Welcome to another winter wonderland weekend in the 613! The Rideau Canal may not be open, but there is plenty to do around town to keep you entertained, educated, and enriched!
All Weekend
The U of Ottawa Theatre Club is putting on a production of Little Women, running all weekend at Academic Hall on UOttawa campus. Tickets are still available online for evening and matinée shows for this classic show.
This weekend is your last chance to take advantage of the early-bird price for the Snowsuit Fund SnowBall on February 28. The all-inclusive gala evening is sure to sell out, with chef stations, live music, DJs, live art and auction on offer. Ticket prices increase on January 29, so text your hot date this weekend and make a plan!
Getting yourself prepared for Winterlude? This weekend you can get a winter festival preview at the Greely Winter Carnival. There’s a pancake breakfast, board game café, square dancing, a magic show, sleigh rides, a comedy night and of course, lots of skating. Tickets are available for individual events and meals online.
Thursday
Check out public lecture Lunar Exploration: Past, Present, and Future at the Canada Aviation and Space Museum at 7pm. Dr. James Green, former Chief Scientist at NASA (and consulting scientist on the Matt Damon movie The Martian!) will be the featured guest. Dr. Caroline-Emmanuelle Morisset, Program Scientist at the Canadian Space Agency, will highlight Canada’s role in lunar exploration. Live French translation and ASL interpretation will be available; registration is required with a $10 entrance fee. It will be available for free via Zoom link as well. The lecture runs until 9pm with a reception and cash bar afterwards.
Grammy-nominated Yiddish Glory performs on January 25 at the NAC Fourth Stage at 8pm to mark Holocaust Remembrance Day. The group is led by University of Toronto professor Anna Shternshis (one of very few historians who has been nominated for a Grammy). Yiddish Glory resurrects songs written by Holocaust victims and survivors in Moldova and Ukraine, many by women and children, giving a unique perspective of their experiences during wartime. Read more in our interview with them here!
Thursday is Robbie Burns Day, for those that celebrate the Scottish bard. Deacon Brodie’s on Elgin is having not one, but two Robbie Burns parties this weekend, so you can get your fill. Thursday and Saturday nights you can enjoy piping, drumming, dancing and Scottish treats, all without paying a cover charge. Call for a reservation, dig out your kilt, and order a scotch or two—Sláinte Mhath!
Friday
Check out House of Targ Friday night beginning at 9pm for an 80’s Dance Party featuring The Retrogrades and DJ Remi Royale. The first half of the evening will be all live covers of your favourite ’80s hits, followed by the best mixes for late-night grooving. The evening is 19+ and $12 cover at the door.
Spend Friday evenings snowshoeing with an experienced Friends of Gatineau Park nature interpreter. Hiking in the moonlight, you will discover how animals survive winter, and enjoy the quiet of the park in the winter. Snowshoeing under the stars is offered in both official languages and is a beginner-friendly two-hour hike along one of four different trails. They offer free snowshoe rentals if you bring your own head lamp and poles. Cost for non-member of Friends of Gatineau Park is $25 for adults and $15 for children over 13.
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Saturday
Take advantage of the weather to stay indoors and get your learn on! Join the Historical Society of Ottawa on Saturday afternoon for their latest in-person lecture, Ottawa’s Shoreline … Built from Garbage? Hear about the 1950s and ’60s in Ottawa, as the infamous “Greber Plan” changed the way our city looks and is laid out, especially the cleared and extended waterfront of the Ottawa River around LeBreton Flats. The lecture is free at 1pm at the Ottawa Public Library Main auditorium on Laurier.
Want to further support the Ottawa Public Library? Check out the Friends of the Ottawa Public Library’s Mammoth Book Sale Saturday at the City of Ottawa Archives building on Tallwood Drive. From 10am to 4pm you can stock up on new reads for the winter months, and perhaps fulfill some New Year’s resolutions? Celebrate National Literacy Day buying books and supporting the great work that the OPL does.
Revisit a cult classic movie Saturday afternoon at Ottawa Family Cinema. Catch Shrek at 2pm at the volunteer-run theatre in the former Rideau High School on St. Laurent Blvd. Tickets are available online, beginning at $4 for members purchasing in advance. The theatre does offer popcorn and regular snacks, and a full-sized movie theatre screen.
Check out “REWIND”, a roller-skating jam and afterparty on Saturday beginning at 4 Wheelies Rollerskating Centre at 1101 Baxter Rd. The roller-skating party runs from 2pm to 8pm featuring the best of throwback and old school tunes, the best for dancing! The afterparty kicks off at Headquarters in the market from 10pm to close. Tickets are available for either event or both combined, beginning at $19 for the skating party.
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Robert Plante Greenhouses is holding their first Winter Market at the greenhouse Saturday from 9am to 4pm. You can expect over 60 local vendors and artisans as well as food, wine, and beer stalls. The greenhouse is pet-friendly, and you can try to meet their own resident kitties as well! It’s free to attend, and the perfect antidote for the winter-storm blahs!
The Ottawa 67s are taking on the Niagara Ice Dogs Saturday afternoon, with puck drop at 3pm at TD Place Arena. The 67s will be looking to kick their current losing streak, so expect an intense game against the Ice Dogs, who are last place in the central division.
Sunday
Banff Mountain Film Festival is coming to Ottawa’s ByTowne Cinema from Jan. 28-30, with screenings at 1pm on Sunday and 7pm on Monday and Tuesday. In association with Trailhead Paddle Shack, the festival showcases 37 short films about mountains and adventure in theatres across Canada, the United States, and 50 countries internationally. Tickets sell out fast and are available on the ByTowne’s website or at the Trailhead Paddle Shack website. Read our preview of the festival here.
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