365 Things to Do in Toronto, Toronto, Toronto events

205. Frugal Fashion Week

July 24, 2011 Heikki Walden

July 24, 2011

Calling all frugalistas! Today is the last day of Frugal Fashion Week, your opportunity to support local retailers and discover some of our city’s own talented designers. All proceeds of this event will go to the Stiletto Project, a social enterprise dedicated to supporting at-risk women. This unique Fashion Week features events such as “If These Clothes Could Talk…” (a style installation featuring “pre-loved” clothing donated by celebs and stylistas), The Fauxialite Ball, an ultimate fashion party, an e-tail market where guests can learn about local designers who sell their wares via the world wide web, and I ♥ Fashion – a free after-dusk crawl of the shops and boutiques of Queen West.

Though many of these fashion-fun events have wrapped up, there’s still plenty to see and do today! Check out www.frugalfashionweek.com for more information on how you can get involved in this celebration of style!

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Toronto, Toronto events, Toronto neighbourhoods

204. BIG on Bloor

July 23, 2011 Heikki Walden

July 23, 2011

Taking place from Dufferin to Lansdowne on Bloor, the BIG on Bloor Festival celebrates local arts and culture, community, and businesses with hundreds of events, activities and exhibitions. The Festival includes large-scale participatory commissioned art projects, two stages for performers, singers, musicians, theatre, dancers and karate, and 300 tables filled with information about community projects and local neighbourhood events. The weekend’s festivities also include BAAF: Bloor Alternative Art Fair, which will bring art institutions, collectives, galleries and artists to the street with crafts, face painting, story telling, and much more!

Today Bloor Street will be closed from Dufferin to Lansdowne from 1pm to 9pm, and will be filled with table exhibitions. Tomorrow the festivities continue on Bloor side streets, stores and restaurants, Susan Tibaldi Park and Kent School (but Bloor Street will re-open for traffic). For more information on all the festivities, go to http://bigonbloor.com/festival/.

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Toronto, Toronto events, Toronto museums

203. Half-Price Friday Nights at the ROM

July 22, 2011 Heikki Walden

July 22, 2011

Kids getting restless as summer is nearly at its half way point? Half-Price Friday Nights at the ROM are here to the save day (and save you some money and your sanity)! Starting at 4:30pm tonight (and every Friday), admission is half price to the ROM, meaning that adult tickets are $12, seniors and students pay $10.50, and children 4 to 14 only pay $8 for their tickets! To beat the lines, purchase your Half Price Friday Night tickets in advance online. Keep in mind that these tickets are good for general admission, meaning that separately-ticketed exhibitions are subject to extra fees (Water: The Exhibition is separately-ticketed).

With general admission you’ll have the opportunity to check out almost everything the ROM has to offer! Right now you can enjoy Embellished Reality: Indian Painted Photographs; Sitting Still: Faces of Childhood; Riotous Colour, Daring Patterns: Fashions + Textiles 18th to 21st Centuries and the standard World Culture Galleries and Natural History Galleries! There’s something that everyone will enjoy at Toronto’s most famous museum! (And if the kids don’t calm down after spending the evening at the ROM, you can always threaten to leave them in the Bat Cave!)

For more information on Half-Price Friday Nights at the ROM and to purchase tickets in advance, go to www.rom.on.ca.

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Toronto, Toronto events, Toronto food

202. Say Cheese! And Cheers!

July 21, 2011 Heikki Walden

July 21, 2011

Everyone knows that wine and cheese go together like salt and pepper, but what about beer and cheese? Explore the world of beer and cheese pairing tonight at the Black Creek Historic Brewery’s “Say Cheese! And Cheers!” Tonight’s theme is “Coast-to-Coast Canadian Beer and Cheese Tasting,” so you’ll have the opportunity to enjoy specialty cheese and craft beers from across the country, in addition to experiencing a guided tour of the Brewery.

Tickets are $30 per person; call 416-667-6284 to purchase. For more information, go to www.blackcreekbrewery.ca.

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Toronto, Toronto events

201. Free Tour at the Toronto Botanical Garden

July 20, 2011 Heikki Walden

July 20, 2011

With an array of 17 award-winning themed gardens, the Toronto Botanical Garden is four acres of beauty and tranquility. Areas include a Herb Garden, Kitchen Garden (this year’s Kitchen Garden’s theme is Ireland), Terrace Garden, Woodland Walk, President’s Choice Show Garden, and many more! Explore them all today at 7pm as you experience a free 90 minute tour, starting in the George and Kathy Debmroski Centre for Horticulture.

Whether you’re a green thumb or whether you simply appreciate beauty and tranquility in the midst of a bustling city, you’ll certainly enjoy the Toronto Botanical Garden! For more information, go to www.torontobotanicalgarden.ca.

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Toronto, Toronto events, Toronto theatre

200. Next to Normal

July 19, 2011 Heikki Walden

July 19, 2011

A rock musical from Michael Greif (the director of Rent), Next to Normal recounts the story of a turbulent family’s suburban blues. Featuring 30 original songs by Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey, this production won a 2009 Tony Award for Best Score and starts Alice Ripley, who has also won a Tony Award for her performance.

This isn’t your average Broadway musical; the story is about a woman with bipolar disorder and depression, the cast is made up of only six people, and it is a sung-through rock musical. Next to Normal has been credited with “push[ing] Broadway in new directions” (Rolling Stone), and has been described as “an emotional powerhouse of a musical about a family trying to take care of themselves and each other” (nexttonormal.com).

The show opens tonight at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts at 7:30pm and will run until the end of the month. Tickets range in price from $34 to $129 and can be purchased at www.dancaptickets.com.

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Toronto, Toronto events, Toronto festivals, Toronto music

199. Beaches International Jazz Festival

July 18, 2011 Heikki Walden

July 18, 2011

Now in Season 23, The Beaches International Jazz Festival is a summer institution in our city – in fact it has been voted Toronto’s #1 Outdoor Summer Music Event! Continuing until July 24th, the Festival features a unique blend of jazz, blues, funk, Caribbean, and other genres of music, ensuring that every festival-goer enjoys the range of sounds that defines this beloved Festival.

Performances take place at several locations, with main stage events at Woodbine Park and Kew Gardens. Admission to the Beaches International Jazz Festival is free! For a full rundown of all the concerts, events and workshops going on throughout the course of the Festival, go to www.beachesjazz.com!

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Toronto, Toronto events, Toronto festivals

198. Festival of India

July 17, 2011 Heikki Walden

July 17, 2011

This year the Toronto Annual Festival of India is celebrating 39 years – join in the celebrations today at Centre Island! Including a sampling of free vegetarian foods, an award-winning arts and culture showcase, a “spiritual yoga festival,” a bustling South Asian Bazaar, traditional face-painting, an area for the kids, and much more!

The annual Festival of India is organized by the Toronto chapter of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. For more information on today’s festivities and for directions to Centre Island, go to www.feedyoursoul.to/

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Green, Toronto, Toronto events, Toronto farmers' markets

197. Live Green Toronto Festival

July 16, 2011 Heikki Walden

July 16, 2011

Taking place at Yonge and Dundas Square, the Live Green Toronto Festival features more than 100 exhibitors, live music, local food, and much more for the eco-savvy and environmentally friendly urbanite!

Check out the Farmers’ Market and let the kids explore green activities in the Kids Zone; drop of your e-waste and get some help making your neighbourhood a little greener from Community Animators present at the festival. Yonge Street will be closed from Dundas to Queen from 11am until 8pm today, so go green and discover all the Live Green Toronto Festival has to offer! For more information on this free event, go to www.toronto.ca/greentorontofestival.

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Harbourfront, Toronto, Toronto events, Toronto festivals

196. Columbian Colours II Diaspora Festival

July 15, 2011 Heikki Walden

July 15, 2011

Starting today and continuing until July 17, the Columbian Colours II Diaspora Festival presents a collection of dancers, musicians, artist and more. Through their art, performers illustrate a world view and the way in which their voices have evolved to influence and fuse with different cultures.

Highlights of this weekend’s festival at the Harbourfront Centre include salsa star Alfredo de la Fe, Folklore Urbano, and sensational acapella group NVOZ. For more information on this exciting free event, go to www.harbourfrontcentre.com.