9 to 5 Hello, Dolly! La Parton’s girl power musical, based on the 1980 movie in which she starred, hits town this month. Find out more »
Katy Perry Pop tart Perry has come a long way from her Bible-thumping days in Santa Barbara. Find out more »
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Today in Toronto: Keren Ann, Return to Forever IV and Sade with John Legend
Keren Ann Musician Keren Ann defies easy categorization. She’s French, Israeli and Dutch. She runs her own label, composes operas, has written for Roman Polanski’s wife, Emmanuelle Seigner, and straddles pop, jazz, folk and electronica. Find out more »
Return to Forever IV This jazz fusion ensemble, the brainchild of the feverishly talented pianist Chick Corea, has been going for 40 years, with a hiatus here and there. Find out more »
Sade with John Legend The inimitable R&B star Sade worked her “Smooth Operator” skills leading up to the release of her greatest hits disc, The Ultimate Collection. Find out more »
Today in Toronto: Elvis Costello and João Pedro Rodrigues
Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus (a.k.a. Elvis Costello) brings his signature sound and eyewear to the Sony Centre today. Find out more »
João Pedro Rodrigues Audacious Portuguese filmmaker João Pedro Rodrigues has become, over the past decade, one of the most intriguing figures in international film. Find out more »
The Weekender: Samsara, TD Toronto Jazz Festival and six other events on our to do list
Coeur de Pirate, The Roots’ Black Thought and Lisa Ray
1. TD TORONTO JAZZ FESTIVAL
Somehow, the organizers of this annual music fest always manage to book musicians that even non-jazz fans are dying to see. Case in point: this year’s lineup, which features Aretha Franklin, The Roots and Los Lonely Boys alongside more straight-up jazz offerings like Kurt Elling and Nikki Yanofsky. The Queen of Soul kicks off the entire festival with a free concert at Metro Square this Friday. June 24 to July 3. Various locations, 416-870-8000, torontojazz.com.
2. SAMSARA (FREE!) Read the rest of this entry »
We have a not-so-secret love of Bollywood, but no amount of dedication could score us tickets to the International Indian Film Academy Awards this weekend. Luckily for us, there’s this free street fest. Faisal Anwar has curated a film series of old and new Bollywood dance sequences. There are also two performance stages, one dedicated to classical music and dance and the other to all things fusion. Local girl Lisa Ray will rock the runway during two of the four scheduled fashion shows. June 25. Rogers Centre, 1 Blue Jays Way, toronto.ca/iifa2011.
Today in Toronto: Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel The man behind one of MTV’s most acclaimed videos of all time (“Sledgehammer”), the first pop song about apartheid (“Biko”) and one of the most publicized breakups in music history (Genesis) heads to the Molson Amphitheatre tonight. Find out more »
The Weekender: Deli Duel 2, Toronto Sketch Com-ageddon and six other events on our to-do list
Strawberries, Diamond Rings and Zane Caplansky
1. ST. LAWRENCE MARKET STRAWBERRY FESTIVAL (FREE!)
It’s berry season in Ontario, and St. Lawrence Market is celebrating with its annual strawberry-focused fest. The morning’s events are split between how-to sessions (making strawberry-mint jam with Bumpercrop, say, or a cooking demo with celeb chefs Massimo Capra and Michael Bonacini) and taste tests (chocolate-covered strawberries, chocolate strawberry shortcake and strawberry lemonade). You really can’t go wrong. June 18. St. Lawrence Market, 92-95 Front St. E., stlawrencemarket.com.
2. NORTH BY NORTHEAST Read the rest of this entry »
In recent years, NXNE has really expanded its offerings to become something of a cultural event. (Hello, film fest and digital media conference.) But it’s also the same gigantic, new music-focused fest we’ve loved for the past 17 years—that would be the seven days and seven nights of shows and parties bit—with a lineup that includes Devo, The Pharcyde, Fucked Up, Diamond Rings, the Dum Dum Girls and Braids. To June 19. Five-day wristband $50; events at Yonge-Dundas Square free. Various locations, 416-863-6963, nxne.com.
Wednesday’s Luminato Picks: Ron Sexsmith, Joyce Carol Oates and the Kronos Quartet
Ron Sexsmith, Joyce Carol Oates and Wu Man
The fifth edition of Luminato, the city’s annual everything-culture fest, kicked off last Friday and goes all through the week. Here, three events to check out today.
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Today in Toronto: Luminato Day 1, Okkervil River and more
Okkervil River This folksy Austin group is a serious crew—the band took its name from a short story by Russian writer Tatyana Tolstaya, and singer Will Sheff went into semi-isolation to write the lyrics for the new album, I Am Very Far. Find out more »
The Sisters Euclid These four guys (and yes, they’re guys) have been a sophisticated, if slightly wacky, musical presence around the local jazz scene for the last 15 years. Find out more »
Luminato Day 1:
Habit In what sounds like a voyeur’s delight, this Luminato performance piece puts three actors in a house constructed inside the great hall at OCAD University. Find out more »
Natural Magick Sleight-of-hander David Ben is set to wow the crowds at Luminato with his musical take on magic, complete with a peppy Japanese and klezmer–inspired score, and clever projections. Find out more »
Taj This world premiere from Sampradaya Dance Creations recounts the classic tale of Indian Emperor Shah Jahan’s love for his wife, Mumtaz. Find out more »
The Kronos Quartet Everyone’s favourite kick-ass string quartet—as likely to work with David Bowie as tackle Schubert—broadens its already very broad definition of eclecticism through collaborations with the Alim Qasimov Ensemble and Homayun Sakhi. Find out more »
Today in Toronto: Charles Gayle and Paul Walde and NKOTBSB
Charles Gayle and Paul Walde Notorious even in jazz circles for a backstory that includes years of playing NYC streets and subway platforms, Charles Gayle is a leading free-jazz performer—don’t expect anything as conventional as harmony or melody in his sets for piano and tenor sax. Find out more »
New Kids On The Block and Backstreet Boys Smooth harmonizers Jordan, Jonathan, Joey, Donnie, Danny, Brian, Nick, Howie and A.J. are out to prove that their no-longer-boy-bands are driven by talent, despite their cheese-tastic appeal. Find out more »
Today in Toronto: Electronica Unplugged, NKOTBSB and Sargasso
Electronica Unplugged Contact Contemporary Music, an ensemble committed to emerging composers and alternative performance spaces, goes semi-mainstream here (on conventional instruments, even!) with their take on works originally conceived as a string of bits and bytes. Find out more »
New Kids On The Block and Backstreet Boys Smooth harmonizers Jordan, Jonathan, Joey, Donnie, Danny, Brian, Nick, Howie and A.J. are out to prove that their no-longer-boy-bands are driven by talent, despite their cheese-tastic appeal. Find out more »
Sargasso Architect Philip Beesley’s installations are luminous cascades of plastic, metal and glass that blossom like alien landscapes in unlikely spaces. Find out more »
Today in Toronto: Rihanna
Rihanna It really does seem like this Barbadian beauty is the “only girl in the world” these days—she’s been showing up everywhere from the Grammys to the cover of Vogue. Find out more »
The Weekender: Robyn, Abstract Expressionist New York and six other events on our to-do list
Princess Diana in a Catherine Walker dress, detail from Willem de Kooning’s Woman I and the Mad Hatter
1. ROBYN
We’re still a tad bitter for that time last November when our favourite Swedish pop singer cancelled her hugely hyped Sound Academy concert mere hours before show time. Luckily, Robyn is back in the city and making up for lost time at the brand-new Echo Beach venue. And for those who only know her for her mid-’90s anthem “Show Me Love,” we recommend checking out some of her impossibly catchy new stuff. June 3. $29.50–$39.50. Echo Beach at Molson Amphitheatre, 909 Lake Shore Blvd. W., 416-870-8000, ticketmaster.ca.
2. DIANA: LIFE OF A ROYAL ICON
The Royal Wedding may have reignited interest in Prince William’s dad, but we’re pretty sure the public’s interest in Princess Diana never really waned in the years since her death. This show at the Design Exchange invites fans to gawk at the Princess’s most famous gowns—like ones she wore for Vanity Fair photo shoots or White House dinners—before they hit the auction block on June 23. To June 10. $10. Design Exchange, 234 Bay St., 416-363-6121, dx.org.
The Weekender: Boyz II Men, La La La Human Steps and six other events on our to-do list
La La La Human Steps; the iconic Brick Works smokestack; Boyz II Men’s Wanyá Morris
1. LA LA LA HUMAN STEPS
This Québécois contemporary dance troupe, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, is known around the world for founder Édouard Lock’s beautiful, adventurous choreography. For the final production of CanStage’s 2010–2011 season, Lock combines two Baroque operas—Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas and Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice—into one inventive piece, Untitled. To June 1. $22–$99. Bluma Appel Theatre, 27 Front St. E., 416-368-3110, canadianstage.com.
2. TAKE OFF YOUR CLOTHES Read the rest of this entry »
This clothing swap has more going for it than just a sassy name. We really can’t think of a better venue for budget-conscious style mavens who are looking to revitalize their wardrobes with brand-name and vintage pieces for less than the cost of lunch. And it can even be a family affair: in addition to clothing, shoes and accessories for the ladies, there are also offerings for men and children. May 27 and 28. $15. Trinity Bellwoods Community Centre, 155 Crawford St., 647-342-6521, theswapteam.org.
Today in Toronto: Gordon Lightfoot
Gordon Lightfoot Gordon Lightfoot brings such nostalgia-heavy staples as “If You Could Read My Mind” to his annual stand at Massey Hall; listen for the twist to “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,” which was recently updated, thanks to a doc that shed new light on the catastrophe. Find out more »
See, Hear, Read: three local experts tell us what books, movies and music they’re craving this month
They love it. We want it. Three red-hot releases
“At first glance, Sofia Coppola’s latest film seems to be about the excesses of Hollywood, but it’s really more of a father-daughter story. Stephen Dorff plays a pampered star who suddenly has to care for his 11-year-old kid, and Elle Fanning is wonderful in the role of a girl who idolizes her dad despite his many shortcomings. Somewhere moves at a languid pace, but has some great comedic flourishes. Two-lead films are tricky to pull off, and this one is seamless.”
—JOE CARLINO
Owner of Videoflicks
Somewhere, directed by Sofia Coppola (April 19)
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