Festivals and Other Events
Montreal has a different festival every week throughout the summer months (check www.festivals.qc.ca for a comprehensive list). Of these, the Festival International de Jazz de Montreal ( www.montrealjazzfest.com ) is North America's largest, with more than 400 shows, most of them free. From late June to early July, more than 2000 internationally-renowned musicians descend on the city; past years have drawn the likes of B.B. King, Etta James, Al Jarreau, Dave Brubeck, Ben E. King and Branford Marsalis. Continuing the superlatives, there's the mid-July Juste pour Rire ("Just For Laughs"), which is the world's largest comedy festival, with past headliners including Tim Allen, Rowan Atkinson, Jim Carrey, John Candy, Lily Tomlin and David Hyde Pierce. Theatres host 650 comedians from 14 countries performing in more than 1000 shows ( www.hahaha.com ). Hot on the heels of the Comedy Fest, the Francofolies ( www.francofolies.com ) brings French musicians from around the world to various downtown stages. The most visually spectacular of the city's shindigs is the International Fireworks Competition , whose participants are competing to get contracts for the July 4 celebrations in the US. Held from June to July, the music-coordinated pyrotechnics are a breathtaking sight. The action takes place at La Ronde and tickets are around $20, but across the water and on the Jacques-Cartier Bridge the spectacle is free, and the music for the displays is broadcast live on local radio. There are also a number of food-tasting events and, in some cases, boozy ones, like the June Beer Mundial event in the Vieux-Port, which offers the opportunity to get legless on more than 250 brands of beer from around the world. In August, the Fetes Gourmandes Internationales takes over Ile Notre-Dame for mouthwatering taste-tests. Come late-January, the islands host ice-sculpting and general carousing with the Fete des Neiges de Montreal ( www.pdi-montreal.com ). Montreal has film festivals practically every month, some thematic, some devoted to individuals. The most notable is the Montreal World Film Festival in late August, the city's answer to Cannes, Berlin, Venice and Toronto ( www.ffm-montreal.org ), but the Vues d'Afrique ( www.vuesdafrique.org ) is gaining prominence for bringing African and Caribbean films to Montreal. Finally, the Cirque du Soleil (tel 522-2324, www.cirquedusoleil.com ) is a fantastic circus company that travels all over the world; every other year it has a big-top season in its home city. Refusing to exploit animals, the circus's acrobats, trapeze artists, clowns, jugglers and contortionists present an incredible show, with original music scores, extravagant costumes and mind-blowing stunts. Most event tickets can be purchased through Admission (tel 790-1245 or 1-800/678-5440, www.admission.com ).
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