Is Pingtree in Station Eleven episode 4 a real place?

Station Eleven episode 4, “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Aren’t Dead,” had one of the most explosive plot developments of the series up to that point. It was so shocking it was no wonder everyone was talking about it afterward.

Well, everyone who has HBO Max and who was watching Station Eleven, that is. If you haven’t seen it yet, don’t worry. No spoilers here. (Not exactly. I did drop a clue but it won’t make any sense until you see the episode. And I definitely haven’t given anything away.)

Before the shocking episode ending, however, something else intrigued me about Station Eleven episode 4: Pingtree.

The Station 11 episode 4 Pingtree scene

While playing cards, Kirsten (Mackenzie Davis) and Sarah (Lori Petty) get to talking about Sarah’s ex, Gil (David Cross) who we gather must’ve cheated on her. The Prophet (Daniel Zovatto) has gotten under Kirsten’s skin and for some reason (which I will not disclose to uphold my “no spoilers” guarantee), she wants to go to Pingtree.

Kirsten doesn’t come right out and make that request exactly though.

We don’t know at this point what Pingtree is or who’s there, or even exactly why Kirsten wants to go, but we learn enough to infer its friendly territory. It’s someplace the group is intimately familiar with.

When Kirsten says she heard some second-hand information that Gil’s lover died of pneumonia, it prompts Sarah to action. Sarah tells the troupe that she’s taking the Traveling Symphony actors to Pingtree but everyone else will proceed to Nuevo Santiago.

In one scene on the way there, Kirsten and Alex (Philippine Velge) are talking and pass a sign that reads “Pingtree Golf & Riding Club” and indicates it’s two miles ahead. On top of the sign is another one that reads “Pure Michigan.”

The series is set in and around the Chicago area, but was it filmed there? And what served as Pingtree? Is it a real place? A house? A hotel? Or just a set that was constructed for the series?

Station Eleven Filming Locations

The Cinemaholic reported that the series was filmed in both Illinois and Ontario, Canada, specifically Chicago, Toronto, Mississauga, and Oshawa. They identified some of the Chicago neighborhoods that appear in the series, as well as places in Toronto, but they don’t identify specific areas where filming took place in Mississauga or Oshawa.

However, they did note that Oshawa “seemingly provided multiple outdoor filming locations to the show.”

There’s a scene in episode 4 where Kirsten is lying on what almost appears to be dunes reading her copy of Station Eleven after the Symphony has arrived at Pingtree. Mississauga and Oshawa are both situated on the shores of Lake Ontario. Could the fictional Pingtree have been shot in one of these places?

I searched and searched for an answer but still don’t know what that building is. I was sort of hoping for a hotel or a bed and breakfast of some sort, or even a mansion open to public tours. I’ve found zip, nada, zilch.

The search for an answer continues. If I find one, I’ll of course be sure to share an update.

Check-In

Have you read the book of the same name by Emily St. John Mandel that the HBO Max series Station Eleven is based on?

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I haven’t, but according to Mashable, parts of the series differ from the book. Which is understandable. That often happens.

However, “everything that happens at Pingtree…is a show-only occurrence.” Huh. Interesting.