Mr. Toronto

I sometimes worry that I won’t have enough (interesting things!) to blog about on a weekly basis…after all, how many things can I do in a typical week that lovers of Toronto would be interested in?  A heckuva lot, it turns out!!

The week started out with a visit to the Bell Lightbox, spanking new home of the Toronto International Film Festival.  But that’s what it’s used for just a few weeks out of the year (in September) – this fantastic/gorgeous new building has enough to keep people flocking there year round…and not just movie buffs, either.  They are currently showing an amazing exhibit from the warped mind of Director Tim Burton (came here from MoMA in NYC), which is as much an art exhibit as anything else. There are 2 fantastic restaurants- one a VERY reasonable casual dining spot on the main floor (Canteen) that serves yummy pizzas, pastas, salads and sandwiches; the other, (Luna), a classy joint with a great view on the second floor. And, if you ARE a movie buff, 5 state-of-the-art and intimate theatres are showing very interesting (i.e. not your typical Hollywood Blockbuster) movies all day, every day…

My next fun stop this week was at the beautiful new-and-improved SONY Centre (formerly the Hummingbird and originally the O’Keefe).  It’s being used for all kinds of cool performances, from theatre to dance to music, but I was very pleasantly surprised to see it used for the show I went to see – Robert Plant.  Though I was never a big Led Zeppelin fan, his new Band of Joy is sublime, and right up my alley (great new album, too!).  The venue is comfy, and has great acoustics and sightlines from everywhere…and they even let you bring your drinks to your seat! (critical for a Robert Plant show…)

Next, I had a meeting with Luminato, the newest cultural festival in Toronto that is already celebrating its 5th year (how time flies!).  It doesn’t occur til June, but they’ve already announced much of their lineup for the 10-day event.  More on that later in the year (but if you’re really anxious, go to www.luminato.com)

Finally, a big theatre announcement – was too busy to make the media announcement, but it was all over the papers the next day.  Mirvish productions is bringing in a hugely successful (in London) family show this spring (starts May 3) called the Railway Children.  The coolest thing about the show is that an actual train is part of the production, so a special theatre is being built for it down by some railroad tracks by the Steamwhistle Brewery.  Which is another cool topic/attraction I could talk about, but that’s enough for now!

Mr. Toronto