Things to do in Montréal: August 26 to September 1

The end of August doesn’t mean the end of summer in Montréal: warm weather keeps  restaurant terrasses open late and turns parks and city streets into entertainment venues. Also keeping things hot this week: a beer tasting event, new films and art, and live music.

Late-summer days

The Mont-Royal Avenue Street Sale closes the avenue to traffic Aug. 25-28, featuring plenty of shopping along with open-air restaurants and bars, entertainment – including music on Friday evening from Socalled in front of Mont-Royal metro, live painting, DJs and more – games and activities for kids – from face painting and rock climbing to an electric train and mini golf – at the corners of Mont-Royal and Cartier and Mont-Royal and Des Érables. Walk among farmers, craftspeople and entertainers straight out of 1750 at Pointe-à-Callière’s 18th-Century Public Market in Old Montréal, Aug. 27-28, featuring food, drink, music, storytelling and performances in the spirit of New France.

Swing to the sound of musical art installation 21 Swings outside Place des Arts, or take an easy cruise along the Saint-Lawrence River on a laid-back brunch, afternoon or gourmet dinner cruise with Croisières AML. The SOS Labyrinthe and sailing-ship-themed ropes course Voiles en Voiles keep everyone on their toes in the Old Port of Montréal. Test your chess skills on the giant chessboards on Ste-Catherine St. in the Quartier des Spectacles or hear master storyteller John David Hickey at the Botanical Garden. For more family activities, check our guide to fun with kids this summer in Montréal, including Disney’s Ice Age on Ice at the Bell Centre starting Aug. 23.

Food, drink and fashion

Beer afficianados flock to I.B.U. – Immersion Brassicole Unique to try all styles and flavours of beer from more than 60 Québec microbreweries, Aug. 26 to 28 on the grounds of TOHU circus centre, complete with great food and music. Local fashion brand Frank Oak celebrates these final days of summer with a music-and-cocktail Block Party outside 160 St-Viateur E. in Mile End. Take a culinary trip around the world with Brazilian food, Tex-Mex burritos, Portuguese chicken, great Greek meals, African and Caribbean specialties, and the fusion flavours of the food bowl trend. Or try Montréal faves: smoked meat sandwiches , classic poutine, meals on Montréal’s favourite terrasses, and al fresco entertainment, food and drink at outdoor markets Jardins Gamelin, Village au Pied-du-Courant, Marché des Éclusiers in the Old Port, Les Jardineries at Olympic Park, and, only on Aug. 27, Le Marché de Nuit at Alexandraplatz.

Art and film

As an addition to the must-see exhibition Joan Jonas: From Away at DHC-ART, the nearby Phi Centre presents Affinities – Transmission II , films by Jonas and related artists on themes of masquerade and movement on Aug. 26. Also on Friday at the Phi Centre, see A Fat Wreck documentary about the punk music label, featuring NOFX’s Fat Mike, Erin Burkett and Joey Cape. The Montréal World Film Festival continues this week with an array of new features and shorts, including outdoor screenings outside Place des Arts – details in the program. And fashion-designer films Revealing Marie Saint Pierre and Le testament d’Alexander McQueen screen under the stars at Place de la Paix, August 30.

Scottish artist Robbie Thomson explores mysterical experiences in multimedia installation The Influencing Machine, Aug. 26, 5-7 pm at the SAT. The Cinémathèque québécoise hosts 1960s-inspired experimental exhibition Le corps exquis alongside the History of Erotica film fest. In the galleries and museums, see art by Liz Magor, Lizzie Fitch and Ryan Trecartin at the Musée d’art contemporain, the amazing Pompeii exhibition at the Montréal Museum of Fine Arts, ELEGANZA – Italian Fashion from 1945 to Today and Montreal Mansions, 1974 at the McCord Museum, and the always amazing World Press Photo Montréal exhibition, starting Aug. 31 at Bonsecours Market.

Live music

Friday seems to be all about dance parties, starting with Lunch Beat Montréal outside the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts at noon and then heading right into the world beats of the Montréal Reggae Festival with Cocoa Tea, Ammoye and more artists on Friday, followed by two more days of reggae in the Old Port. Also later on Friday: famed L.A. producer Nosaj Thing with guests Gerry Read and Holodec at Théâtre Fairmount, deep and tech house producer Matthias Tanzmann at New City Gas, and a Talking Heads dance party – plus film screening of Stop Making Sense – at Bar Le Ritz P.D.B. Rock out with Silver Dapple and Auks on Saturday night at La Vitrola, go for EDM with Chris Malinchak at New City Gas or late-night underground electronic with Powell and friends.

Spend Sunday afternoon at Parc Jean-Drapeau dancing at Piknic Electronik to electronic music from Lebanon’s Rami O, Switzerland’s Deetron, Baadman and more, plus Petit Piknic for kids. Or slow the music down with Toronto singer Emilie-Claire Barlow at the Botanical Garden at 2 pm. The latest DIE POD DIE listening session and discussion at the Phi Centre gets us deep into the albums Cosmic Tones for Mental Therapy by Sun Ra and Snake Whiskey by Snake Whiskey, on Sunday evening. And Advance Base (Owen Ashworth of Casiotone for Painfully Alone) plays Casa del Popolo on Sunday night. DJs Poirier and Ghostbeard turn their free and famed “Sud-West” neighbourhood parties into “Nord-Est” evenings on the Bahut terrace of TOHU, starting at 6 pm on Aug. 31. On Thursday, Sept. 1, dance to a Simian Mobile Disco DJ Set at Newspeak, get heavy with Irish post-rock band God Is An Astronaut and Johnny Ripper at Théâtre Plaza, party with Australian hip hop-EDM duo Hermitude at L’Astral, or if it’s your scene, check out the start of the 12th annual Montréal Fetish Weekend, with the music and burlesque of KABARET KINK at Café Cléopatra.

Up next: Things to do during the Labour Day Weekend, September 2 to 5