TORONTO, ON (June 3, 2015) – Culture lives at Harbourfront Centre with an incredible lineup of programming that crosses borders, defends diversity, and proliferates the arts.
This summer, Harbourfront Centre celebrates arts and culture from around the world, along with plenty of stellar Canadian talent. Spectacular performances featuring artists from South Asia to Africa, Taiwan to Australia, Iran to the Caribbean, and right here in Canada, will be heating up Toronto all summer long. Visitors of all ages are invited to indulge in sensational festivals, outdoor concerts, Canada Day Eve Fireworks (June 30), and to experience the thrill of dancing by the lake, watching films under the stars, and much more. As always, the majority of our programming is free unless otherwise noted.
Weekly activities include the always popular Free Flicks movie night, Dancing on the Pier, Summer Music in the Garden, DJ Deep Fried Fridays, Magnetic Beats, and awesome outdoor concerts on the WestJet Stage.
Every weekend from July 3-September 7, Harbourfront Centre hosts a different curated festival designed with the whole family in mind. New festivals include FLAUNT, which honours freedom of style, and Party on the Block, where local neighbourhoods meet global sounds and movements. Visitors looking to experience the different facets of global culture can participate in TAIWANfest, Habari Africa, the Iranian festival Tirgan, the pan-Latin festival Ritmo Y Color, or the Caribbean festival Island Soul. Each weekend festival will also see unique vendors offering their wares for purchase.
New to Harbourfront Centre is The Word on the Street Book and Magazine Festival, which makes the move from Queen’s Park to take place on site Sunday, September 27th. The festival will showcase Canada’s hottest new books and authors, as well as the best Canadian magazines. Visitors can enjoy over 200 authors and presenters on stage and shop in the Exhibitor Marketplace, which features hundreds of vendors.
Returning this year is Planet IndigenUS, July 31 – August 9. The 10-day festival features over 300 Indigenous artists from around the globe. Co-produced with the Woodland Cultural Centre, the festival focuses on the innovative voices, stories, and cultures of Indigenous people by showcasing the wealth of work across all disciplines of contemporary Indigenous art.
Getting to Harbourfront Centre is easier than ever, and the opening of the newly-renovated Queens Quay West allows visitors to fully embrace all that Harbourfront Centre has to offer. The 10-acre site is fully accessible by public transport, car, bicycle, or foot. It’s less than a 10-minute walk from Union Station, a quick ride on the 509/510 streetcar (there’s a streetcar stop right at the door), and there’s ample parking in either one of Harbourfront Centre’s two public lots. While on site, visitors can enjoy great food and beverages at the Lakeside Local Patio, The World Café and the Lakeside Local Bar & Grill – all while taking in the best view in the city.
For a full listing of Harbourfront Centre’s events, please visit harbourfrontcentre.com or call the Information Hotline at 416-973-4000. Harbourfront Centre is located at 235 Queens Quay West in the heart of downtown Toronto’s waterfront.
ABOUT HARBOURFRONT CENTRE
Harbourfront Centre is a Canadian charity operating the 10 prime acres of Toronto’s central waterfront as a free and open public site. We celebrate the multiplicities of cultures that comprise Canada, and enliven the city through the creative imaginations of artists from across the country and around the globe.
Please note individual media releases with additional information will be distributed in advance of each festival.
Festivals and Celebrations
June 20
Toronto Area Board Gaming Society (TABS) Game Day
Whether you’re already a fan of strategy games or have always wanted to explore the world of multi-player board gaming, this event is for you.
June 20-21
The 2nd Annual Chessfest at Harbourfront Centre
The Chess Institute of Canada and the Annex Chess Club bring the game to the waterfront.
June 20-21
Play Zone
Discover Harbourfront Centre’s imagination playground for kids eight years old and under.
June 26
FIT PRIMPIN
Two of Toronto’s best LGBTQ dance parties (FIT & BIG PRIMPIN) team up for the third year to present FIT PRIMPIN, a Pride party to remember.
June 30
Canada Eve Fireworks
Don’t miss the best fireworks show in the city, exploding over Lake Ontario.
July 1
Canada Day: The Next Generation
Join us as we celebrate the music, food and ideas that make Canada one of the most diverse places on the planet.
July 3-5
Kick Up Your Heels
Explore a diverse range of dance forms through interactive performances, workshops and classes.
July 10-12
Party on the Block
Block party culture comes to Harbourfront Centre and art and social movements inspire each other.
July 17-19
Ritmo Y Color
The 10th edition of one of Toronto’s largest pan-Latin festivals.
July 24-26
FLAUNT
Celebrating the spectacular world of vaudeville, circus, fashion, and everything fabulous.
July 31-August 3
Island Soul
Explore the rhythms, mythologies, histories and delicacies of the Caribbean islands.
July 31-August 9
Planet IndigenUS
A contemporary arts and cultural festival that celebrates the voices, stories, and cultures of Indigenous people from around the world.
August 14-16
Habari Africa
Learn about the rich and diverse cultures spanning the African continent.
August 20-23
Tirgan
The world’s largest Iranian festival returns with this year’s theme of “Homeland.”
August 28-30
TAIWANfest
Explore some of Taiwan’s most remarkable artists and ideas.
September 4-7
Hot & Spicy Food Festival
This popular festival celebrates global cuisine that is hot, spicy and sustainable.
September 11-13
Veg Food Fest
Presented by the Toronto Vegetarian Association
North America’s biggest vegetarian food festival returns with more than 130 vendors.
October 12
HarbourKIDS: Rites
Join us on Thanksgiving Day and share traditions through art and interactive experiences.
Literary
June 25
Book Summit 2015: The Story at the Centre
This full-day workshop explores how readers, writers and new technology are impacting current publishing models and narrative structures.
July 16
LOVE, DISHONOR, MARRY, DIE, CHERISH, PERISH by David Rakoff
Studio 180 Theatre pays tribute to essayist, humourist and national treasure David Rakoff with a concert staging of his whimsical and deeply moving portrait of life in the 20th century.
August 4
Planet IndigenUS: In Conversation with Sheila Watt-Cloutier
Catch an in-depth conversation with non-fiction writer Sheila Watt-Cloutier about her recent work, The Right to be Cold.
September 27
The Word on the Street Book and Magazine Festival
For the first time, The Word on the Street arrives on the Harbourfront Centre site to showcase Canada’s hottest new books and authors, as well as the best Canadian magazines. Enjoy over 200 authors and presenters on stage and shop in an Exhibitor Marketplace featuring hundreds of vendors.
October 22-November 1
36th International Festival of Authors
Don’t miss these 11 days of readings, interviews, lectures, roundtable discussions, public book signings and special events. This year, discover the work of emerging and established poets and the best of contemporary Catalonian literature.
Visual Arts
June 4
Power Ball XVII: Appetite for Excess
This year’s Power Ball theme, “Appetite for Excess” investigates the fine line between decadence and debauchery through visual art, music, fashion and food.
June 20-September 7
Eminent Domain
Bik Van der Pol continues their investigation on the ways that human activity in the globalized age has a direct effect on ecological systems.
June 20-September 7
Mine
A newly commissioned project that refers on the one hand to the commercial practice of extracting valuable subterranean minerals and on the other, to the possessive pronoun.
June 20-September 7
The Mouth Holds the Tongue
A project exploring the depths of collaboration, created by Nadia Belerique, Lili Huston-Herterich and Laurie Kang.
June 20-September 7
(art)work(sport)work(sex)work
YES! Association/Föreningen JA! puts into practice a structural redistribution of access to financial resources, space and time within the contemporary art sphere through engaging in strategies related to rights discourse and inclusion, radical difference and utopia.
June 20-September 20
Summer Exhibitions
Part of Planet IndigenUS
Five exhibitions featuring more than 27 artists who explore the relationship between land, politics and art.
Weekly Activities
Thursdays, June 25-September 3
Dancing on the Pier
Learn how to salsa, meringue, swing and more on Toronto’s favourite open-air dance floor.
Fridays, July 3-September 4
DJ Deep Fried Fridays
DJs bring their best beats and chefs bring their favourite fried foods every Friday night from 7-9 pm.
Fridays, July 3-September 4
Magnetic Beats
A social and interactive series combining urban dance and music in one space from 8-10 pm.
Saturdays, July 4-September 5
Lakeside Late Nights
Every Saturday night we offer a unique late night experience inspired and informed by each weekend festival theme.
Most Sundays and Thursdays, July 2-September 13
Summer Music in the Garden
Presented by TD Bank Group
Experience the best classical music from around the world in a wonderfully serene setting.
Wednesdays, July 8-September 2
Free Flicks
Presented by PortsToronto
Free movies by the lake. This year’s theme explores different generations within families.
Lakeside Dining and Shopping
May 16-October 12
World Café
An extension of some of the busiest kitchens in the GTA, and an important complement to the summer festival season.
June 20-September 7
Lakeview Market
Visitors can browse through a wide range of clothing, house wares, artifacts and other products.
May 16-October 12
Lakeside Local Patio
A fully licensed venue serving up great food with the best view of Lake Ontario.
Year-round
Lakeside Local Bar & Grill
Delicious casual dining on the waterfront overlooking the action happening around the Natrel Pond.
Year-round
The Harbourfront Centre Shop
A curated selection of extraordinary accessories, gifts and one-of-a-kind delights.
MEDIA CONTACT
Sarah Cooper
Office: 416-973-4655
scooper@harbourfrontcentre.com
Harbourfront Centre
235 Queens Quay W M5J 2G8
416-973-4600
www.harbourfrontcentre.com
