December 14th-22nd Yorkville Village Holiday Market @ Yorkville Village, 55 Avenue Rd. Live entertainment, pop-ups, holiday-themed vendors, family-friendly entertainment, and interior and exterior decorations. Proceeds from all sponsored activities will go towards SickKids.
December 14th-31st Evergreen’s Winter Village @ Evergreen Brick Works, 550 Bayview Ave. Celebrate the holiday season at Evergreen’s Winter Village! Enjoy the new Street Food Market, find unique gifts, shop the Farmers Market and play outdoors all throughout December. Admission is free.
December 17th-18th The Trinity Bellwoods Flea @ Studio Bar, 824 Dundas St. W. Skip the lines and the crowds this holiday season and find the special gift for that special someone on your list at the Trinity Bellwoods Flea! Featuring some of the city’s best in art, collectibles, handmade, fashion, and vintage + a fun and jazzy mix of all your holiday favorites. Runs 11-6 p.m. both days.
December 17th-17th Crown Flora Holiday Market @ Crown Flora Studio, 1233 (rear) Queen St. W. Crown Flora opens the doors of their Parkdale studio for local handmade makers and holiday cheer! Featuring over 15 vendors. Runs 10-5 pm Saturday and 11-5 pm Sunday.
December 17th-18th My Makeup Brush Set Pop-Up @ Metro Toronto Convention Centre, 255 Front St. W. My Makeup Brush Set’s biggest sale of the year. Save up to 90% on brush sets, cosmetic palettes, highlighters, hair tools, nail kits, and more. Runs 9-6 pm both days. RSVP online for free entry.
WEDNESDAY
7 pm Music Bingo @ The Gladstone Hotel, 1214 Queen St. W. A FREE weekly event combining the love of music with the traditional bingo format. Each player receives a Music Bingo card which consists of an assortment of songs. Instead of calling out numbers, they play the music! Singing along encouraged.
THURSDAY
10 pm Get Lo @ Clinton’s, 693 Bloor St. W. Bangs & Blush bring you the ULTIMATE ’90s til now dance party, GET LO! They’ll be playing all the shit you wanna hear from the ’90s to today.
10 pm Paradise is Mine @ The Shop under Parts & Labour, 1566 Queen St. W. Forget your precious rationality and various forms of capital for a moment. Give yourself permission to dance like a squid on Black Tuna. With Destroyer_12, Dullboy (La Timpa and Prince Josh), DJ Virus, and DJ Leo Gee Gee. $5 before midnight, $10 after.
10 pm Vanishing Point @ The Ossington, 61 Ossington Ave. A new monthly dance party featuring disco, funk, soul, and rare grooves.
FRIDAY
10 pm Loving In The Name Of @ The Great Hall, 1087 Queen St. W. A dance party and live set in celebration of the greatest hits of all time! The Best recreates classic songs from Katy Perry, Mase, Madonna, Whitney Houston, Annie Lennon, Bruce Springsteen, Elton John, The Contours, No Doubt, and Robyn. DJ Lowell Sostomi spins the jams all night long. $12.
10 pm Birthday Sex @ The Shop under Parts & Labour, 1566 Queen St. W. Diego Bros are back to play your favourite throwback RnB and hip-hop jams all night long! With special guest DJ Black Cat. (December babies, post your birthday requests on the Facebook page.) $5.
10 pm Bad News @ Handlebar, 159 Augusta Ave. Thee Blitzkrieg Slop a.k.a. garage, soul, ’60s trash, and rock ‘n’ roll. With DJs Neil and Derek.
10 pm Goodies @ The Steady, 1051 Bloor St. W. DJs Ace Dillinger, Lulu Wei, and Sexton fill your ears with pop, RnB, house, and club music.
10 pm Shadows of Motown @ The Boat, 158 Augusta Ave. Shadows of Motown is a dance party that plays the biggest and best Motown, doo wop, booty shakin’ hits! With DJs Slater, Well Said, and Ty. $5.
10 pm Girl & Boy 90s Dance Party @ Clinton’s, 693 Bloor St. W. A pulsating dance party rocking the retro sounds of the 1990s! All your favourite dance, pop, hip-hop, R&B, and so on and so on and so on. $5 with student ID, $10 without.
10 pm Hip-Hop Karaoke @ Revival Bar, 783 College St. Come get your karaoke on one last time before reverting into holiday hibernation mode; preemptively work off those calories BEFORE all the turkey consumption begins! Hosted by Abdominal and More Or Les, with DJ Ted Dancin’. $10 before 11 pm, $15 after.
10 pm Kareem The Dream @ The Ossington, 61 Ossington Ave. The ultimate smooth party groove. Hip-hop, dancehall, soul, RnB – everything you need.
10 pm Rebel Hop @ The Piston, 937 Bloor St. W. A night of naughty dancefloor goodies, from soul and funk to reggae, hip-hop, and dancehall. DJs Gramera and Linx on the decks + Dennis P on the sax.
10 pm Yes Yes Y’all @ Nest, 423 College St. The hottest, sweatiest, busiest queer hip-hop/dancehall/RnB jam around! Shaine Crosbie a.k.a. CRSB joins the YYY Crew this month. $6 before 11:30 pm, $10 after.
11 pm Course of Time @ The Drake Underground, 1150 Queen St. W. A night dedicated to modern dance music. Featuring DJ Action, Kings of the North, and Squirt DJs. Graphics and visuals By Phil Armson. $10.
SATURDAY
12 pm Unlovable General Winter Market @ Unlovable General, 1415 Dundas St. W. Market featuring goods from Cuchara Jewelry, GHOST, Go Fish Tarot, The Leather Atelier, Eat Noodles Get Money, RYB Denim, Ship Island Leather, and more. Mulled wine and cocktails by Neil Barry (from Loveless). Until 7 pm.
12 pm Holiday Zine + Maker Fair @ Xpace Cultural Centre, 2-303 Lansdowne Ave. Shop zines, comics, prints, t-shirts, tote bags, jewelry, crafts, and other handmade goodies from local vendors! There will be music, snacks, and good vibes. Until 6 pm.
8 pm DJ Skate Nights @ Harbourfront Centre (Natrel Rink), 235 Queen’s Quay W. Toronto’s number one outdoor winter party returns with a stellar lineup of local and international DJs. This week, singer/producer/songwriter Katie Stelmanis of Austra brings an eclectic, sonically diverse set to the rink.
10 pm It’s All Good @ The Piston, 937 Bloor St. W. DJs General Eclectic and Splattermonkey spin all-90s hip-hop, house, and rock! The best all killer and no filler selections from 1990 to 1999, so expect to hear stuff like Wu-Tang, Pixies, Nirvana, etc. Nostalgic moments guaranteed, because It’s All Good, baby! $10.
10 pm 474: From New York to Toronto @ The Beaver, 1192 Queen St. W. New York’s DJ Bruce makes the 474 mile journey to Toronto to parade his musical prowess alongside locals A Digital Needle, and seal the bond between the dance floors of the Big Apple and the Big Smoke. They’ll be playing diversified dance music, with a natural leaning toward disco and leftside house.
10 pm Hey Girl Hey @ The Steady, 1051 Bloor St. W. Do Saturday night right with a hip-hop and R&B dance party for queers! DJ Orange Pekoe playing your fav all-female jams + Drag-Queen-in-Residence Beardoncé and special guest Dottie Dangerfield slaying you at 12:30. Free before 11 pm, $5 after.
10 pm Worst Behavior @ Clinton’s, 693 Bloor St. W. This Saturday, be on your worst behavior. Bangs & Blush play past and present bangers all night long from Drake, The Weeknd, Beyonce, Jay-Z, Notorious B.I.G., Nelly, TLC, Missy Elliott, and more! $5 with student ID, $10 without.
10 pm Get It Together @ The Boat, 158 Augusta Ave. Kensington Market’s open format dance party welcoming all genres, all styles, and all people. Selections by Mikey McFly. $5.
10 pm Sweetback @ Cadillac Jenkins, 930 Queen St. W. After an extended hiatus, Toronto’s smoothest rare groove music night sets up shop at the city’s hottest new lounge. Expect the same fine selections spanning rare disco, funk, acid jazz, soul, and space disco to rock your world. With your hosts, JChameleon and David James.
10 pm Juicy Fruit @ Holy Oak, 1241 Bloor St. W. DJ Phillippe squeezes the final few drops out of 2016 with a night of disco and boogie. $5.
10 pm THE BRTHDY PRTY @ The Shop under Parts & Labour, 1566 Queen St. W. Who doesn’t love a birthday party?! Free Polaroids ALL NIGHT! Cupcake hour provided by Baken Toronto. $5.
10 pm Whatever You Like Feat. Sgt Garbage @ The Ossington, 61 Ossington Ave. All hits, all night with spicy DJs that’ll really get you moving and shaking. It’s the good stuff – the prom that never was!
10 pm Elf: A 2000s Dance Party @ Sneaky Dee’s, 431 College St. Sing and dance along to all the 2000s music you can handle, because the best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear! Christmas sweaters and Elf outfits encouraged. $5 advance tickets available online.
11 pm Stuck On Stupid @ The Drake Underground, 1150 Queen St. W. DJs Fase and Dougie Boom throw a no-holds-barred, anything-goes, sky’s-the-limit, all-out dance-a-thon! Expect hits and not-so-hits, jams old and new. $10.
SUNDAY
12 pm Holiday Toronto Bakers Market @ Ralph Thornton Community Centre, 765 Queen St. E. Explore, taste, and buy some of the city’s best baked goods, savoury treats, and fresh sweets from over 30 vendors. Special holiday goodies will be available, along with some delicious vegan, raw, and gluten-free options. Until 4 pm.
7 pm Brass Facts Trivia @ The Ossington, 61 Ossington Ave. Test your knowledge and win prizes! Hosted by Famous Kirk Hero. Until 10 pm.
7:30 pm Seinfeld Trivia: Festivus Edition @ Dundas Video, 831 Dundas St. W. The original and only monthly Seinfeld Trivia continues! Come for the trivia, stay for the episode and the JuJy Fruits. Maybe you’ll win a contest. Doors at 7:30 pm, trivia at 8.
8 pm Screen Queens Presents: Home Alone @ The Royal Cinema, 608 College St. Screen Queens is Mystery Science Theater + Drunk History + Elvira x lots of booze. Get ready to experience movies like never before. This month, they’re screening Home Alone, with live and potentially very drunk commentary, special guests, performances, drinking games, and plenty of surprises. Pre-show at 7:45 pm, movie at 8. $15 in advance, limited tickets available at the door.
8:30 pm Théorie @ Holy Oak, 1241 Bloor St. W. A community-driven engagement with the extremities of dance music culture. A place for Toronto local artists to challenge themselves and the dancefloor in a radically open environment. Inspired by experience of contemporary dance music, but expanded and refracted outwards to create room for experimentation.
10 pm Yeezy Taught Me @ The Drake Underground, 1150 Queen St. W. Coinciding with Kanye’s cancelled Toronto tour stop, this party will serve as a tribute to his 20-year music career (including his own catalogue, song features, and productions). In light of Kanye’s current condition, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to CAMH to support Mental Health initiatives. $10.
~ For event submissions, email Caitlyn Holroyd at caitlyn_holroyd@hotmail.com