This past April, The Pig’s Ear Tavern closed. In October, The Spill closed.
Now downtown Peterborough is about to lose another venue for live music and other arts events. Catalina Motta is closing her namesake business on Hunter Street West in downtown Peterborough.
A combination hair salon, vintage store, and intimate live performance space with a licenced bar, Catalina’s is located at 131 Hunter Street West, near the corner of Hunter and Water Street,
Catalina’s is known for hosting art exhibits (most recently the annual Focus Fair), poetry readings, film, and local musicians, and also offers a safe place for social events for the local LGBTQ+ community.
Motta is selling off the vintage items in the store until the end of December.
Motta originally opened her hair salon on George Street in 1998, after moving to Peterborough from Vancouver. She later relocated the business to Hunter Street West. In 2013, she received a liquor licence and renamed the business to Barbeside Salon, and later renamed it as Catalina’s.
In 2015, she and her business were mentioned in GQ India as one of the “best barbershops around the world” by the magazine’s deputy editor, Peterborough native Dave Besseling.
“The Barbeside … has an advantage most other salons don’t: There really is a bar in there. I would have done well to take advantage of that fact when I visited, since my stylist Rebecca would be cutting my shoulder-length hair, grown out over several years, down to the wood to better adapt to life in humid, sultry Bombay. Good for not-so-traumatic haircuts, too. Ask for the amaretto in your coffee.”
In 2016, Motta opened a second location, a vintage store at 383 Water Street called “Catalina’s on Water”.
You’ll have three more chances this weekend to experience live music at Catalina’s and to say goodbye.
On Friday (December 15) from 5 to 7 p.m., the venue is hosting “The Last Cocktail” with regular performers the Chester Babcock Trio.
On Saturday (December 16), Heartless Romantics will be performing at 7:30 p.m. (Kurtis Watson will be shooting the final parts of the band’s new music video), along with special guests Rhys Climenhage, Television Rd, Mary-Kate Edwards, Niall Jensen. Cover is $5 at the door or pay what you can.
The final musical performance at Catalina’s takes place during the closing party on Sunday (December 17) from 3 to 6 p.m., when Pays d’en Haut will be performing. The cost is $15.
VIDEO: Mayhemingways perform “End Up” at Catalina’s
