Ongoing

Helen McNicoll: An Impressionist Journey

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 […]

Wild Colour

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: 10 Years of Creative Space

Ottawa Art Gallery 10 Daly Avenue, Ottawa

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 – A concurrent exhibition

Ottawa Art Gallery 10 Daly Avenue, Ottawa

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 […]

Te Tangi a Te Tūī | Maori cirque theatre work

Azrieli Studio, NAC 1 Elgin St, Ottawa

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, […]

Macbeth (Robert Lepage)

Babs Asper Theatre, National Arts Centre 1 Elgin St, Centretown, Ottawa

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 […]

Doors Open: University of Ottawa Heart Institute

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

Diefenbunker Doors Open Ottawa Tour

Carp, Diefenbunker Canada's Cold War Museum 3929 Carp Road, Carp, Ottawa

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 serve as the central communications headquarters during a nuclear emergency. Tours cover key areas including the Blast Tunnel, the War Cabinet Room, and the Prime […]

Doors Open Ottawa 2026

Various venues across Ottawa

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 […]

Street Food Showdown in Westboro Village

All Saints Anglican Church, Westboro 347 Richmond Road, Ottawa

The 2nd Annual Street Food Showdown in Westboro Village invites attendees to sample, vote, and compete for the title of neighbourhood street food champion while also supporting the Westboro Region Food Bank. Local restaurants and food vendors compete against each other with attendees casting votes for their favourites. The event is organized by the Westboro […]

2026 Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards

NAC · Southam Hall 1 Elgin St, Ottawa

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, […]

House of Kink Presents: Risque Rodeo

House of Kink presents an adults-only themed dance party at the 27 Club with a kinky cowboy-couture dress code, DJ sets, and live performers on stage, running from 10 PM until last call in the ByWard Market's most active music venue. Kinky and fetish attire is mandatory and casual dress is not permitted; attendees unsure […]

CA$33.28