This weekend, ballet fans finally get to see Ivan Cavallari’s new spin on Romeo and Juliet, set to Sergei Prokofiev. The show was postponed from April 2020, to March 2021, and is now gracing the stage at Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier. See the 47 dancers of the Grands Ballets interpret Shakespeare’s classic, tragic story of young love. Until March 27.
La Tohu hosts two circus shows this weekend: two-person acrobat love story Knot and the three-man Bromance. Knot will be performed Friday and Saturday, 9pm and Bromance, Friday, 7pm, Saturday 2 and 7pm and Sunday, 2pm. Friday’s show will feature a post-show discussion with the performers from both shows.
English composer Gustav Holst’s epic Planets suite will be performed by the FILMharmonic Orchestra with Maestro Francis Choiniere. The program will also include selections from star Hollywood composers Hans Zimmer and John Williams… you might recognize their work from ET, Interstellar and Star Wars. Maison symphonique, Sunday, 2pm.
Montreal singer Geoffroy performs at MTelus, Saturday at 8pm.
New show at the McCord: Piqutiapiit celebrates and elucidates the incredible craftwork of Inuit women. Montreal-based, Kuujjuaq-born artist Niap is the driving force behind the show. We view the tools and the practical works they helped to craft, including beadwork and clothing. And there is original work from Niap, who is currently artist-in-residence at the McCord.
Choreographer and dancer Sujit Vaidya performs a form of traditional Hindu dance called Bharatanatyam, but as a queer artist he is seeking to break out of the genre’s heteronormative standards and create a more inclusive, expressive form. He performs his new show, Off Centre, with dancer Arun Mathai; both are backed by a live musician. It's slow, sensual and meditative - I really enjoyed it! Friday and Saturday, 7:30pm at the MAI.
Two-time Canadian Comedy Award winner Julie Kim headlines the Comedy Nest this weekend. Friday and Saturday, 8 and 10:30pm.
Final weekend to check out Visions Hip-Hop QC: Exhibition is an expansive portrait series opening this weekend at the Phi Centre. Painter Marven Clerveau has curated a ‘visual and sonic journey’ to portray the people who have shaped the hip-hop scene in the province. Marven speaks with artists like Webster, Tammy Tuesdayz and Know Kandu, as well as local music managers. Until Saturday.
The Montreal Fringe Festival holds a virtual and in-person lottery to select show applications for the 2022 Fringe (coming this June!). You can check out the fun in-person at MainLine Thetare, Saturday at 5:30pm. (And you have until Friday, 6pm to submit your application for the lottery)
The 94th Oscars will stage a return to the ceremonies of the past. Sunday, 8pm at CTV, following the ETALK preview at 5:30pm and the Red Carpet Show at 6:30pm.
Some Oscar contenders you can still catch: Don’t Look Up, The Lost Daughter and The Power of the Dog are on Netflix. Dune and King Richard are on Crave. Spencer and Being the Ricardos are on Amazon Prime. CODA is on Apple TV+. Many films are still in theatre, of course! Cinema du Parc is showing Licorice Pizza and Drive My Car.
Also, less of a time commitment than a feature-length film: Stream the NFB’s Oscar-nominated animated short film, Affairs of the Art, about the everyday obsessions of an eccentric family.
A new Hollywood romcom is in theatres this weekend: Sandra Bullock is a widowed romance writer who has lost her mojo in The Lost City. She torpedoes her own book tour, then gets kidnapped by Abigail Fairfax (Daniel Radcliffe), a megalomaniac rich guy who wants to go on a treasure hunt on a tiny island in the Atlantic. He thinks Loretta is key to hitting paydirt, but her gorgeous cover model Alan (Channing Tatum) is determined to rescue her. I loved this movie! Great timing and fantastic cameos (hey, Brad!) and the emotional touchpoints come together neatly.
Speaking of bodice-ripping romance novels, the Netflix series inspired by Julia Quinn’s Bridgerton novels has returned! Aristocrat Violet Bridgerton is mother to eight, alphabetically-named kids. After we saw fourth-eldest Daphne find true love on Boxing Day 2020 (who didn’t binge watch?, we now follow the eldest, Viscount Anthony, as he considers - gasp! - settling down.
And once you’re through with Bridgerton, do check out Julian Fellowes’ The Gilded Age. It’s less soapy than Shonda Rhimes' Bridgerton, but just as much of a confection, though I think it has yet to achieve the nuance and drama of Fellowes' Downton Abbey. Will parvenu Bertha Russell manage to stage a debutante ball worthy of the upper crust for her daughter? What's the deal with Chef Monsieur Baudin? The seaon one finale dropped earlier this week on Crave.
And I will again recommend Servant of the People, a recent addition to Netflix: Before he was a wartime leader and Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy famously played a man accidentally elected to the top office in Servant of the People. In Russian with English subtitles.
On the bill at Montreal burlesque HQ The Wiggle Room this weekend: Galadriel Caresse, Tristan Ginger, Clara Develours and Roxy Torpedo. Friday and Saturday.
Happening Gourmand is back for its 14th edition. Eleven restaurants in Old Montreal band together to put affordable three-course menus on the table, with price points at $29, $35 and $39. Restos this year include Brasserie 701, Modavie, Maggie Oakes, Bevo Bar and Pizzeria, Taverne Gaspar, Vieux Port Steakhouse - to name a few! Until April 3.
Indie venue Montreal Improv is back, at its new home in St Henri. Catch one or more of the four shows up this weekend! Tickets and schedules here.
Walk or drive through Cavalia’s magical Illumi circuit in Laval. If you caught the show last year, it’s nearly entirely a brand new show, with many new ‘universes’ to discover, like the candy blizzard, giant puppies and kittens, an Aladdin-inspired palace and a ‘submarine tunnel’. Until April 17.
Cabaret Celeste is a new show at the recently renovated Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth Hotel. A meeting room has been converted to a cozy cabaret space for this Cirque Éloize production, which was cancelled hours before its original opening back in December (thanks, Omicron). Celeste draws inspiration from the astrophysical… think tarot, horoscopes, planets and deities … and it is by equal turns sensual and silly! I loved the creative clay juggling act, and the master of ceremony’s Cyr wheel act. The talented and gorgeous Coral Egan provides the vocals through a slew of pop songs, ranging from Frank Sinatra to Coldplay to Leonard Cohen.
The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts presents Nicolas Party: L'heure mauve, a look at the Swiss artist’s pastels, watercolours and sculptures, set against murals he’s painted in the Museum… plus with 50 works selected by Party from the Museum’s collection. The show title is a reference to ‘that fleeting moment when the fading light casts purple hues over the landscape’ - how dreamy!
The McCord Museum has just launched the fascinating JJ Levine: Queer Portraits. The Montreal artist presents 52 intimate images of people who self-identify as queer, selected from three different series taken between now and 2006.
The Montreal Science Centre reopened last month. Explore evolution in Human or explore the process of invention in Fabrik - Creativity Factory. Plus, the movie theatre is open, so you can sit back and learn about Sea Lions and the Great Bear Rainforest - in IMAX 3D!
While the kids play at the Science Centre, maybe you can sneak off to Bota Bota floating spa or Spa Scandinave in the Old Port? Because spas reopened this week! Also, The Old Port’s skating rink is open, with tickets available online.
The Opéra de Montréal presents two performances available to rent online, Bizet's Carmen.
Run away to the circus, at least metaphorically, with Pointe-à-Callière It's Circus Time! Over 350 objects will explore the 200-some year history of the art in Quebec, through costumes, props, training equipment and more.
The McCord Museum hosts Parachute: Subversive Fashion of the '80s. It's a moody, bold look at the style and messaging of the decade through the stylings of Parachute, a made-in-Montreal label created by a British fashion designer and an American architect. Their concept stores were soon found in New York and Los Angeles, and their creations were in demand from the likes of Madonna, Peter Gabriel and David Bowie! And don't miss the harrowing Indigenous Voices of Today, which highlights the voices of people from different Indigenous communities. The show both reveals the craftsmanship of every day traditional objects like waterproof parkas and sewing tools, then explores the exploitation and oppression of Indigenous families and land, then finishes with realistic questions about reconciliation.
Monet - Dr Mitch-approved! The people who brought you the Van Gogh immersive experience now shift their attention to one of the most iconic of the French Impressionist painters, with Imagine Monet. Now on at Arsenal Gallery in Little Burgundy, it's like taking a bath in works by Claude Monet (1840-1926). The roughly 35-minute show introduces you to his work, and then you are immersed in his iconic water lilies and Japanese footbridge scenes, as well as rich snapshots from nature, beaches and busy French streets and ports. A meditative visit with one of the greatest painters. Extended until April 10.
Exporail, the Canadian train museum in St Constant presents: Train, a Railroad to Dreams: A World in Miniature. It’s an homage to toy trains… so you start with the smallest of the trains, then pivot to marvel at the 50 life-size vehicles on display in the Grand Gallery.