Pride Week in Toronto takes place at the end of June every year. Events celebrating Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transsexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer, Questioning, and 2 Spirited people take place over ten days, culminating in a big weekend Street Festival and the famous Pride Parade.
In 2009, Toronto Pride Week begins on Friday June 19th with the big finish on Saturday June 27th and Sunday June 28th.
For Pride Week events visit the official Pride Toronto website at www.pridetoronto.com. To learn more about the closing weekend, read on!
Where It's At
Pride Week events take place all over the city, at many theatres, community centres, galleries and other locations. For the closing weekend though, Pride takes over the blocks bordered by Bloor Street, Jarvis Street, Carton Street and Yonge Street (the TTC Stations at Bloor or Wellesley work well). Some events may spill beyond these borders - especially club parties - but if you're just looking to take in the flavour of Pride Weekend head to that area and start wandering!Parents and kids can head to Church Street Junior Public School at the corner of Church and Alexander to enjoy performances and activities together from 11am to 6pm both days. The lineup for 2009 includes a Bunch Family Dance Party, a Scratch Lab DJ Workshop, a performance by Chris McKhool and theatre games with the Lorraine Kimsa Theatre for Young People. Add in arts and crafts, storytelling, and plenty of opportunities for parents and kids alike to make new friends in the community, and Family Pride is a great, free way to spend an afternoon.
Wander around the many booths at the free street festival, and you'll discover displays from international, national and local organizations plus countless support, social and sports groups for LGBTTIQQ2S people and their friends and families. Along with the organizational displays, vendors are usually on hand selling plenty of clothes and accessories, plus food, unique arts and crafts, and more.
Pride is known for being a massive party, but for those who want to party drug and alcohol free the Free Zone is the place to go. Live performances and a DJ are present alongside meetings for those who are in recovery from drug and alcohol use. Head to the Paul Kane Parkette, which is on the north side of Wellesley Street, west of Church Street.
One of the big attractions of Pride Weekend are the many outdoor stages that fill the whole area with the sounds of live performances and DJs throughout the weekend. A full schedule on the Pride website lets you know who's playing when, but wandering where the music takes you can be just as much fun.
Want to have a drink on a patio AND support a good cause? The 519 Church Street Community Centre's annual Pride Beer Garden is a popular spot to grab a drink, with proceeds going to support the centre's many services. On Friday night celebrity bartenders and musical guests get things started from 8pm to 11pm, then the garden is open from 1pm to 11pm on Saturday and Sunday. You'll find the 519 Beer Garden in Cawthra Square Park on the corner of Church Street and Monteith Street (north of Wellesley).
Reflecting back on Pride Week's earliest incarnations as a
demonstration and activist fundraiser, the Dyke March is Saturday's political counterpoint to Sunday's Pride Parade. Beginning at 2pm, women and trans individuals will march north up Church Street from Hayden Street, west along Bloor to Yonge, and south on Yonge all the way to Wood Street where they will turn east and return to Church.
The showcase event of Pride Week, the Toronto Pride Parade is a massive street celebration where the line between participants and spectators is easily blurred by a shared party atmosphere. For some, being among the tightly-packed throng is the best reason to go to the parade while for others the best place to be is in a window seat on the upper level of an air-conditioned bar along the route. Wherever you're hoping to be for the parade know that people arrive very early on the Sunday of Pride Parade, well before the 2pm start. The Pride Parade begins at the corner of Bloor and Church Street, heads west to Yonge, all the way down Yonge to Gerrard, then heads east back to Church Street.
In 2009 the Sunday night final blowout is taking place at Wrongbar on Queen West. Tickets are $10 and the party's scheduled to run from 10pm to 4am. Wrongbar is at 1279 Queen Street West, between Dufferin and Lansdowne.
