The top 5 things to do in Montreal
1. Feel the pride
Montreal Pride Parade l René-Lévesque Blvd. | Sunday, August 19, at 1 p.m.
Join a parade like no other — and Montreal’s largest. It’s the 34th annual Pride Parade, filled with festive costumes, themed floats, dancers and musicians.
The Montreal Pride Festival attracts more than 2.6 million visitors every year. This year’s edition runs from August 9-19 with plenty of fun, themed events and exhibitions.
Check out the Diversity Corner, a unique exhibit in Parc des Faubourgs that presents milestones in the evolution of LGBTQ rights using a rainbow-coloured tunnel.
Learn more about Montreal Pride.
2. Alfresco opera
Opéra dans le parc: Carmen de Bizet l Réseau Accéss culture l Trenholme Park l Wednesday, August 29 at 6:30 p.m.
Grab your lawn chair and settle in for a cultural awakening, as five singers bring Georges Bizet’s Carmen to life in the park. One of the most popular operas in the classical canon, the original four-act spectacle calls for 12 performers but members of the small troupe will instead play multiple roles. Scenes will be accompanied with spoken text.
Find out more about Opéra dans le parc.
3. Dancin’ in the street
Ample Man Danse: Piano Public l Réseau Accès culture l Quai 5160 l Tuesday, August 21 at 7 p.m.
What happens when a contemporary urban dancer and a jazz musician come together to perform at the location of one of Montreal’s outdoor pianos? A public event that is both surprising and poetic. The latest creation of Ample Man Danse promises to be music to the eyes and the ears.
P.S. Bring your own chair.
Find out more about Ample Man Danse: Piano Public.
4. Revolts, rackets, riots and art!
Uprisings l Galerie de L’UQAM l Opens Sept. 6 at 5:30 p.m.
This new cross-disciplinary exhibition is all about social disorder and chaos. Led by French philosopher and art historian Georges Didi-Huberman, the Montreal version of Uprisings combines different visual and media arts to explore the collective emotions behind rebellions, revolts, revolutions, rackets and riots!
5. Movies in the square
Cinema Urbain | Place de la Paix | Tuesdays till Sept. 4 at 9 p.m.
Pack a blanket and some snacks and head to Place de la Paix to enjoy Cinema Urbain’s latest offerings. From a quirky story of self-discovery centred around a crash-test technician living with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder to a documentary that brings viewers into the life of an exiled Syrian worker, this year’s lineup is sure to please cinephiles young and old.
Martin Scorsese’s The Last Waltz, which captures The Band’s iconic final performance, closes out the summer-long screening extravaganza in September.
Check out the full Cinema Urbain program.
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