The nation’s capital will be home to most of the star-studded Canada Day festivities. From noon to late evening, musicians, dancers and politicians take to stages across Ottawa to ring in the country’s birthday. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Will and Kate, will make an appearance today on Parliament during their first overseas trip as a married couple.
Other artists scheduled to perform in Ottawa include Great Big Sea, Dan Mangan, Kinnie Starr, Plants & Animal, the Sam Roberts Band and more.
Canada Day marks when the British North American colonies of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and the Province of Canada joined into a federation of four provinces (divided, in the process, into Ontario and Quebec) on July 1, 1867.
The West Coast will see a variety of celebrations today. Granville Island features live jazz, ballet performances, Bollywood fashions and a “Truly Canadian Pancake Breakfast.” Vancouver’s biggest Canada Day celebration showcases a parade that begins at 7pm PST.
Calgary is showing off a massive fireworks display at 10:45pm local time. BBQ celebrations begins at 10:45am at Praire Wind Park and the Calgary Stampeders square off against the Toronto Argos in a Canadian Football League game at 7pm.
Toronto will be busy with many events across the city. Mel Lastman Square in North York will feature fireworks and the nine-member strong King Sunshine Band. Harbourfront Centre celebrates Canada Day with a packed slate of activities for kids and adults, including Hip-Hop Karaoke and Luke Doucet staging free shows in the evening. Also, Ontario Place offers free admission on July 1.
In Montreal, La Fête du Canada includes acrobat water skiing and breakdancing at the Old Port, with a parade snaking through downtown streets starting at 11 a.m. At the Montreal Jazz Festival, DEBO and Nomadic Massiev are among the bands putting on free shows throughout the day.
Halifax’s Harbour area will showcase a fireworks display in the evening, but during the day the East Coast city will also host a parade, a massive picnic at the Halifax Common, and the band The Trews play a free show at Alderney Landing later in the night.
