Beware the (balmy) Ides of March! Or not. How to spend your March heatwave, and St. Patrick’s Day, with Nicolas Cage and his son, Kal-El. Photo Illustration: Joanna Adams
1. Dare to Wear Love, Friday, March 16. Surely you’ve seen our extensive Toronto Fashion Week (or #TFW, for those so inclined) coverage so far, but Fashion Week’s closing night gala, Dare to Wear Love 3, is something different. Showcasing the talents of top Canadian designers, musicians and celebrity models, the funds raised from this fun and fabulous runway show will go the Stephen Lewis Foundation. Respek.
2. Loving in the Name Of, Friday, March 16. If Fashion Week fundraisers or Canadian celebrity models aren’t your thing, check out Loving in the Name Of, an indie all-star cover band who play nothing but “the best pop songs.” Awesome. This time around, it’s their fourth anniversary. Expect covers of David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen, Lionel Richie and more, with Luke LaLonde of the Born Ruffians and many more at the mic. Spinderella, cut it up one time.
3. National Home Show and Canada Blooms, Friday, March 16 (exhibit runs until March 25). But, if you’re in the mood for a stroll around the always-scenic Direct Energy Centre at the CNE grounds, be sure to catch the National Home Show and Canada Blooms. Talk to expert gardeners, interior designers and get your floral on. After all, it’ll hit 22 degrees celsius this weekend. Might as well use that as inspiration to spring forward!
4. St. Party’s Day Bash!, Saturday, March 17. Sure, a rowdy St. Patrick’s Day bash may not be your cup of tea, but if you’re jonesing for a Guinness – why not start off your day with a U2 cover band? St. Lawrence Market is hosting an all-day St. Patrick’s Day celebration; full of jigs, swigs, and, perhaps, some figs. Totally kidding, but there will be food. Can’t promise there will be figs, though.
Or, you can celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by screaming “Megan” out your window, like Liz Lemon. Either way.
5. Snake Eyes @ TIFF Bell Lightbox, Saturday, March 17. My favourite ongoing film series has to be “Bangkok Dangerous: The Cinema of Nicolas Cage.” I mean, the name itself just sells it perfectly. Anyway, Snake Eyes, Brian De Palma’s manic, boxing drama is this week’s TIFF Bell Lightbox’s Saturday night Nicolas Cage movie. It has everything: Hawaiian shirts, Vegas, manic eyes, receding hairlines, uncontrollable shouting… Basically everything you could ever want in a Nicolas Cage movie. So, if you burnt out early due to St. Patrick’s Day shenanigans, be sure to stumble over (if that’s the state you’re in, I’m not making any presumptions) to the Lightbox to strap in for a night of Cage at his finest.
6. In Conversation With: Margaret Atwood, Sunday, March 18. Once you’ve peeled yourself out of bed on Sunday morning, be sure to pop by the Indigo at Bay and Bloor. MetroMorning’s Matt Galloway will be hosting a free salon, if you will, with famed author, and Canadian icon, Margaret Atwood. Atwood will be chatting about her new book-to-documentary, Payback, but if you ask nicely, I’m sure she’ll answer a question or two about Rob and Doug Ford. Besides, Atwood and Galloway are “so hot right now.”
7. Geek Love Celebrates Joss Whedon… In Song!, Monday, March 19. Dying to see The Avengers? Still mourning the loss of Firefly? Sing along to your favourites from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Dr. Horrible with fellow Whedon-nuts. Sounds delightful. Lab coats and Neil Patrick Harris hairdos not required, but 90s Sunnydale High School street style is encouraged.
8. Julie and Julia Screening & Laura Calder Q&A @ TIFF Bell Lightbox, Tuesday, March 20. You might be happy that Queen Meryl finally walked away with her third Oscar win, but for those of you reeling from her 2010 defeat for her performance in Julie in Julia… You’re in luck! This Tuesday, Food Network Canada Host Laura Calder will be doing a food-tastic Q&A about this Nora Ephron neo-classic at the TIFF Bell Lightbox. Sounds like a delightful, butter-y treat!
9. Canadian International Comedy Fest: Best of Absolute, Wednesday March 21 (Canadian International Comedy Fest runs until March 25). Yup, Tracy Morgan is coming to Toronto next weekend – but before he gets here, there’s a whole Canadian International Comedy Fest to check out! To kick it off, Video on Trial VIP Debra DiGiovanni, Fraser Young, Frank Spadone and Larry XL host the Best of Absolute comedy night. Time to get your laugh on!
10. Canadian Music Week! An Interview with Burton Cummings, Thursday, March 22 (Starts March 21, runs until March 25). Ah yes, the Mighty Duck man himself. Well, not Emilio Estevez – but Burton Cummings! On the second night of Canadian Music Week, look into “These Eyes” (sorry for that one), and sit down for an exclusive one-on-one with Burton Cummings, the celebrated lead singer of the Guess Who. With his 40-year rock music history, I’m sure he’ll have plenty of cool stories, Hansel!
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Joanna Adams writes the Morning Cable, and lots more, for Toronto Standard. Follow her on Twitter at †@nowstarringTO.
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