Arts & Culture
Events
Calendar of Events
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Monday
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Tuesday
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Wednesday
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Thursday
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Friday
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Saturday
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Sunday
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5 events,
This exhibition traces Impressionist painter Helen McNicoll's career through more than 80 paintings, sketches and works on paper. It also features work by her close painting companion Dorothea Sharp and other contemporaries from the Montreal art scene. The show is on view at the National Gallery of Canada, 380 Sussex Drive near the ByWard Market. […] 
Step into a vibrant, photo-worthy world of science at the Canadian Museum of Nature - Wild Colour is Ottawa's most colourful museum experience of 2026. Created by the Field Museum in Chicago and enhanced with Canadian specimens, this exhibition explores how animals, plants and minerals use colour to communicate, attract mates, and survive. Museum admission […]
CA$17
Frame of Mind is the 9th exhibition in the Creative Space program, a partnership between the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre and the Ottawa Art Gallery celebrating its 10th year of using artmaking as a tool for wellness and community connection. The exhibition features work created across fall and winter sessions using acrylic painting and […] 
Intertwined is a concurrent exhibition at the Ottawa Art Gallery running through August 2, 2026, bringing together artists to explore humanity's increasingly complex relationship to the natural world through their works. The show features multiple artists working across a range of disciplines and takes up space across the OAG's five-floor programming venue at 10 Daly […]
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Free weekly drop-in Afro-Caribbean dance workshop by Cultural Arts Studio. Travels through movement and dance traditions from across Africa and the Caribbean. 45 minutes, all ages and dance levels welcome. Held Mondays at the NAC. Event details can change, so verify with the organizer before attending. |
5 events,
A stunning Maori cirque theatre work performed in Te Reo Maori, telling the allegorical story of Aotahi and her son Piri as they navigate powerful supernatural beings representing the colonial forces that displaced their people. The production is a collaboration between Te Rehia Theatre and The Dust Palace circus company, combining aerial acrobatics, physical theatre, […] |
7 events,
Robert Lepage reimagines Shakespeare's Macbeth by transplanting the medieval Scottish tragedy into the world of 1990s Quebec biker gangs, with Cawdor Castle becoming a rural motel and Birnam Wood a cannabis field, while leaving the original story of murderous ambition and paranoia intact. Presented in French by NAC French Theatre, this Francophone production is performed […] 
Experience a magical forest walk at Parc Oméga as the story of wolf cub Oniro unfolds through light, sound, and immersive storytelling. Created by artist Michel Lemieux, ONIRO features 17 illuminated scenes along a 60-minute trail. First departures begin at sunset. the ONIRO night walk: a magical immersion experience As night falls, the trees of […] |
11 events,
The University of Ottawa Heart Institute opens its doors to the public as part of Doors Open Ottawa 2026, celebrating the institution's 50th anniversary. Visitors can learn about heart health, participate in the One Million Hearts screening initiative, and take a self-guided tour of the Cardiac Research Complex. This is a free public event within […]
Free
Doors Open Ottawa returns for its 24th anniversary with the theme Doors to the Past: Bytown's Bicentennial Journey, giving free access to 90-plus historic and modern Ottawa buildings that are normally closed to the public or charge admission, including embassies, breweries, churches, heritage buildings, and government sites. Notable 2026 participants include the Diefenbunker Cold War […]
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As part of Doors Open Ottawa, the Diefenbunker Cold War Museum offers free 30-minute Highlights Tours of Canada's most significant surviving Cold War artifact, a four-storey underground facility built to […] 
Canada's highest distinction in the performing arts is celebrated at a gala evening at the NAC's Southam Hall, honouring the 2026 GGPAA laureates including set and costume designer Susan Benson, […] |
11 events,
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Expo Mexico Mujer returns to Lansdowne Park for a full day of programming celebrating Mexican culture, cuisine, fashion design, and women's entrepreneurship in Ottawa. The event is listed on the […]
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Step inside the 1896 Gothic Revival mansion known as Birkett's Castle, now the Residence of the Hungarian Ambassador and open to the public on Sunday only. Built by architect Thomas […]
Free
The NAC Indigenous Theatre hosts the annual Summer Indigenous Art Market in the Gail and David O'Brien Atrium at the National Arts Centre, bringing together Metis, Inuit, and First Nations […] |
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10 events,
Ottawa's award-winning lantern-lit ghost tour runs nightly through downtown streets with cloaked storytellers sharing the city's haunted history at the Fairmont Chateau Laurier, the Bytown Museum, and Ottawa's most infamous haunted high school. The 75-minute tour departs from the ticket office at 46 1/2 Sparks Street, steps from Parliament Hill, and runs in all weather […]
CA$24.99
Featured
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Featured
Go behind the scenes of Ottawa's most iconic castle hotel in this fascinating 75-minute guided tour with a Monday discount. Knowledgeable guides reveal concealed passageways, political rendezvous rooms, luxurious ballrooms, […]
From $27.99
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Ottawa's funniest and most surprising walking tour — discover the bizarre, hidden side of Canada's capital with a $5 Monday discount per person. Created by the makers of the Haunted […]
From $27.99
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Uncover the haunted history of Ottawa's oldest building - the Bytown Museum - in this unique ghost tour with a Monday discount. Guides lead guests through the story of the […]
From $27.99
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Free weekly drop-in Afro-Caribbean dance workshop by Cultural Arts Studio. Travels through movement and dance traditions from across Africa and the Caribbean. 45 minutes, all ages and dance levels welcome. […] |
7 events,
Featured
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Featured
Explore four floors of world-class natural history at the Canadian Museum of Nature for free during Thursday evening hours, including the new Wild Colour special exhibition running through January 10, 2027. Wild Colour dives into the role of colour in nature through 200 specimens, audio stories, and colour-saturated gallery zones. The museum is at 240 […]
Free
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8 events,
Qillaniq is billed as the world's largest exhibition of contemporary Indigenous circumpolar Arctic art. The show highlights work from artists across the Arctic region with a focus on shimmering light and radical joy. It is on view at the National Gallery of Canada, 380 Sussex Drive, through September 20. Related programming includes free family workshops […]
Experience a magical forest walk at Parc Oméga as the story of wolf cub Oniro unfolds through light, sound, and immersive storytelling. Created by artist Michel Lemieux, ONIRO features 17 illuminated scenes along a 60-minute trail. First departures begin at sunset. the ONIRO night walk: a magical immersion experience As night falls, the trees of […] |
9 events,
More than 150 artists fill Central Park in the Glebe over two days with original paintings, photography, sculpture, pottery, jewellery, and textiles in a willow-lined creekside setting that is beautiful in both sunshine and rain. Visitors browse original works, enjoy food vendors, catch live entertainment, and relax in the park with free admission and no […]
Free
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6 events,
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Free weekly drop-in Afro-Caribbean dance workshop by Cultural Arts Studio. Travels through movement and dance traditions from across Africa and the Caribbean. 45 minutes, all ages and dance levels welcome. […] |
6 events,
Metcalfe Plaza is downtown Ottawa's summer hangout, transformed by the Downtown BIA into a hub of live music, art and culture. The plaza hosts live performances, DJ sets, fitness classes, pop up markets and weekend activities throughout the season. It runs daily from noon to 10 PM, from June 18 through September 20, right in […] |
7 events,
Experience a magical forest walk at Parc Oméga as the story of wolf cub Oniro unfolds through light, sound, and immersive storytelling. Created by artist Michel Lemieux, ONIRO features 17 illuminated scenes along a 60-minute trail. First departures begin at sunset. the ONIRO night walk: a magical immersion experience As night falls, the trees of […] |
8 events,
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Sacred Journey is an immersive, Indigenous led exhibition developed by the Heiltsuk Nation exploring canoe traditions. It brings Pacific Northwest Coast canoe culture and history to life at the Canada […] |
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7 events,
Experience a magical forest walk at Parc Oméga as the story of wolf cub Oniro unfolds through light, sound, and immersive storytelling. Created by artist Michel Lemieux, ONIRO features 17 illuminated scenes along a 60-minute trail. First departures begin at sunset. the ONIRO night walk: a magical immersion experience As night falls, the trees of […] |
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