The sentence “I’m going to a spelling bee this weekend” is one that can usually only be met with looks of confusion and/or concern if you’re a grown adult, but if you’re in Montreal, chances are that the other person will say, “Oh, I know someone who’ll be spelling there!”

As I enter Galerie ERGA, the sound of Saint-Laurent Boulevard, of passing cars, of truck engines left running, of people talking over the ambient noise, becomes almost inaudible from behind the gallery’s tall windows.

Open Mic Mondays in Jeanne-Mance have just entered their seventh year and at this point, they have it figured out. Bring your picnic blanket, bug spray, and set yourself up on the side of the hill overlooking Duluth as the smell of barbeque and weed rolls over you.

A comedy club is a very specific sensory experience. The noise of the bar, the murmur of the crowd settling into their seats, bouncing off the low ceilings; it all builds anticipation, excitement, and tension. But there is also a distinct, frantic rhythm to a standard comedy show that often undercuts this atmosphere, the rapid-fire transaction of modern stand-up…

Walking through Griffintown in 2026 is an exercise in cognitive dissonance. The neighborhood that was once the gritty, industrial, working-class Irish heart of Montreal has been relentlessly paved over, replaced by an expanse of towering glass condominiums, upscale boutiques, and overpriced gastropubs.

Montreal summer is a special thing. Montreal summer is a liminal space, simultaneously before and after, life feels non-stop and also on pause. People are (willingly) walking the streets, sitting on terrasses, festivals fill every neighborhood, the bars are packed, events are plenty, and the parks are busy almost 24 hours a day.

For several years now, Frenchy Jones, the owner of the The Wiggle Room, has worked hard to turn the cabaret into a safe space not just for the performers, but the Montreal community as a whole. Now it needs our help.

Born on a Raft Theatre makes their company debut with a production of Daniel MacIvor’s The Best Brothers at White Wall Studio. Under Trevor Barrette's direction, actors Sam Beaton and Thom Niles anchor the stage as two opposite brothers navigating the raw edges of sudden grief and sibling rivalry.

“Make yourself as comfortable as you can,” says the narrator in greeting, “because we will make sure that you’re very uncomfortable very soon.” This is the promise made, and kept, by Wine & Halva: a biting comedy written by Deniz Başar and directed by Art Babayants, returning to the stage in May 2026 after its first run in 2024.

Calling lovers of books, publishing, and all things writing—the 2026 Blue Metropolis Literary Festival is well under way and is the perfect way to spend a warm Spring weekend in Montreal.

Teesri Duniya’s production of Behind The Moon delivers an emotionally charged meditation on the immigrant experience that holds the audience in a space of shared reflection. While the production navigates directorial hurdles and inconsistent technical execution, the raw power of Anosh Irani’s script and the dynamic energy of the talented cast of actors keep the heart of the story firmly intact.

Six years ago, local literary magazine yolk broke out of its shell and splattered all over Montreal’s literary scene by way of an event called Egg the Poet. The Instagram post promoting this event is captioned as follows: “Come join us January 17th to celebrate the launch of Yolk, a new Montreal-based literary journal dedicated to the word. This is a chance to share what is ours and soon to become yours.”

In a city that often tries to polish burlesque into a sanitized, corporate-friendly product for the tourist agenda, Mina Minou is throwing a massive wrench into the machine. As a multidisciplinary artist with over a decade of skin in the game, she’s the architect of The Fool’s Journey, a sprawling, five-show competition series that ditches the “prettiness" of traditional pageantry for a chaotic blend of radical absurdity and experimental play.

For immigrants who’ve settled within these colonial North American borders, there is a constant tension between what one wants to say and how (if at all) to say it.  “You have to be really careful,” says Lebanese-Canadian actor and cultural practitioner Basma Baydoun. “You know, hide your rage, hide your anger – hide how you feel about injustice.