2019 kick-off weekend was the British pop star Lulu. She declared the place incredible before sharing this back-handed compliment: \u201cI was in Toronto 12 or 15 years ago, and it was a real hick town. But now it\u2019s simply supah.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two months later, CBC News brought a camera to Sparkles for New Year\u2019s Eve<\/a>. With the \u201880s dawning, the disco era was losing its sheen, but a rep for the club was unfazed by changing trends. Pop music may change, but Sparkles was in it for the long haul, she said. \u201cIf having a good time goes out, we\u2019re in trouble. But until then, I don\u2019t think so.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

WATCH | CBC Archives:\"\"The manager of Sparkles, a disco in the CN Tower, tells a CBC reporter she doesn’t believe people will ever stop wanting to have a good time. Recorded in 1979.<\/p>\n

By 1981, the party was raging so hard, residents wondered if a disco disaster was imminent. One concerned citizen wrote a letter to the Toronto Star: \u201cCould the energetic dancers at Sparkles \u2026 bring the whole structure crashing to the ground?\u201d David Garrick, then general manager of the tower, insisted the mighty spire could withstand the impact of a 747. A little dancing wouldn\u2019t hurt anybody, and there were no intentions to shut down the fun. But by 1991, the party was over.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sparkles didn\u2019t close exactly; a rep for the CN Tower prefers to use the word \u201ctransitioned.\u201d Horizons, a resto-lounge playing light jazz, soft pop and R&B, opened in its stead. Today, the tower\u2019s main observation level can be booked for private events, but it\u2019s rare anyone goes there to dance among the clouds.<\/p>\n

How Sparkles came to shine again<\/p>\n

\u201cSparkles has this sort of lore about it,\u201d says Shawn Whalen, marketing manager at the CN Tower. Whalen\u2019s been on the job for three years, and when he first heard about Sparkles, he was dazzled by the news of its very existence.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Since opening a newly renovated lower observation level in January<\/a>, the CN Tower has been running public events to mark its half-century on the skyline; a birthday party at the base of the tower is planned for later this month, for example. And when the planning began, Whalen and his team dug into the attraction\u2019s archives for inspiration. There, he came across photos of Sparkles\u2019 heyday: there were servers in matching magenta disco-pants; dancers mingling under mirrored ceilings and sizzling neon. He and his team wanted to bring back the glitz.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"ArchivalIn this photo from the ’80s, a crowd dances the night away at Sparkles, the nightclub in the CN Tower. When the disco was open (1979-1991), one of the bar’s signature drinks was the Heaven’s Above, a concoction involving creme de cacao, coffee liqueur, pineapple juice and rum. It will be on the menu at the CN Tower’s Sparkles Retro Pop Up event. (CN Tower archives)<\/p>\n

In April, the tower threw a Sparkles theme party on the main observation deck. Whalen and his team pulled the original electric sign out of storage. Andrew, who was the club\u2019s longest-serving DJ, hosted the sold-out do. His son James Jeziorski (who DJs professionally as DJ Shamz) was at his side, spinning retro hits for the 800 dancers who came to relive their disco days (or experience Sparkles for the first time).\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u201cSparkles certainly has a special place in the hearts of the people who are \u2014 as I like to say \u2014 fun enough to remember it,\u201d says Whalen, and though the April pop-up was billed as a one-night-only experience, the event\u2019s success has convinced organizers to keep bringing back Sparkles while the 50th anniversary celebrations continue. <\/p>\n

\u201cCould this be something that becomes an ongoing or annual thing? I think we’ll have to wait until this year closes before we decide,\u201d says Whalen, but the next event, a family-friendly all-ages dance co-presented with Pride Toronto, will light up the tower Friday. Further dates are in the works but have yet to be announced.<\/p>\n

At Sparkles, \u2018you never knew what was going to happen\u2019 \"Black(L-R) As seen at Sparkles nightclub in 1988, DJ George Andrew is photographed with pop star Taylor Dayne and Sparkles general manager Andrew Robitaille. (George Andrew)<\/p>\n

When Andrew arrived at Sparkles it was the fall of 1987, and he remained the CN Tower\u2019s resident DJ until 1987. He stayed on after the club was rebranded as Horizons, but it\u2019s his run at Sparkles he misses most. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was the era of Milli Vanilli,\u201d he says, and his playlist reflected the tastes of time: dance-pop, hip-hop, R&B. \u201cYou never knew what was going to happen,\u201d says Andrew, who remembers running into visiting stars including Robert Redford, Gene Hackman and Jean-Claude Van Damme. When SkyDome opened in 1989<\/a>, it became harder to find parking, he says, but that didn\u2019t deter the hometown crowd from coming out.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThere were lots of locals,\u201d says Andrew of the scene. \u201cYou\u2019ve got people from Toronto, you\u2019ve got people from the U.S and people who were visiting from outside North America.\u201d That collision of different groups, he says, made it a unique spot to be.<\/p>\n

And when you consider how much effort was required to get your patent-leather pumps on the dancefloor, the repeat customers must have truly loved the place. In Andrew\u2019s day, the ride up to Sparkles was nowhere near as speedy as today\u2019s minute-long ascent. On a bad day, the ear-popping trip could take 10-15 minutes, sometimes longer in bad weather. \u201cYou know, it took forever for people to get up there on those windy nights.\u201d And yet, the mirror ball was spinning Monday through Sunday.<\/p>\n

\"MenIn this archival photo from the early ’80s, DJs and Sparkles guests party at the CN Tower’s disco. (CN Tower archives)<\/p>\n

Sparkles also doubled as an entertainment venue. It hosted fashion shows and private parties. Long before Spiritualized\u2019s 1997 gig at the CN Tower (which laid claim to the Guinness World Record for the \u201chighest show ever\u201d), Sparkles threw the occasional concert. <\/p>\n

There were parties devoted to punk and new-wave records. In a 2012 history of the club<\/a> for the now-departed Toronto magazine The Grid, writer Denise Benson mentions an all-nighter from 1980: \u201ca spectacularly gay affair\u201d organized by folks from two of the city\u2019s now historic queer spaces, Dudes and Stages<\/a>. <\/p>\n

In 1983, the Toronto Star announced an aerobics class at the club, in line with the trend for (let\u2019s get) physical<\/a> fitness. There was even a regular all-ages party. Starting in its opening year, Sparkles was a teen hangout on Sundays, and as reported then by the Toronto Star, one of its first celebrity guests was Mickey Mouse. (He was there to promote a staple of many Canadian kids\u2019 record collections, Mickey Mouse Disco.) <\/p>\n

\"PhotoThis promotional photo for Sparkles was taken in 1979 on the roof of the CN Tower’s main pod. As part of Friday’s retro pop-up event, a selection of pictures from the nightclub’s history will be on display. (CN Tower archives)It was a different time in Toronto nightlife <\/p>\n

Jeziorski was eight years old when his dad became a fixture at Sparkles \u2014 too young to ever watch him action. But he\u2019d visit him there on P.A. days, helping load crates of vinyl onto the elevator. The experience must have made an impression; as DJ Shamz, Jeziorski has been working throughout the GTA since 1997, and upon learning of the CN Tower\u2019s upcoming 50th anniversary celebrations, he thought the folks in charge might be interested in hearing more about his dad\u2019s unique contribution to the place. He wasn\u2019t wrong.<\/p>\n

When Whalen and his team received Jeziorski\u2019s email, they invited him and his dad to the CN Tower. They wanted to know more about Sparkles, and Andrew, who began writing his memoirs in 2020, could help them learn more about the photos they\u2019d found in the archives.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"AGeorge Andrew in the Sparkles DJ booth. (George Andrew)<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a different time in party culture,\u201d says Jeziorski. \u201cIt\u2019s not like now in the current market where people aren\u2019t going out as much \u2014 and it\u2019s just Thursday, Friday, Saturday.\u201d Back in the \u201880s, his dad was filling dancefloors at Sparkles six nights of the week \u2014 seven if the manager couldn\u2019t find someone to work his day off.<\/p>\n

Still, during that first meeting with the CN Tower team, the subject of a Sparkles revival was tabled. There was only one question in Jeziorski\u2019s mind: \u201cWhat are we doing and how do we do it?<\/p>\n

\"AThe scene inside Sparkles: A Retro Pop Up. The event was held at the CN Tower in Toronto on April 10, 2026. (Nicole & Bagol\/CN Tower)<\/p>\n

At April\u2019s event, Andrew says he felt like he was back in the \u201880s. Old regulars came up to him all night, some with their own grown-up children in tow. \u201cIt was just very hard to explain, but there was a little bit of magic in the air,\u201d says Andrew. \u201cIt was like stepping back in time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Friday\u2019s Sparkles party is an all-ages event that doubles as a kick-off to Pride. Running from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m., guests can get in with a regular timed-admission ticket (or a reservation at the 360 Restaurant if you\u2019re fancy). Local musician and drag queen DJ Regina Gently will be playing Pride anthems and hits from the \u201870s and \u201880s.<\/p>\n

The day Regina took the gig was the day she learned about Sparkles. And the idea of a sky-high Canadian disco blew her mind. \u201cIt feels bigger than Toronto. Like, it made me think of Studio 54 and the legendary clubs from the past,\u201d says the artist. \u201cI don\u2019t think Canada in general is known for having that kind of stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"PressDrag artist and musician Regina Gently will DJ Friday’s Sparkles event at the CN Tower. The event will be presented in collaboration with Pride Toronto. (Tanja-Tiziana Burdi)<\/p>\n

\u201cI wish there was a club like this now. There\u2019s a need for it now,\u201d says Regina. \u201cWe\u2019re in a really crazy time. And dance, nightlife \u2014 there\u2019s a safe haven to that sort of culture.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don’t know why [the CN Tower] wouldn’t have tried this in other eras but yeah, I think people want to dance.\u201d<\/p>\n

It feels bigger than Toronto. Like, it made me think of Studio 54 and the legendary clubs from the past.- DJ Regina Gently<\/p>\n

Unless it\u2019s New Year\u2019s Eve, the CN Tower hasn\u2019t been much in the business of packing a dance floor, says Whalen. Post-Sparkles, there have been a few public events which have become the stuff of legend: the Vertigo rave of 1993, a 2010 NXNE showcase with Hollerado and The Meligrove Band \u2014 and in 2024, Vancouver DJ Felix Cartal packed a crowd into the main observation level for a spontaneous pop-up set.<\/p>\n

Speaking as someone who lives in Toronto, Whalen says the CN Tower is a powerful symbol for many. If you\u2019re flying back from a trip, \u201cas soon as you see that big tall needle out of the airplane window \u2014 you see the CN Tower \u2014 that\u2019s when you know you\u2019re home. But you often don\u2019t visit it unless maybe you\u2019ve got friends from out of town or something like that.\u201d <\/p>\n

Through events like Friday\u2019s Sparkles party, he\u2019s hoping more locals will have a reason to get acquainted with the place, instead of viewing it from below as we always have.<\/p>\n

Regina, for her part, has been living in Toronto since the year 2000. \u201cI\u2019m pretty sure I haven\u2019t been [to the CN Tower] since then,\u201d she says. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf there was a dance club in it, I\u2019d go regularly,\u201d she laughs. \u201cI think all of us would probably go.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"More than 1.9 million people visit Toronto\u2019s CN Tower in an ordinary year. They come for the panoramic…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":715195,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194291],"tags":[49,48,3302],"class_list":["post-715194","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-toronto","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-toronto"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/715194","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=715194"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/715194\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/715195"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=715194"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=715194"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=715194"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}