March 20th-24th Water Docs Film Festival @ Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema, 506 Bloor St. W. Water Docs Film Festival returns for its eighth year to showcase Canadian and international features and shorts about all things water!
March 22nd-24th Green Living Show @ Metro Toronto Convention Centre, 255 Front St. W. North America’s largest consumer show dedicated to easy and simple solutions for leading a healthy and sustainable lifestyle. This three-day event features local and organic food, beer and wine tastings, sustainable fashion, speakers, and more.
WEDNESDAY
6:30 pm Before the 6ix: Classic 1999 Toronto Hip-Hop Albums @ Toronto Public Library (Hinton Learning Theatre, 3rd floor), 789 Yonge St. Join moderator Del Cowie and DJ Agile as Choclair, Saukrates, Mathematik, Murr of Da Grassroots, and former music industry professional Mansa Trotman take part in an in-depth discussion and play music from some of the classic 1999 Toronto hip-hop albums that turn 20 in 2019. Choclair’s Ice Cold, Saukrates’ The Underground Tapes, Mathematik’s Ecology, and Da Grassroots’ Passage Through Time will be discussed. Free!
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.
8 pm Drake Trivia @ The Drake Hotel, 1150 Queen St. W. Teams of four or less put their random knowledge to the test as hosts Megan Griffith-Greene and Jeromy Lloyd fire off questions ranging from sporting records and celebrity scandals to geographic discoveries and culinary lingo. $2 to participate. Email host@thedrakehotel.ca or show up early to reserve a spot.
THURSDAY
7:30 pm F*ck Sh*t Up: Trans + Non-Binary Performer Cabaret @ The Gladstone Hotel, 1214 Queen St. W. Enjoy performances by Midnite Wolverine, Tygr Willy, Kris Antel, and Saltas part of the Gladstone’s Thursday night cabaret series. With hosts Babia Majora and Fluffy Soufflé. Stick around after the cabaret for tunes and more good times. PWYC ($10 suggested, but no one will be turned away).
8 pm Spelling Bae @ Pennie’s, 127 Strachan Ave. A spelling bee where you spell words with letters on a microphone in front of a thousand people and the lights are very very bright and yes you are visibly sweating but god what a rush. $1 to play, prizes to win. Sign-up at 8 pm, Bae at 8:30.
8 pm Neon Dreams Cinema Club: Kamikaze 89 @ The Royal Cinema, 608 College St. Closing out Neon Dreams’ international season is the Toronto premiere of the 4K restoration of the 1982 West German cyberpunk thriller film, Kamikaze 89. Buckle up for an outrageous, once-in-a-lifetime ride through futuristic (that’s right, it’s set in 1989) Berlin. $13.19 tickets available online.
10 pm Wipe Out @ Swan Dive, 1631 Dundas St. W. Surf, rock, psych, and soul with DJ Luke Harley.
10 pm Noumenon @ The Embassy, 223 Augusta Ave. Dub, techno, IDM, electro, and experimental with DJs Vladislove and Soft Matter.
FRIDAY
7 pm Friday Night Live: Holi @ Royal Ontario Museum, 100 Queen’s Park. Kick off your weekend on the dance floor at #FNLROM, featuring free access to the new special exhibition Treasures of a Desert Kingdom: The Royal Arts of Jodhpur, India. $19.21 tickets available online; limited amount available at the door.
8 pm Astronomy on Tap @ The Great Hall, 1087 Queen St. W. Quench your thirst for astronomy! A fun evening of pints, astronomy news, mind-expanding talks, games, and prizes. Following the talks, you’ll have all your cosmic questions answered by astronomers from the Dunlap Institute and the University of Toronto. Doors at 7 pm.
10 pm Cheap Thrills @ Stones Place, 1255 Queen St. W. Rock ‘n’ roll, psych, metal, surf, garage, and punk from the 1960s to the 2000s with DJs Blush and Waves. $5.
10 pm DJ Crunch Bandicut @ Swan Dive, 1631 Dundas St. W. Rock ‘n’ roll goodness all damn night with DJ Crunch Bandicut.
10 pm Get Ur Freak On @ Clinton’s, 693 Bloor St. W. 1, 2 Step your way over to Clinton’s, because Bangs & Blush want you to GET UR FREAK ON! Get down on the dance floor and work it to all your fave rap and hip-hop throwbacks. $10.
10 pm Zero Cool @ Handlebar, 159 Augusta Ave. Boogie, synthpop, spacey funk, disco, new wave, and sleaze with DJ Daniel Benjamin.
10 pm Get Buck @ The Ossington, 61 Ossington Ave. DJ Nino Brown spins hip-hop, soca, RnB, and dancehall. Deep grooves that transcend.
10 pm Beam Me Up Disco @ The Piston, 937 Bloor St. W. A disco jam that celebrates the underrated and the obscure of funk, jazz, soul, boogie, rare groove, reggae, gospel, proto-house! It’s an evening of tuneful transcendence, supplied by residents Patchouli Brothers and Cyclist. $10.
10:30 pm Home Brew @ The Drake Underground, 1150 Queen St. W. Home Brew brings together Toronto’s up-and-coming electronic DJs, producers, and live musicians, putting forward women, POC, and LGBTQIA+. Playing the best in deep house, future house, pop, tropical, and bass. $10.
SATURDAY
4 pm Designing The Movies: Gold Diggers of 1933 on 35mm @ Revue Cinema, 400 Roncesvalles Ave. A screening of the 1933 pre-Code Warner Bros. musical film Gold Diggers of 1933, directed by Mervyn LeRoy. Introduced by series host Nathalie Atkinson in conversation with Elizabeth Semmelhack, senior Bata Shoe Museum curator and adjunct professor at Ryerson School of Fashion, about the substance of pre-Code style. $12-15 advance tickets available online.
9:30 pm Purple Nights: Field @ 500 Keele St. Banded Purple invites you to attend the launch of their nighttime event series Purple Nights. In this first installment, they’ve collaborated with a number of visual artists, creators, musicians, and dancers to bring you an immersive sound and art experience. $15-20 advance tickets available online.
10 pm Sound Directions @ The Red Light, 1185 Dundas St. W. Join selectors Ali Black and Johnny Lopez for a night of dance floor boogie delights.
10 pm Shindig! Reunion @ The Piston, 937 Bloor St. W. DJs General Eclectic, Parkdale Funk, and Splattermonkey return to The Piston for a very special night of dancing to that classic soul and R&B music that Shindig! was known for. All on 7” 45 RPM vinyl records.
10 pm Wedding Party @ The Boat, 152-A Augusta Ave. Everyone is the bride at Wedding Party! Playing the golden hits for any and all to groove to – soul, funk, new wave, and hip-hop.
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, Beyoncé, Jay-Z, Notorious B.I.G., Nelly, TLC, Missy Elliott, and more! $10.
10 pm Roll + Skank @ The Ossington, 61 Ossington Ave. DJ night with the hottest beats around. All the way from the UK, this is what you’ve been waiting for.
10 pm Saturday Night Jukebox Dance Party @ Stones Place, 1255 Queen St. W. Sweat it out to the sweet sounds of the golden age of rock ‘n’ roll and soul music! DJ Blush plays rock, soul, funk, pop, and disco from the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s.
10 pm So Far Gone: Drake Dance Party @ Sneaky Dee’s, 431 College St. Switch into Sicko Mode as Sneaky Dee’s plays all the Drake you can handle all night long, plus some of your other hip-hop favourites as well. $5 advance tickets available online.
10 pm Dirty Talk @ Unlovable, 1415-B Dundas St. W. Music for dancing with pleasure models. Music to transport you to the far reaches of Orion, to watch the C-beams glitter in the dark. Music for robots, runners, and replicants. Pammm and Automaticamore play Italo, cosmic disco, ’80s Euro synthpop, Montreal sound, and weird dad jams.
10:30 pm Hey Girl Hey @ The Baby G, 1608 Bloor St. W. Queer dance party featuring DJ Orange Pekoe serving up the best in hip-hop and R&B by female, trans, and non-binary artists + the iconic Midnight-ish Floorshow starring Beardoncé with special guest Leelando! 4 AM LAST CALL. $10.
11 pm Korea Town Acid / Honeydrip / Venus1 @ SoSo Food Club, 1166 Dundas St. W. Jess Cho, a.k.a. Korea Town Acid, and Emily, a.k.a. Venus1, are throwing a vibey jam inspired by recent tour in Berlin and Brooklyn, featuring Montreal’s Honeydrip. House, techno, acid, grime, leftfield, minimal, and moody. $5 before midnight, more after.
11 pm Trapluv @ The Drake Underground, 1150 Queen St. W. This party was created for people who have an eclectic taste in music. DJs OhMiddy, Chief Emmanuel, and special guests play trap, dance, 808s, afrobeat, and reggae. $10.
SUNDAY
10 am GH Marketplace: Wellness Edition @ The Gladstone Hotel, 1214 Queen St. W. The GH Marketplace: Wellness Market explores well-being as more than just purchasing products in a consumer society. Gain the tools for relaxation and self care by practicing yoga and reiki, learning about eco tours in the city, and exercising the act of giving by supporting local conscious vendors and charities. Discover products, services, and experiences that support wellness and self-care. 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.
~ For event submissions, email Caitlyn Holroyd at caitlyn_holroyd@hotmail.com