Monday’s Luminato picks: Beatniks, Broadway and Denis Gagnon’s take on Alice in Wonderland
The fifth edition of Luminato, the city’s annual everything-culture fest, kicked off last Friday and goes all through the week. Here, three events to check out today.
1. Installation—Garden of Roses: Denis Gagnon interprets Alice (FREE!)
Tardy rabbits, a hookah-smoking caterpillar and a disappearing cat: in Lewis Carroll’s Wonderland, the more fantastical, the better. Denis Gagnon, a designer of equally fanciful tendencies, takes on the Queen of Hearts’ beloved rose garden in an installation that owes as much to Kiss of the Spider Woman as it does to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. The shimmering, fringe-tastic gown at the Winter Garden Theatre is made of chain lace and will be on display until the festival wraps up on June 19. Winter Garden Theatre, 225 King St. W., 416-368-4849, luminato.com/2011/denis.
2. Concert—Spontaneity: A New York State of Mind
In the 1950s, a group of ragtag bohemians in New York broke away from the status quo and developed new modes of expression that riffed on sound, rhythm and improv. Trumpeter Brownman Ali has assembled a crew of the city’s hippest cats to provide a concert of modal jazz, which will also include beat poetry read by poets Lynn Crosbie and Stuart Ross and performances by musicians Eve Egoyan and Paul McCulloch. As a bonus, before the show, all ticketholders will get free access to the AGO’s sprawling new exhibit Abstract Expressionist New York. 8 p.m. $30. Art Gallery of Ontario, 317 Dundas St. W., 416-368-4849, luminato.com/2011/ago.
3. Concert—Broadway’s Night Out (FREE!)
Can’t get to Stratford or Shaw this summer? Not to worry: both theatres’ fests come to Toronto for one night at this musical extravaganza. Cast members from Stratford’s Jesus Christ Superstar and Shaw’s My Fair Lady will perform classic tunes from their shows and others, joined by international cabaret artist Meow Meow. The concert will be hosted by two of Toronto’s own cabaret stars, Shawn Hitchins and Sharron Matthews. 8 p.m. David Pecaut Square, 55 John St., 416-368-4849, luminato.com/2011/june13.
![](http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https://torontolife.com/city/monday-luminato-picks/&title=Monday’s Luminato picks: Beatniks, Broadway and Denis Gagnon’s take on Alice in Wonderland&picture=https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/gagnon-alice-624x350.jpg&description=[caption id="attachment_72584" align="aligncenter" width="656" caption="Alice in Wonderland as filtered through the mind of Denis Gagnon (Image: Kira Crugnale)"][/caption]
The fifth edition of Luminato, the city’s annual everything-culture fest, kicked off last Friday and goes all through the week. Here, three events to check out today.
1. Installation—Garden of Roses: Denis Gagnon interprets Alice (FREE!)
Tardy rabbits, a hookah-smoking caterpillar and a disappearing cat: in Lewis Carroll’s Wonderland, the more fantastical, the better. Denis Gagnon, a designer of equally fanciful tendencies, takes on the Queen of Hearts’ beloved rose garden in an installation that owes as much to Kiss of the Spider Woman as it does to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. The shimmering, fringe-tastic gown at the Winter Garden Theatre is made of chain lace and will be on display until the festival wraps up on June 19. Winter Garden Theatre, 225 King St. W., 416-368-4849, luminato.com/2011/denis.
2. Concert—Spontaneity: A New York State of Mind
In the 1950s, a group of ragtag bohemians in New York broke away from the status quo and developed new modes of expression that riffed on sound, rhythm and improv. Trumpeter Brownman Ali has assembled a crew of the city’s hippest cats to provide a concert of modal jazz, which will also include beat poetry read by poets Lynn Crosbie and Stuart Ross and performances by musicians Eve Egoyan and Paul McCulloch. As a bonus, before the show, all ticketholders will get free access to the AGO’s sprawling new exhibit Abstract Expressionist New York. 8 p.m. $30. Art Gallery of Ontario, 317 Dundas St. W., 416-368-4849, luminato.com/2011/ago.
3. Concert—Broadway’s Night Out (FREE!)
Can’t get to Stratford or Shaw this summer? Not to worry: both theatres’ fests come to Toronto for one night at this musical extravaganza. Cast members from Stratford’s Jesus Christ Superstar and Shaw’s My Fair Lady will perform classic tunes from their shows and others, joined by international cabaret artist Meow Meow. The concert will be hosted by two of Toronto’s own cabaret stars, Shawn Hitchins and Sharron Matthews. 8 p.m. David Pecaut Square, 55 John St., 416-368-4849, luminato.com/2011/june13.
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