Located in St. James’ (Anglican Church) old parish hall, in the heart of Saskatoon’s Broadway district, The Refinery is a multi purpose facility where St. James’ partners with independent teachers, artists and organizations to enrich the life experience of this neighbourhood, city and province.

This not-for-profit centre is a place for people to grow artistically, creatively and spiritually – a space for creative life.

“It’s not just a building – it’s building a community, a place to learn and experience and experiment”, says director, Angie Tysseland.

In 2000, St. James’ Anglican Church, rededicated it’s parish hall as a community arts and spirit centre, arising from their desire to collaborate with others and build a healthier, more diverse community.

We started with a dream of a small concert hall – a kind of holistic centre for the arts that combined different disciplines. The Refinery has grown to host a variety of arts and wellness classes and workshops; meetings and conferences; and live performances.

The Refinery welcomes all people to explore their potential and enrich their lives in a safe and creative environment, while contributing to building a vibrant, integrated community.

What we do

We support a wide variety of artistic and spiritual activities. We respond to others creative initiatives as well as developing programs and activities from scratch.

Performances

Independent artists in music, theatre and dance are turning The Refinery into a house that provides quality performing arts productions. Saskatoon is rich with talented performers and writers, and there are national and international artists passing through our city all the time. The Refinery is the place to see them almost every weekend. See Center Stage for upcoming performances.

Classes and Workshops

For ten months of the year we partner with independent artists and teachers to offer classes and workshops that nurture the body, mind and spirit - like yoga, Tai Chi, creative dance, writing, visual art, meditation and chant. See Classes for current schedule.

St. James’/Refinery Special Projects

Each season The Refinery and St. James’ create opportunities for people to come together and explore contemporary spiritual issues, or socialize and celebrate in an inclusive, respectful environment. Watch for special events, performances, study groups or guest speakers. See St. James’/Refinery Projects page for upcoming activities.

Visual and Literary Gallery

The Refinery hosts a variety of visual art exhibits and sales, as well as literary open-mike readings and book launches. See Visual & Literary Gallery page.

Rentals

We maintain and program a performance space that is fitted with professional technical equipment and is available for rent to community groups and independent artists. We also rent space for small meetings, conferences (up to 100 people), receptions and art sales. Our priority is community events with an artistic or spiritual focus, however we do rent for private functions if space is available. For rental information see Rental page.