Saturday, Aug. 29
Momo the border collie, made famous for travelling across the country with his photographer companion Andrew Knapp and then hiding in two ‘Where’s Waldo?’-style bestselling photo books, will “paw” your copies, probably while snuffling and eating treats, 2 p.m., Kaleidoscope Kids’ Books, 1018 Bank St. Bring your (nice) dogs and (nice) kids. www.kaleidoscoperkidsbooks.ca
Craft Beer Runners will slake their thirst with some Beau’s Beer.
Run, walk or stroll for 5K in the Ottawa Craft Beer Run this morning (there are three waves at 10:30, 11:15 and 11:30 a.m.) and then reward yourself with a complimentary cool pint from Beau’s and a two passes to the Craft Beer Festival, Lansdowne Park, with proceeds going to Motivate Canada. Fee: $50. www.ottawacraftbeerrun.ca.
The Ottawa Craft Beer Festival has, well, beer, and also artisan booths, live music, seminars and the much-anticipated Homebrewing Competition in the beautiful Aberdeen Pavilion, noon to to 10 p.m. Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday, Lansdowne Park. Admission: $15-$35/passes, samples more. www.ottawacraftbeerfestival.ca
Turns out, just because polo is the “game of kings” does not mean royalty has to be in attendance at each match. Shame.
Watch the game of kings or simply show off your best hat (there’s a contest) at the Polo in the Park event, interspersed with dog agility shows, riding demonstrations and (obviously royal-approved) bouncy castles, 11 a.m., Wesley Clover Park. Keeping it civilized, drinks can be had on site. Proceeds to benefit the Wabano Centre for Aboriginal Health and the Queensway Carleton Hospital. Tickets: $20, $65/family, $250/VIP — comes with gourmet lunch, drink tickets. polointheparkottawa.com
The second Palestinian Festival promises exuberant dancing and folkloric tales, fresh regional dishes such as Musakhan and falafel, artisans and more, from 11 a.m., all weekend, Marion Dewar Park. www.palestinianfestivalottawa.com
Help clean up Petrie Island
Petrie Island needs some help cleaning up after a summer of fun, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., meeting at the Nature Interpretation Centre. Bring work gloves, rake, rubber boots and sun block. BBQ, garbage bags will be provided. facebook.com
It’s drone play time.
Ottawa DroneFest welcomes the whole family to build, fly, race and learn about the multi-rotor helicopters a.k.a. drones, 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., OZ Drome, 221 Westbrook Rd. A free shuttle will run from Makerspace North to the Dome all day, and there’s a BBQ. Tickets: Free, but register at http://bit.ly/1NzKKnP.
Dinosaurs come back to Ottawa several millenia later, or 22 years as Centretown Movies screens the original Jurassic Park, 9 pm., Dundonald Park. Admission; Pay-what-you-can. Tip: Bring a chair and BUG REPELLANT. (This event was rescheduled from July due to rain then.)
Yamantaka//Sonic Titan combine the ancient and modern, East and West, cultural sounds from J-pop, the Iroquois, black metal, Chinese opera, British prog and more to create theatrically pleasing music — and a good show, 8 p.m., Zaphod Beeblebrox, 27 York St. Tickets: $12. spectrasonic.com
It’s amusing how we can now keep track of the lunar calendar via full moon yoga events; there’re two tonight: 8 p.m. at Lansdowne Park and 10 p.m. at Britannia Beach.
Photos: What to do this week
Many ideas of things to do when not prepping for the return of school, Aug. 28 to Sep. 5, 2015.
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Concerts: Gigs to see this week
Art Exhibits: 7 new shows this week
Sunday, Aug. 30
Smoked Apple-Cider Glazed Pork of Yore Loin created for Savour Ottawa’s 2014 Harvest Table event.
Celebrate our bounty at the Savour Ottawa annual Harvest Table family-style luncheon, featuring local ingredients prepared by local chefs, noon to 2 p.m., Horticulture Building, Lansdowne Park. Tickets: $75, including samples from craft breweries and wineries. www.savourottawa.ca
Sadly, Russell Crowe won’t be giving gladiator tips.
Be immersed in the world of the gladiator today, with re-enacted fights (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.), a chance to dress up in armour and pose, learn more about real lives of the storied fighters and make your own graffiti for the “Colosseum,” Canadian War Museum. warmuseum.ca
ByWard Market vendors are roasting corn on sale for $1 a cob in aid of local charities, 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at this annual event, including music and face-painting. www.byward-market.com
Yoga, burgers and football — an obvious triad; Lululemon is taking over the TD Place field for a massive yoga class on the field at noon, followed by a pre-game BBQ Party at 2 p.m. and then seeing The Redblacks take on (read: BEAT!) the Saskatchewan Roughriders at 4 p.m. Tickets: $30, include all the above. Use code YOGARB. http://bit.ly/1hZKr8N [UPDATE: The Redblacks game and yoga event are completely sold out. Next time!]
Last chance to enjoy Bikedays.
It’s the second to last Alcatel-Lucent Sunday Bikeday weekend, with over 50 kilometres of parkways in Ottawa and Gatineau Park open to cyclists, in-line skating, runners and walkers, from 9 a.m. in Ottawa and 6 a.m. in Gatineau Park. For routes, check www.ncc-ccn.gc.ca.
Participate in a public archeological dig at Lac Leamy Park as experts try to determine the region’s prehistoric past, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., 80 Fournier Blvd. For ages 10 and up, with simulated dig for younger children. Admission: Free. Register at 613-239-5373.
Monday, Aug. 31
Screengrab from Tiny Giants 3D.
A tiny (and very cute) chipmunk reveals surprising strength and perseverance in the 23-minute Tiny Giants 3D movie at the Canadian Museum of Nature, in English at 10:30 a.m., 1:10 and 3:40 p.m., in French at 11:15 a.m. and 1:50 p.m. (It’s narrated by UK actor Stephen Fry, squeeeeee!) Suitable for all ages. Tickets: $4, +museum admission. nature.ca
To Prince Edward Island, 1965, at the NGC until September 7.
It’s the last week for the special exhibit Alex Colville: A Canadian Icon at the National Gallery of Canada, including over 10 works from student drawings to famous pieces, and pairings exploring his legacy, on until Sept. 7. gallery.ca
If you want to be a popular parent/aunt/older brother, rush to get tickets to the children’s entertainers The Wiggles, whose shows Sept. 16 at Centrepointe Theatres have yet to sell out. Tickets: $24.25-$47.25. centrepointetheatres.com
Tuesday, Sept. 1
Rain or shine, 200 of the world’s best freestyle paddlers will be showing off their top tricks at the 2015 ICF Kayak Freestyle World Championship on the Ottawa River, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. all week at Wilderness Tours, 503 Rafting Rd., Foresters Falls. Tickets are free, just follow the signs to the spectator seating and marvel at the riders’ skill and our amazing waterway. Seats will be in high demand for Saturday’s finals. (NB: Sometime this week we will have a video from a camera strapped to one of the competitors which, we hope gleefully, may make viewers a bit motion sick. Stay tuned!) www.worldfreestylekayakchampionships.com
Award-winning BBC News correspondent Lyse Doucet speaks on “A Big World Gets Smaller” at Carleton University’s Currents lecture, held on the first day before classes resume, 7 p.m., followed by a reception, River Building, Carleton University. Free, but register at http://bit.ly/1Ju8UJf
Wednesday, Sept. 2
The OIAF kids’ jury from 2014. They’re looking for a new bunch this year.
Today is the last day for kids aged 8 to 12 years to apply for jury duty — at the Ottawa International Animation Festival, to select the top short children’s films and TV shows on Sept. 19. They should submit one paragraph about their favourite animated films before 4 p.m. to info@animationfestival.ca. Jury members will also get a full pass to the festival for themselves and their family — so give the kids some homework today. School really should have started yesterday, anyway. (This late Labour Day is throwing everything off… ) www.animationfestival.ca
Japanese Film Week continues, with Rent-A-Cat, a comedy about a lonely woman who rents out cats to other lonely people, with English subtitles, 6:30 p.m., Embassy of Japan, 255 Sussex Dr. Tickets: Free. www.ca.emb-japan.go.jp
Hydrangeas
Learn more about hydrangeas and other flowering shrubs with Suzanne Patry at a Greely Gardeners Group meeting, 7 p.m., Greely Community Centre, 1448 Meadow Dr. Fee: $2 non-members. greelygardeners.ca
Her Excellency Sharon Johnston, wife of Governor General David Johnston, will read from her novel Matrons and Madams, a fictionalized account of her grandmother’s life as a hospital superintendent in venereal disease-ridden Lethbridge in the 1920s, 7 p.m., Almonte Public Library. Register at Mill Street Books, 613-256-9090.
Orpheus Musical Theatre is holding auditions for its production of the Anne of Green Gables musical, with time slots at 6, 7 and 8 p.m. First rehearsals begin Sept. 11. Application may be found at www.orpheus-theatre.ca
Thursday, Sept. 3
Australian, long-lasting rock superstars AC/DC (coming close on the heels of other superstars Alice Cooper and Motley Crüe), play TD Place, Lansdowne Park, 7 p.m. Tickets: $99.50-$129.50. www.tdplace.ca
Laugh with the comedic theatrical trilogy The Norman Conquests, skewering the middle class by award-winning and arguably most produced (and still living) British playwright, Alan Ayckbourn. Each of the three plays, all to be shown over the next six weeks starting with Table Manners at The Gladstone Theatre (it is still open!), stands on their own but see them all for compounded hilarity. Tickets: $26.40, 15% off three-play package. thegladstone.ca
The Shawville Fair is on Sept. 3 to 7.
Battersbys Poplars by Russell Yuristy.
The Shawville Fair is a classic event, with horse show, homecrafts, midway rides, cowboy races, demolition derby, petting zoo, performances by The Road Hammers, Doc Walker, Brea Lawrenson and more, until Sept. 7. Tickets: $10-$20. Schedule at www.shawvillefair.ca
Print maker, painter and teacher Russell Yuristy, whose works hang in the National Gallery of Canada, will be at the opening of his solo exhibit of works continuing his exploration of nature, 6 to 9 p.m., Cube Gallery, 1285 Wellington St. W. Exhibit to Oct. 4. cubegallery.ca
Friday, Sept. 4
The three-day Heartfest, in aide of local charities, has its “biggest ever lineup” of hardcore punk and metal bands, including Donnybrook, Harm’s Way, Cruel Hand, Swamps, Badlands, Exalt and more, 42 Hanson St., Gatineau. House of Barons will also be offering hair cuts on site, and other shenanigans. Tickets: $25, $65/pass. heartfest.ca
Cancel your other plans and go see Winnipeg band Yes We Mystic — who describe themselves as indie rock, but they need a new-new-wave modifier in there somewhere with an intoxicating mix of heartrending and exhilarating sounds, alongside Ottawa’s own purveyors of catchy of soundscapes, Pony Girl, 8 p.m., Raw Sugar Café. Tickets: $10 at the door. www.spectrasonic.com
Alt-country Wakefield band Tractor are celebrating the release of their debut CD with, we’re told, some whiskey and gin, though not needed from the sweet melodies we’ve sampled, 8;30 p.m., The Black Sheep Inn. Tickets: $10 in advance. www.theblacksheepinn.com
House of Targ is holding a two-day Ska Fest, starting with show from hazy swagger of The Beatdown, The Sentries, Freshly Cut, The Taco Bandits and Rich Chris, 10 p.m., 1077 Bank St. Tickets: $5 before 10 p.m. www.houseoftarg.com
For those desperate for hockey (or a very reasonably-priced evening out), the Ottawa 67’s take on their cross-river rivals the Gatineau Olympiques at TD Place, 7 p.m., in pre-season action. Tickets: $2.74-$7.74. capitaltickets.ca
Saturday, Sept. 5
Three-year-old Kalinda Kananura and her big sister, seven-year-old Calista Kananura, enjoy apples at the market at the Canadian Museum of Nature, Saturday, July 18, 2015.
Arriving students, start the school year with some veggies from the Main Farmers’ Market in its Centretown location at the Canadian Museum of Nature (it’s a castle guarded by woolly mammoths, hard to miss), featuring local produce and crafts each Saturday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. until the end of October, 240 McLeod St. mainfarmersmarket.org
Jazz pianist Vijay Iyer
Enjoy the Best of India, Best of Jazz in one musical performance with jazz piano prodigy Vijay Iyer (voted 2014 pianist of the year by Down Beat magazine) and Indian violinist L. Subramaniam, 7 p.m., Shenkman Arts Centre. Tickets: $35-$70. shenkmanarts.ca
The Serbian Festival has dance lessons, children’s activities, arts and crafts market, food and live music from DJ Ole, noon to 11 p.m. all weekend, Serbian Community Centre, 1989 Prince of Wales Dr. Admission: Free. www.serbfest.ca
There is only just over a month left to see The Greeks — Agamemnon to Alexander the Great, featuring over 500 priceless artefacts from 21 Greek museums for the first time in North America, covering over 5,000 years of fascinating history, Canadian Museum of History. www.historymuseum.ca/thegreeks
Submit event information to kendemann@ottawacitizen.com, by 8 a.m. Monday, two weeks before the event. Photos are welcome.