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Winnipeg Graffiti Boat Tour

The Forks

Sunday, 4 p.m. 5:30 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Tickets $21-$30 from winnipegwaterways.ca

Join Winnipeg graffiti pioneer Pat Lazo during this hour-long river boat tour and learn about the culture and communities that shaped the city’s art scene

Discover artwork that can only be properly viewed from the water as you glide along the river, taking in train bridges, river walls and underpasses that were the perfect canvas for up-and-coming aerosol artists.

Organised by Winnipeg Waterways, the tour explores Winnipeg’s hidden graffiti history, delving into the evolution of styles through the decades, the inspiration behind the murals and artwork and the people wielding the cans of paint.

— AV Kitching

S.M. Beiko book launch

Raven’s End Books, 1859 Portage Ave.

Tuesday, 6:30 p.m.

Free

Prolific Winnipeg fantasy author S.M. (Sam) Beiko isn’t letting the summer literary lull get in the way of launching her new novel.

The Sleuth of Ferren City, Beiko’s third book of the Brindlewatch quintet of books aimed at young adults, launches Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at Raven’s End Books.

Sleuth follows The Stars of Mount Quixx, the first book of the series, and the followup The Door in Lake Mallion. Other books by Beiko include the series The Realms of Ancient (Scion of the Fox, Children of the Bloodlands, The Brilliant Dark); she also co-hosts the Ballot Babes local politics podcast with Patty Wiens.

— Ben Sigurdson

Canada Day 2026

Assiniboine Park and The Forks

Wednesday

Free

There are plenty of ways to commemorate Canada’s 159th — like perhaps on a dock or a deck, blasting the Tragically Hip — but we’re going to focus on two of the city’s largest celebrations: Assiniboine Park and The Forks.

At the park, a whole day’s worth of musical programming is slated for the Lyric stage, with sets by the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, the Winnipeg Steel Orchestra, Nigerian-born, Winnipeg-based afrobeats musician Tommyphyll — who will also be kicking things off with O Canada — and, in a mini Chic Gamine reunion, singer/songwriters Andrina Turenne and Begonia, whose performance will be included in CBC’s cross-country Celebrating our Canada broadcast.

The Celebrate Stage, which is to the right of the Lyric, will host the Ivan Flett Memorial Dancers, Wackydoodle Dance Party for Kids and Anishinaabe/Inuk DJ the Kaptain, while the field will be filled with family-friendly activities such as face painting and food trucks. For the full itinerary, including additional programming at the Gardens at the Leaf, visit assiniboinepark.ca/events.

Over at The Forks, Canada Day will begin with 30 new Canadians from 13 countries participating in a citizenship ceremony.

“Becoming a Canadian citizen is both a milestone and a beginning. There is something especially meaningful about taking this step on a day when people across the country gather to reflect on what it means to be Canadian,” Judge Suzanne Carrière, who will preside over the ceremony, said in a media release. “Gathering at The Forks, a historic meeting place for generations, makes the occasion even more memorable as we welcome Canada’s newest citizens, and I look forward to this extra special ceremony.”

Elsewhere, visitors of all ages can listen to storytelling, take in cultural performances and participate in hands-on activities. CN Stage and Field will host a Sobr Market Patio and the Turtle Island Games, as well as live music from roots-rocker Mitchell Makoons, country singer-songwriter Brandi Vezina, Tommyphyll (in case you missed him earlier in the day at Assiniboine Park), and country/blues outfit the Irvin Miller Band.

Please note there are no fireworks at either site.

— Jen Zoratti

Super Duty Tough Work

Village Music Fest: Canadian Multiculturalism Day

The Toad in the Hole, 155 Osborne Ave.

Saturday

Free

And then suddenly they’re back in town. Super Duty Tough Work’s Winnipeg appearances have been increasingly rare since Brendan Grey, leader of the multi-multi-multi-instrumental jazz-hip hop outfit, moved to Ontario.

Though there’s always something rare about SDTW: hip hop is usually performed with DJ or programmed tracks, and if you were seeing tight live hip hop in Winnipeg, it was probably with this ensemble.

A few years ago, this opportunity came often enough. They were everywhere — not least of all the Polaris Music Prize long list in 2020 for their record Studies in Grey; they received this honour again in 2024 for Paradigm Shift, produced alongside Toronto’s well-known Junia-T.

These days you can still see many of their players — which include, but on a given night may not be limited to, Gabi Ocejo, Ashley Au, K’Waters, Marisolle Negash and Olivier Macharia — performing in the city’s notable jazz and groove ensembles.

But a local show with the whole team, and a free one at that, is special cause to discover just what they mean when they promise new “anti-imperial raps for that ass.”

— Conrad Sweatman

Winnipeg Comedy Showcase

Park Theatre, 698 Osborne St.

Friday, 7 p.m.

Tickets $20 at TicketWeb

It’s time for some Q2 comedy. The second quarterly Winnipeg Comedy Showcase of 2026 takes place at the Park Theatre on Friday with a lineup of some of the city’s top standup comedians.

The roster includes Emmanuel Lomuro, a rising star fresh off performing at the Halifax Comedy Festival; Jordan Welwood, a two-time SiriusXM Top Comic finalist; Andy Noble, a host and headliner at Rumor’s Comedy Club; Danielle Kayahara, a Winnipeg Comedy Festival alum; Jon Wilson, a comedian with a musical bent; and Scott Koropas, a winner of Rumor’s Funniest Person with a Day Job contest making his Winnipeg Showcase debut.

Veteran comic and showcase producer Jared Story hosts.

This is the 43rd Winnipeg Showcase, which has been running at the Park since 2014.

— Eva Wasney

Neurohilarity Pride

Gas Station Arts Centre, 445 River Ave.

Friday, 8 p.m.

Tickets: pay-what-you-can

Since 2022, local comedian and community organizer Adam Schwartz has grown Neurohilarity from a one-man show into an expansive, community-wide project that centres on neurodivergent performers from all corners of the artistic spectrum.

But as Schwartz, who will record his own standup special at next month’s fringe festival, notes, there’s a lot of crossover between the neurodivergent community and the LGBTTQ+ community. So on Friday, Neurohilarity is hosting its Pride Month special, featuring performances by heels dancer May Fong, alt-rockers Annaxis, contemporary dancer Sontje Skabo, standup comic Heather Witherden and fan dancer Mr. Strange.

— Ben Waldman

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