Top June Events in Toronto

Toronto Life

Every month we bring you a selection of the best events to see in Toronto, and we're continuing this tradition for June! We can look forward to some great outdoor events and festivals, and the warmer the weather, the more enjoyable it is to stay outside and enjoy a night out with friends or family.

NXNE: North by Northeast

June 10 to 16, 2013 | Various venues | NXNE.com

NXNE 2013
Looks Great, Don't You think?

North by Northeast has become the Canadian festival destination for emerging artists and bands as well as major-label headliners, music filmmakers, and digital interactive innovators bridging the gap between technology and the arts. The NXNE festival will last for seven days and nights in various venues within a few kilometres of each other. There will be more than 1,000 international, national, and local artists performing at 50 official festival stages in downtown Toronto. Moreover, there will be over 80 interactive sessions, comedians, and art installations to keep you busy and excited.

Movie lovers and rockers at heart can visit NXNE film screenings of more than 30 of the best music-themed features, documentaries, shorts, and experimental films from around the world. Chances are you'll meet actors, producers, and musicians at the screenings, as many of them are world or Canadian premiers.

NXNE Interactive is a digital interactive media conference — the only one of its kind in Canada. Four days of workshops, presentations, and panel discussions await every artist, tech entrepreneur, digital marketing guru, web business expert, and social media aficionado who wants to explore the newest ideas bridging the gap between creativity and the interactive world.

MWF: Mississauga Waterfront Festival

June 14 to 16, 2013 | Port Credit Memorial Park | Mississauga | TheMWF.com

Mississauga Waterfront Festival 2013
Mississauga Waterfront Festival 

The Mississauga Waterfront Festival has been voted one of the top 100 festivals in Ontario nine years in a row! Over that time, it has set new standards for excellence and gained many loyal peers from the industry, business partners, media partners, and — most importantly — attendees.

MWF open its gates to everyone. In the past, kids could see popular TV stars like The Backyardigans, Max & Ruby and Dora the Explorer. Family Fun Village is a place where the joy continues once your favourite performance has ended. You can see everything from stilt walkers and fire-eaters to exciting water shows, a family carnival, interactive sports activities, delicious food, and unique crafters and vendors.

Adults and teenagers will surely love to see performances of the best Canadian and international talent. In past years, Sam Roberts, Jann Arden, Tom Cochrane, Chantel Kreviazuk, Colin James, Kathleen Edwards, Suzie McNeill, and Bruce Cockburn performed at MWF. To check out this year’s lineup, visit the MWF website.

Luminato

June 14 to 23, 2013 | Various venues | Luminato.com

Luminato Festival 2013
Guess Who Is Attending Luminato Festival? Joni Mitchell!

Luminato embraces the same diversity that is the beating heart of Toronto. It started with just one wish: to join cultures together and celebrate creativity. In a digital age, a festival like Luminato is one dimension of cultural activity that must still be experienced in person. This year will be the festival's fifth season, and Luminato has already managed to establish itself as the world’s newest international multidisciplinary arts festival, merging music, dance, theatre, film, literature, visual art, and lectures. You don’t need to take a day off just to attend the ten-day long festival; there will be free events all around Toronto during the whole day, so whenever you're passing by a venue, make sure you pop in and see what’s going on. Some of the bigger and more prominent shows and events, however, will require a ticket.

TD Toronto Jazz Festival

June 20 to 29, 2013 | Nathan Phillips Square and various venues | TorontoJazz.com

Toronto Jazz Festival 2013
350 performances this year at Toronto Jazz Festival!

The Jazz Festival in Toronto began in 1987 as a week-long showcase of the best jazz music, but over the time it grew from a small gathering into a really big festival with more than 500.000 loyal visitors every year. During the course of the festival, Toronto changes into a jazz-powered city. This year there will be more than 40 different venues around Toronto that will host an incredible 350 performances with over 1.500 musicians performing. Shows range from traditional bebop and blues to fusion and free jazz. This year’s lineup features world-renowned acts such as Willie Nelson, Smokey Robinson, Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, Steve Martin, Mavis Staples, Nikki Yanofsky, and more. Take a look at all the artists slated to perform here.

The heart of the festival is located in the core of downtown Toronto at Nathan Phillips Square, where you can also find an impressive, 1,200-seat, fully-licensed Mainstage Marquee and outdoor stage, and where many extraordinary events are offered free to the public.

Pride Toronto Festival

June 21 to 30, 2013 | Various Locations | PrideToronto.com

Pride Toronto 2013
Such cool superqueer-os! 

There is more to the Pride Toronto Festival than just the famous and fabulous Pride Parade. Pride Week features 10 days of world-class arts and cultural programming as well as community activities, and it's easily one of the world’s largest street festivals. Toronto’s Pride celebration is one of the biggest LGBTQ festivities in the world, with an estimated attendance of over 1 million people this year. The Pride Festival celebrates diverse sexual and gender identities, culture, creativity, friends, and lives. Eight stages and different street fairs will keep you entertained during the three-day street festival that's an essential part of Toronto Pride Week.

One thought on “Top June Events in Toronto

June 11, 2014 at 9:15 pm
sid says:

This article is very informative. Thank you guys

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