events
Urban Planner: April 13, 2012
In today's UP: A master class in clowning, open to the public; Diaspora Dialogues talks about Toronto the Good; Falcon Powder and Peter n' Chris's return engagements; the Simian Showcase; and loads of live music, including a fundraiser for Whippersnapper, Lioness's record release, and Anagram's last show.
Ian Vanek of Japanther, performing at last fall's Trash Art Festival. Photo by Jessica Hayes.
CLOWN: Legendary clown and physical theatre teacher Philippe Gaulier—whose past students include Sacha Baron Cohen and Emma Thompson—has been teaching for the past two weeks in Toronto. This afternoon, his students will be performing and receiving critiques from him in an open class, with members of the public invited to come and observe. Second City Toronto (51 Mercer Street), 2 pm.–4 p.m., $20.
LECTURE: The Diaspora Dialogues has launched a three-part lecture and discussion series entitled Toronto—the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. Tonight’s first installment features cultural heavyweights like Sheila Heti and Misha Glouberman talking about what makes Toronto the best, moderated by playwright and activist Catherine Hernandez. Toronto Reference Library Atrium (789 Yonge Street), 7 p.m., FREE.
COMEDY: The Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival tonight presents Best of the Fest, with encore performances from the Vancouver comedy duo Peter n’ Chris in the early show, followed by heavily praised sketch trio Falcon Powder. Lower Ossington Theatre (100A Ossington Avenue), 8 p.m. (Peter n’ Chris) & 9:30 p.m. (Falcon Powder), $15 per show.
THEATRE: Heavily influenced by geek and sci-fi culture, MonkeyMan Productions’ annual Simian Showcase premieres new works by local playwrights and comics, this weekend and next. The list of titles for the playlets give a pretty good indication of what to expect: “bromance” comedy Shark Week; superhero fantasy Captain Incredible Versus The Girlfriend; Two of Everything, about collectors at Comicon; and Gunpowder Arizona, about a graphic novel inspired by Indiana Jones and Jonah Hex. Imperial Pub (54 Dundas Street East), Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m., $10.
MUSIC: It’s a ridiculously busy night for live music shows in Toronto tonight. There are headlining gigs (some sold out) from Octoberman, Yukon Blonde, Azari & III, Said The Whale, Bahamas, and Catl. But looking at the crowded list of contenders, a couple of shows stand out for us:
- Veteran mathematically precise noise-punk outfit Anagram swears that tonight’s show, with openers Soupcans and Cut Flowers, is their last show ever. So if you’ve been a fan, or if you want to see what all the noise was about, it’s your last chance. The Silver Dollar Room (486 Spadina Avenue), 9 p.m., $10 at the door (no advance tickets.)
- Our review of Lioness‘s debut LP The Golden Killer praised their “dark and danceable” signature sound. The trio have their record release show tonight at the ‘Shoe, backed up by Rituals and Hollow Earth. The Horseshoe Tavern (370 Queen Street West), 10 p.m., $12 at the door.
- Avante-garde art and culture space Whippersnapper Gallery is the beneficiary of tonight’s fundraiser show at the Garrison, with sets from Boys Who Say No, Japanther, and Absolutely Free (formerly known as DD/MM/YYYY.) The Garrison (1197 Dundas Street West), 10 p.m., $12.
Urban Planner is Torontoist‘s guide to what’s on in Toronto, published every weekday morning, and in a weekend edition Friday afternoons. If you have an event you’d like considered, email all of its details—as well as images, if you’ve got any—to [email protected].