Mia Harris as the difficult composer in Ariadne auf Naxos

EDITOR'S PICK

To August 17
The Toronto Summer Music Festival celebrates more than 30 concerts, talks and workshops with a full staging of Ariadne auf Naxos, Richard Strauss’s comic opera laced with tragedy. Co-written with librettist Hugo von Hoffmannsthal, a behind-the-scenes prologue sets the stage for the second part of this production, the opera itself. When a controlling composer is forced to stage an improvisational show along with a theatre group led by a seductive comedienne, madcap hilarity ensues. MacMillan Theatre, 80 Queen’s Park, Thursday to Saturday 7:30 p.m., Sunday 2 p.m., $37 to $50; call 416-597-7840 to buy.

EDITOR'S PICK

July 31 to October 12
Each night when the sun sets, the waterfront becomes aglow with a centuries-old Chinese tradition. The Rogers Chinese Lantern Festival returns to the shores of Lake Ontario, this year with 32 new installations set in water and on land. Lit displays—120,000 lights are used to create this mesmerizing exhibit—bring dinosaurs, animals, marine life and architectural wonders alive. Built by master craftsmen from Zigong, China, these elaborate structures are also massive—some as tall as 18 metres. Ontario Place, nightly from 6 to 11 p.m., admission $20 to $25; call 416-314-9900 for information.

William Webster does double duty in Soulpepper's latest production.

BLACK COMEDY & THE REAL INSPECTOR HOUND

August 20 to September 20
If slapstick humour gives you an allergic reaction, Soulpepper has the antidote: two one-act farces on the same bill. Tom Stoppard’s The Real Inspector Hound deftly skewers theatre critics and murder mysteries as two self-absorbed reviewers become embroiled in events paralleling the play they’re watching. Dramatist Paul Shaffer tips his wit with his play’s title, Black Comedy, where a blackout during a party leaves guests in the dark, resulting in mistaken identities. Founding member William Webster takes on dual roles, as the inspector and a guest, respectively. Young Centre for the Performing Arts, Monday to Saturday 8 p.m., $28 to $65; call 416-866-8666 to buy.

Actor and playwright Tawiah M’carthy from The Kente Cloth

Image © Leona Fung

CUTTING-EDGE THEATRE

August 7 to 17
More than 40 plays in 11 days at six venues—this is the SummerWorks Theatre Festival, a whirlwind sampling of Canada’s top indie theatre scene. Playwrights and theatre companies from coast to coast congregate to present thought-provoking works at the country’s largest juried showcase. This year’s selection includes a groom with an identity crisis in The Kente Cloth, a paramedic’s tales from the front lines in The Emergency Monologues, and the looming end of civilization in Cozy Catastrophe. Various venues, $10 per show; call 1-888-222-6608 for tickets and times.

PLAY WITH THE STINGRAYS

On Now
Go hand to fin with some fishy friends at Stingray Bay: A Touching Experience, an exclusive exhibit at the Toronto Zoo. Meet up to 30 of these docile, diamond-shaped creatures related to the shark family, including the cownose and southern ray stingrays. Supervised feedings and keeper talks, too. 361A Old Finch Avenue, general admission $12 to $20, plus special admission ($3) for show; call 416-392-5929 for details.

Colin Heath as Puck and Kevin Hanchard as Oberon

Image © Chris Gallow

SHAKESPEARE BENEATH THE STARS

On Now
On Now What would the Bard have written if he had been a hip-hop artist instead of a poet? A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the latest offering from the Canadian Stage Company’s Dream in High Park, offers an urban twist on one of the British playwright’s most popular works. Expect mischievous fairies and mismatched lovers seeking refuge while causing mayhem in this enchanted forest turned industrial wasteland. High Park Amphitheatre, Tuesday to Sunday 8 p.m., tickets PWYC ($20 suggested); call 416-367-1652 for information.

PRE-THEATRE FUN
July 6, 13, 20 & 27
Before the show, peek behind the scenes with Family Nights at the Dream, featuring free backstage tours, interactive craft and costume workshops and games. High Park Amphitheatre, 5 p.m.; registration required, call 416-367-8243, ext. 277 to book.

Actress Kelli Sawyer as Kate Monster

Image © Carol Rosegg

STREET SMARTS

July 29 to August 31
Avenue Q is the kind of place people end up on their way to Sesame Street—if their car breaks down in the wrong neighbourhood. In this politically incorrect but hysterical musical, puppets—and actors bringing them to life—parody existence on one of childhood’s most famous thoroughfares. But instead of learning their ABCs, its denizens humorously confront complex issues such as addiction, depression and unemployment. Elgin Theatre, Tuesday to Saturday 8 p.m., Saturday and Sunday 2 p.m. and select Sundays at 7:30 p.m., $50 to $100; call 416-872-5555 to buy.

RODEO EXPO

Starts August 29
Hightail it to the Canadian National Exhibition for the return of the rodeo after a 25-year absence. More than 200 cowboys and cowgirls demonstrate the fine art of lassoing, riding bulls and bucking broncos. Also catch the RCMP Musical Ride beginning on August 29, when a 32-person cavalry of mounted police in all of their pageantry perform drill demonstrations. Exhibition Place, admission $10 to $14; call 416-393-6300 for more details.

The cast of Jersey Boys

Image © Chris Bennion

JERSEY BOYS

To October 5
Call them the original boy band. From the streets of New Jersey to stages across the U.S., Frankie Valli, Tommy DeVito, Bob Gaudio and Nick Massi rose to fame during the ’60s with doo-wop hits including “Sherry” and “Walk Like a Man.” Follow the rags to riches tale of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons—one of music’s biggest sensations—in Jersey Boys, a Tony Award–winning musical. Toronto Centre for the Arts, Tuesday to Saturday 8 p.m., Saturday and Sunday 2 p.m., $55 to $125; call 416-872-1111 for tickets.

The cast of Saltimbanco

Image © Courtesy of Cirque du Soleil

CIRCUS IN THE CITY

August 13 to 24
Escape to the big top as Cirque du Soleil’s longest-running show, Saltimbanco, arrives for an exclusive engagement. Watch as a ringmaster guides audiences around a cosmopolitan universe inhabited by citizens who deftly execute gravity-defying acts 30 feet above the stage. See an aerial ballet by trapeze performers, artists pivoting from a Russian swing to form a human pyramid, and acrobats mounting Chinese poles in a formidable display of nimbleness. Air Canada Centre, Wednesday to Saturday 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday 3:30 p.m., Sunday 1 and 5 p.m., $32 to $90; call 416-870-8000 for tickets.

Street Shenanigans
Satisfy your circus fix at Buskerfest from August 21 to 24 with performances by jugglers, fire eaters and magicians. Events take place along Front Street, near the St. Lawrence Market. Call 416-964-9095 for information.

Boy band Backstreet Boys make their comeback.

OUTDOOR CONCERTS

Hit the Molson Amphitheatre (909 Lake Shore Blvd. W., 416-260-5600) for a rockin’ summer concert beneath the stars. Some of music’s marquee acts—including the Backstreet Boys and Lynyrd Skynyrd—give their vocal chords a good workout—as do their cheering fans! (See music guide for more concert listings.