By: Anna Cipollone

If you’ve ever casually popped into the Harbourfront Centre while strolling the boardwalk or hanging water’s edge, you know how big and busy this cultural hub can be. With so many festivals, art exhibits, concerts and plays on offer, the sheer selection can be overwhelming. Whether it’s a passion for indigenous cultures or a long-repressed desire to break into hula dancing at your next luau, the Harbourfront Centre boasts a bundle of events that will keep you busy this summer without breaking your budget. If you’re feeling starved for the arts, check out these free picks for a cultural smorgasbord that will satisfy your senses.

EVENT: Universal Code
WHY IT’S COOL: The exhibit presents a slew of contemporary artists’ response to themes like globalization, surveillance in the information age, and cosmology. Katie Paterson created her piece by launching a Morse code version of Moonlight Sonata into space via moon bounce and welcoming it home with missing notes. A self-playing piano serenades visitors with a fragmented remix of the Beethoven classic.
CHECK IT OUT IF YOU LIKE: To trip out on theories of infinite space with fellow art geeks.
WHEN/WHERE: June 12-August 30, The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery, 231 Queens Quay West
http://www.thepowerplant.org/exhibitions/summer09/universalcode/info.htm

EVENT: Orfea and the Golden Harp
WHY IT’S COOL: With music arranged by Greg Robic, this play incorporates soprano, bass baritone, bassoon, oboe and piano to tell the tale of Orfea, a young girl grappling with her grandfather’s death. Using a magical harp to travel to the underworld, Orfea meets literary icons like Dr. Faust and Dionysus along the way. This story of life and death culminates in an Opera Idol competition, bringing the mixture of classical themes and modern musical trends full circle.
CHECK IT OUT IF YOU LIKE: Mozart meets American Idol, if you hold a fondness for fairy tales or if you’re looking to entertain the little ones for an afternoon.
WHEN/WHERE: Sunday July 5, 4:00pm, Toronto Music Garden, 475 Queens Quay West
http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/whatson/today.cfm?id=1154
http://www.theatrecottonrobes.com/

EVENT: Winter Gloves
WHY IT’S COOL: This Montreal-based four piece plays toe-tapping tunes drenched in synth-pop. Their debut album’s poetic lyrics have them sitting pretty with the public, having earned them the 2008 title of Best New Artist from iTunes Canada.
CHECK IT OUT IF YOU LIKE: Swaying to dreamy, heart-tugging pop with your honey.
WHEN/WHERE: Friday July 10, 8:00pm, Sirius Stage, 235 Queens Quay West
http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/worldroutes/festivals.cfm?id=1206
http://www.myspace.com/wintergloves
http://www.winterglovesmusic.com

EVENT: MixMotion
WHY IT’S COOL: Toronto-based design group that mixes and cuts live video with graphics and music for a mishmash of visual cues.
CHECK IT OUT IF YOU LIKE: Interactive design installations, performance art and dancing to the beat of a different drum.
WHEN/WHERE: Friday July 10, 10:00pm and Saturday July 11, 10:30pm, Brigantine Room, York Quay Centre at 235 Queens Quay West
http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/worldroutes/festivals.cfm?id=1418
http://www.mixmotion.com/web2/

EVENT: Oiseaux Interurbains/Migratory Songflutes
WHY IT’S COOL: Alison Melville performs works spanning the 12th to the 21st Centuries on various flutes with harpsichord accompaniment in this quaint, outdoor concert.
CHECK IT OUT IF YOU LIKE: Garden parties, blue skies and butterflies.
WHEN/WHERE: Sunday July 26, 4:00pm, Toronto Music Garden at 475 Queens
Quay West
http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/whatson/torontomusicgarden.cfm?id=1158
http://www.alisonmelville.com

EVENT: Parallels
WHY IT’S COOL: This Toronto-trio plays synth-heavy beats lead by vocalist Holly Dodson’s angelic ode to 80s icons.
CHECK IT OUT IF YOU LIKE: Digital dance parties or if Crystal Castles, Eurythmics and Blondie have been known to groove you and move you.
WHEN/WHERE: Saturday July 11, 7:30pm, Redpath Stage at 235 Queens Quay West
http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/worldroutes/festivals.cfm?id=1338
http://www.myspace.com/parallelsfm

EVENT: Amy Millan
WHY IT’S COOL: With Stars and Broken Social Scene on her resume, this Montreal-born crooner adapted songs written in her heartbreak-heavy twenties for her 2006 debut album, Honey from the Tomb. Expect to hear a preview of her upcoming record at this performance.
CHECK IT OUT IF YOU LIKE: Country-pop songs that tear a hole in your heart.
WHEN/WHERE: Saturday July 25, 9:30pm, Sirius Stage at 235 Queens Quay West
http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/worldroutes/festivals.cfm?id=1230
http://www.myspace.com/amymillan
http://www.arts-crafts.ca/amymillan/index2.html

EVENT: Failure to Comply: Shorts from the Underground
WHY IT’S COOL: Curated by Danis Goulet, an after dark screening of his collection of short, racy films on indigenous cultures.
CHECK IT OUT IF YOU LIKE: Flicks with naughty nuances that leave your cheeks pink.
WHEN/WHERE: Friday August 14, 11:00pm, Studio Theatre, York Quay Centre at 235 Queens Quay West
http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/worldroutes/festivals.cfm?id=1368

EVENT: Halau Ka Wekiu
WHY IT’S COOL: Casupang and Baker offer 30 years of expertise in the art of hula as they lead groups ages 13 and up in a workshop on this Hawaiian tradition.
CHECK IT OUT IF YOU LIKE: Swaying your hips to a ukulele beat.
WHEN/WHERE: Sunday August 23, 1:30pm, Redpath Stage at 235 Queens Quay West
http://www.halauikawekiu.com/
http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/whatson/today.cfm?id=1264

EVENT: Fashion and Fire LIVE 2009
WHY IT’S COOL: Fashion, fire and music combine to create a spectacle that will dazzle onlookers with its take on indigenous cultures.
CHECK IT OUT IF YOU LIKE: Flamboyant fashion shows with over-the-top festivities.
WHEN/WHERE: Saturday August 22, 8:00pm, Natrel Pond at 235 Queens Quay West
http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/worldroutes/festivals.cfm?id=1404

EVENT: Camp Kegedonce
WHY IT’S COOL: Late-night debauchery, from body painting to burlesque, in celebration of sexual diversity.
CHECK IT OUT IF YOU LIKE: Playful erotica and everything indigenous.
WHEN/WHERE: Saturday August 22, 11:00pm, Lakeside Terrace, York Quay Centre
http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/worldroutes/festivals.cfm?id=1405

EVENT: Beats, Breaks and Grafitti
WHY IT’S COOL: A live grafitti contest featuring four of Toronto’s hippest street artists, each given the same word and materials, who will be judged on their creative interpretations of the chosen theme.
CHECK IT OUT IF YOU LIKE: Grafitti culture and under pressure-painting.
WHEN/WHERE: Saturday July 11, 2:00pm, Sculpture Court at 235 Queens Quay West
http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/whatson/visualarts.cfm?id=1205