With a blend of history and techno-cool, Montréal might just be the perfect weekend getaway. It’s easy to be charmed by the historic architecture of Old Montreal, but there’s a hip side to the city just waiting to be explored. For starters, head to the Old Port and take a spin on the 60 metre tall La Grande Roue de Montréal, the tallest Ferris wheel in Canada, to enjoy the spectacular 360º panoramic views. Thanks to the city’s international reputation as a nurturing, laid-back environment, with an unabashed joie de vivre, Montreal has become a hub for unique festivals that celebrate its robust community of young artists, filmmakers, video game makers, and musicians. To get a taste of this culture look no further than the Phi Centre. Located in a restored heritage building with pristine acoustics, it houses an art gallery, cinema, or theatre; or take in an event in the Quartier des Spectacles, the city’s major cultural district. Then, end your day at one of the many cool new bars and restaurants dotted throughout Old Montreal and the nearby Quartier Latin. Here’s a sampling of what’s on offer this fall.
Credit © Terry Rishel, The Montreal Museum of Fine ArtsMuseum Moments
The North American debut of Egyptian Mummies: Exploring Ancient Lives at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts offers a unique perspective of the material, symbolic and biological life of six Egyptians — men, women and a child — who lived along the Nile from about 900 BC to AD 180. The exhibition breathes life into more than 200 objects from the British Museum’s renowned Egyptian collection, to provide new insight into how people lived and died in ancient Egypt.
Trek the Andean mountains and valleys at The Incas, Treasures of Peru to uncover one of the most spectacular, short-lived empires the world has known, spreading from Ecuador to Peru, Bolivia and half of present-day Chile. Through film, video and some 300 artifacts — gold and silver work, ornaments and jewellery, vases, funerary masks and ritual objects, and clothing and accessories — the exhibition at Pointe-à-Callière, Montréal Archaeology and History Complex reveals how this remarkable civilization influenced the colonial, post-colonial and contemporary periods.
Jean-Claude Poitras: Fashion and Inspiration, at The McCord Museum delves into the inspiration and career of a designer who left an indelible mark on prêt-à-porter in Montreal, through a collection of archival material, multimedia displays and stunning garments from the designer’s personal collection.
There are a multitude of exhibitions on offer this season; click here to explore more.
© M for Montréal, photo by Alex Bédard
Sound Bytes
It’s been a decade since Quebecoise chanteuse Céline Dion has performed before a home crowd, so you can bet her Courage World Tour — a six-concert series at the Bell Centre from Nov. 18 to 22 – is going to be great.
Jazz aficionados will enjoy the Montreal OFF Jazz Festival. The event kicks off Oct. 3 with Canadian Juno award winning saxophonist Joel Miller’s new opus Unstoppable. For fans of alternative music up-and-coming artists will take to the stage at “M pour Montréal,“ with concerts by the likes of Montreal’s electro-soul and hip hop band Busty and the Bass. Nov. 20 to 23.
The Festival Bach Montréal brings together hundreds of musicians from Quebec and abroad each year to celebrate the musical genius of Johann Sebastian Bach. If Bach is your thing, check out a few of the concerts being performed between Nov. 3 and Dec. 7 at venues throughout the city, including Saint-Joseph du Mont-Royal Oratory and the Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel in Old Montreal. Some are very affordable.
© Festival du Nouveau Cinéma
Celebrate Cinema
A unique film festival to check out this fall is The Festival du Nouveau Cinéma de Montréal, which among some 300 international films will screen several first films creating buzz on the international festival circuit this year, as well as works of seasoned directors, including Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodovar’s Douleur et gloire, starring Antonio Banderas. The Festival kicks off Oct. 9 and runs through Oct. 20.
The city’s handful of indie cinemas often play host to film festival events but these restored neighbourhood theatres have great movie lists of their own, and the added benefit of no video games and boisterous crowds. At Cinéma Moderne — a 54-seat café-bar-movie house that opened a year ago on Saint-Laurent Boulevard — grab a cocktail and sit back to enjoy a movie shown with the latest in high tech. Recently opened at the Montréal Museum of Fine Arts, Cinéma du Musée, brings local and international films diverse in genre, theme, and language to the newly-renovated auditorium. It’s a perfect way to end a day exploring the museum’s permanent collection or special exhibition. Chewdaism, a delightful documentary film by Jamie Elman & Eli Batalion, who on the cusp of middle age return to Montreal’s Jewish community to discover their roots through a series of meals with guests at Jewish delis and restaurants, is playing at Cinéma du Parc until Oct. 2. For a complete list of indie cinemas, they can be found here.
© Sasha Onyshchenko
Dance
Classical and contemporary dance performances hit a high note this season. Carmina Burana & Stabat MATER by Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal promises to be an exceptional performance featuring 40 dancers and 70 musicians from Les Grands Ballets Orchestra, 40 choristers and three renowned vocal soloists — soprano Aline Kutan, tenor Spencer Britten and bass-baritone Alexandre Sylvestre. Romanian choreographer Edward Clug revisited the 20th-century work by Carl Orff, inspired by medieval verse, which touches humans in their most visceral dimension, that of their legacy, and longevity. At Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, Place des Art, Oct. 3 to 19.
Another hot ticket is the electrifying and sensual triple-bill performance by Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal. The company’s performance of two pieces choreographed by Itzik Galili — the humorous Caribbean infused O Balcão de Amor and Casualties of Memory, which celebrates life to the rhythm of percussive darbuka music — and Soul by Andonis Foniadakis, which is inspired by the hard-hitting music and lyrics of Ball and Chain. On at Théâtre Maisonneuve, Place des Arts, Oct. 2 to 5.
© Montréal Botanical Garden, photo by Michel Tremblay
Outdoors
Montreal Botanical Gardens is again hosting one of the world’s largest Chinese lantern festivals, Gardens of Light. During the festival the garden of 22,000 plant species and cultivars from every corner of the world spread throughout 10 greenhouses and some 30 thematic gardens, is, well, lit. Inspired by the Chinese New Year festival, Shanghai-made lanterns illuminate the tale of He Luo Yu, a mythical fish-like creature with one head and 10 bodies that turns into a bird in the Chinese Garden, then follow three rural Chinese families hardships and successes in China: Ties to the Land, a permanent exhibit in the pavilion. The First Nations Garden and the Japanese garden also have themed light displays. Gardens of Light is on until Oct. 31. Tickets should be purchased in advance here.
Parc Jean-Drapeau is also lit up with the launch of Feux follets, a new annual fall festival. This year’s theme, Lights on China, melds traditional Chinese lanterns with Montréal’s signature magic: Immersive and interactive activities and shows including 3D holographic animations on a massive water screen, contortionists, acrobats, fire-breathers, musicians and singers, and shadow puppets take visitors to the heart of the mystic world of China. There are even food stalls where you can enjoy some traditional Chinese dishes. The event runs Wednesday to Sunday until October 31, weather permitting and will return next year with a new country and theme.
