Oh, January. How do we love thee? Let us count the ways.
Zero.
Ok, that’s not entirely fair. Between your aggressive professional ramp-ups, your erratic climate, and your unrelenting demand for tighter budgets, you do provide five wonderful rays of hope and charm. We like to call them, “The Weekends”.
Lucky for Toronto, yours starts right now…
THURSDAY
We’re not scientists (not exactly anyway), but we’re pretty sure that somewhere under the ice that coats our beloved lakes, there’s water. So don’t forget that it’s the final weekend of the Toronto International Boat Show, being held at The Direct Energy Centre. If you’re lucky, come spring, you might end up on a boat…
Speaking of shorts, Carleton Cinemas, as part of their Shorts That Are Not Pants series, is airing 8 great short films ranging from 1:30 to 29:00 in length. Hailing from Spain, France, Canada, UK, and the USA, if you like ‘em short and sweet, definitely check this out.
And it doesn’t get much shorter and sweeter than Mozart. As part of the Mozart @259 Festival, members of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra are performing four of his beautiful pieces at Roy Thompson Hall including two in which Mozart, at the time in Paris, actually played the solo keys parts himself.
And if it’s culture you seek, Rick Miller, one of Entertainment Weekly’s “100 most creative people alive today”, kicks off his one-man performance of Boom at the Panasonic Theatre tonight; a 25-year journey through a turbulent history portraying the world’s most influential politicians, activists, and musicians from the Baby Boomer era. It starts tonight and runs only until February 1st
Unless you plan on being way harsh, you can join Monthly Underground Female Film (MUFF) Society for their showing of the 90s hit, Clueless at the Royal Cinema on College.
Or if you’re in need of an alternative 90s fix, Lee’s Palace is hosting Cracker and 80s eclectic rockers, Camper Van Beethoven – both founded by Texas musician, David Lowery. Whether you go high or Low, this will definitely be an awesome performance to watch.
Finally, we know it’s in Niagara Falls and all, but THE BEACH BOYS ARE PLAYING!! Yes, the Beach Boys. And yes, some of them are still alive. How do we know? They’ll be playing three evenings in a row starting tonight at Fallsview Casino. So quit your whining; we know you Get Around, so Wouldn’t It Be Nice to hop into your Little Deuce Coup, take a drive to the Falls and catch some Good Vibrations??
Too much? Ya, probably too much. God Only Knows we try…
Friday
NO WAY, HE DID?! HOW DID HE DO IT?! DID YOUR PARENTS KNOW?? OH MY GOD THAT’S ADORABLE!!! DID YOU CRY?? The Total Wedding Show gets underway for the weekend at The International Centre in Mississauga.
The Gladstone Hotel is hosting its annual alternative design event, Come Up to My Room. Sorry, it’s not as kinky as it sounds. But it is super-cool. At CUTMR, artists and designers show us what goes on inside their heads and bend disciplinary boundaries to explore new ground. The event features designer exhibits, live music, late-night-talk-show-style entertainment, and parties in the evening. It runs 12-5 today and 11am-7pm Saturday and Sunday.
If you’re into art, you are probably going to be into this: Villa Toronto will be held at Union Station starting tonight and running until the 23rd. The Villa series is an international contemporary art show that moves from city to city (Warsaw-2006, Reykjavik-2010, Tokyo-2011) with this year’s installment featuring 19 galleries/exhibitors/performers.
For those enthusiastic about the world of dance, it’s Dance Weekend 2015 at the Harbourfront’s Fleck Dance Theatre. There you’ll find three days worth of dance artists, from hip hop and flamenco, to ballet and tap. There’s a $10 minimum donation required for entry and sadly we have been unable to confirm whether or not “twerking” will be covered at this year’s event.
And our beloved Raptors are trying to get back in the swing of things as they host the red-hot Atlanta Hawks at the ACC.
SATURDAY
Do you love cars and hate cars all at the same time? Then you’ll be happy to know that Monster Jam 2015 is on today and tomorrow at the Rogers Centre. Camouflage hats and Bracebridge postal codes optional.
On a related note, do you love the ballet but don’t always feel like spending a small country’s GDP to see a live performance? Well, the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema is kicking off their new Ballet on Screen series with a 12pm showing of the Royal Ballet’s performance of Manon.
As for the other ballet in town, tonight is the Season 9 opener of the Toronto Roller Derby. Dolls vs. Gores gets rolling at 5pm and Betties take on Chicks at 7pm. Tickets are $18 at the door.
The rest, folks, is all music…
Tonight’s Harbourfront DJ Skate Night is Shake Rattle & Skate, featuring Now Magazine’s Best DJ Nominees 2 years running, Bangs & Blush. The duo is also following up this show with a 10pm set at Clinton’s.
Orange County, New York rapper Cage is performing at The Rockpile while Brazilian EDM producer, Gui Boratto will be spinning you into a trance at Coda. When you dance this hard, it is a Beautiful Life.
Experimental folk singer and songwriter Lia Ices is performing at The Drake Underground.
And remember Elijah Wood? Of course you do. He’s a famous actor…AND A DJ! On one of only 5 tour dates, Wooden Wisdom, Elijah Wood & Zach Cowie, are spinning a set of 70s & 80s disco and house music at the awesome Studio Bar on Dundas West. There are a limited number of tickets available at the door for $25. You know what they say: Hobbits love to dance.
SUNDAY
Yoga and beer. Do you really need more details? Fine. From 11am-1pm, School House Booze and 20 Something in Toronto are throwing Detox to Retox at The Amsterdam Brewery.
And after a night of rest, the Raptors are back on the ACC hardwood taking on the New Orleans Pelicans. Go cheer them on somewhere. We’re all busy, but more importantly, We Are The North.
Well there you have it, folks.
Four days and 20-something ways to spend them.
And just remember: “NoMo FOMO” should be on everyone’s list of New Year’s Resolutions.
Stay Notable,
The Weekender
#NOTABLE
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Cover photo: SPiN