| TOP 100 EVENTS 05.16.08 12:21 PM |
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| Toronto's Top Festivals, Parades, Walks & Holiday Events 2008 |
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The 2007 Fringe of Toronto festival
Photo: Milé Murtanovski |
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1. Caribana
The music of the steel-drum bands will ring out again this summer as Caribana celebrates its 41st anniversary in late July. The two-week cultural festival—featuring concerts, Caribbean cuisine, and the massive Caribana parade along Lakeshore Boulevard—attracts one million tourists and spectators to the Greater Toronto Area each year and pumps an estimated $300 million into the local economy. Thirty bands will take part in the August 2 parade during the festival’s final weekend.
2. Pride Week
This 10-day celebration—which culminates with the colourful Pride Parade—is one of the world's largest gay and lesbian pride festivals. The award-winning arts and cultural festival, which has been held annually since 1981, continually draws record-breaking crowds and pumps millions into the city's economy. Pride Toronto 2008 runs June 20 to 29.
3. Santa Claus Parade
More than one million people are expected to line the streets—with millions more watching on television sets around the globe—when Santa comes to town on November 16. The parade, which starts at Christie Pitts and winds its way down to Front Street, has marked the arrival of the big man in red every year since 1905. The 2007 parade featured 24 floats, 24 marching bands, more than 200 celebrity clowns, and 1,500 volunteers.
4. Beaches International Jazz Festival
Queen Street East will host this festival’s 20th anniversary from July 18 to 27. The free festival is expanding this year to include two weekends of performances in the Beach. The main stage concerts will return to Kew Gardens, and Queen Street will become a pedestrian thoroughfare for the annual StreetFest from July 24 to 26. One million people are expected to listen in as more than 75 artists perform.
5. Fringe of Toronto
The city’s best-known theatre festival turns 20 this year, and the 2008 event, running from July 2 to 13, promises to be bigger than ever. More than 800 artists from around the world will perform in 140 productions—dramas, musicals, and improv—in 30 venues across the city, including local theatres, playgrounds, and parking lots. The 2007 Fringe had a ticketed attendance of 57,000, and returned almost $400,000 in box office sales to participating artists.
6. Weekend to End Breast Cancer
More than 5,500 walkers—the largest number in the event's five-year history—took part in the 60-kilometre Weekend to End Breast Cancer walk last year, raising $17.3 million. The sixth annual walk to benefit the Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation will be held from September 5 to 7.
7. Cavalcade of Lights
The illumination of Toronto’s official Christmas tree in Nathan Phillips Square is a 40-year tradition that serves as the official kickoff to the holiday season. In recent years, the Cavalcade of Lights has morphed into a month long celebration, with live concerts providing the music for Saturday-night skating parties. Designer Brian Gluckstein created the "Enchanted Holiday" light display in 2007. The 2008 cavalcade commences on November 29.
8. R.B.C. Wintercity Festival
Bundling up and facing the often frigid temperatures is half the fun of celebrating winter in the city at Toronto’s annual 14-day festival focused on culture, creativity, and cuisine. This year’s festival—held from January 25 to February 7—featured skating parties, outdoor concerts, and performances by groups such as Cie Carabosse, France’s acclaimed fire-art troupe.
9. New Year's Eve Bash in Nathan Phillips Square
Ringing in the New Year surrounded by 40,000 strangers is a long-standing tradition for Torontonians and tourists alike. The annual alcohol-free CityTV party draws large crowds of revellers each year and boasts performances from some of Toronto’s top performing artists. Grammy nominees the Plain White T’s, Roz Bell, JDiggz, and the cast of the hit musical We Will Rock You led the countdown to 2008 at the 23rd annual bash.
10. AIDS Walk for Life
The annual fund-raising walk spearheaded by the AIDS Committee of Toronto attracts thousands of participants, who walk along Yonge, Bloor, and Church streets to raise awareness and money to fight the deadly illness. More than $8.5 million has been raised for AIDS research since the inaugural walk in 1989. The 2008 walk will be held on September 14.
RELATED TOPICS
Toronto's Top 100 Events, Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation, Royal Bank of Canada, CityTV, AIDS Committee of Toronto
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Royal Ontario Museum
With its exceptional permanent collections, acclaimed special exhibitions and dramatic public areas the ROM offers an unequalled venue for business cultivation, seminars, celebratory dinners, receptions and fundraising events. Inspired by the ROM’s mineralogy collection, renowned architect Daniel Libeskind’s iconic Michael Lee-Chin Crystal presents stunning and unexpected prismatic forms that showcase long hidden treasures and provide spectacular locations for corporate and social entertaining. More >>
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Mondu Floral Design
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Waves Event Rentals
Waves Event Rentals offers an exclusive line of exciting water features adding the ‛wow“ factor and uniqueness to any event. It provides stand-alone water features including water tables, water towers, water panels, bubble walls, a water back sofa, and a 14-foot mesh water wall; as well creates custom fountains and pools. More >>
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