Outdoor concerts, film screenings, a roller derby, and a ballet presentation are just some of the free events being offered at Yonge-Dundas Square during the Toronto International Film Festival, which gets under way Thursday, September 10 and continues until Saturday, September 19. In an announcement Tuesday, festival organizers added new activities to the free programming, including a closing night screening of the Cadillac People's Choice Award-winning film in the Visa screening room at the Elgin Theatre.
"The free programming at Yonge-Dundas Square and the free screening of the Cadillac People's Choice Award are gifts back to the city of Toronto," festival co-director Cameron Bailey said. "They're a big thank you to our audiences for their ongoing support and commitment to the festival, because it's this devotion that continues to make it one of the best in the world."
Other additions to the lineup include soprano Measha Brueggergosman, who will host the opening night concert by DJ Champion, and rapper Chuck D, who will host and perform at the closing night festival wrap party. The National Ballet of Canada will also present a preview of its latest production from Aszure Barton—in celebration of the festival's screening of Mao's Last Dancer—on September 16.
Free daily events include the TIFF Live in Concert film series, which will showcase music-themed films like U2: Rattle and Hum, The Last Waltz, and Woodstock. Classics from the silent film era will be screened to live music as part of the TIFF Shhh! series and the TIFF YDS Spotlight series will include a roller-derby exhibition, swing-dancing lessons, and an event that's been dubbed the Toronto Zombie Walk, featuring an appearance by director George A. Romero and a free screening of his 1968 film Night of the Living Dead.
Attendees will also have the opportunity to drop by a MeTV booth, supplied by Creative Media Sciences, to record messages about their experience at the 2009 festival.
