The Toronto Beaches Lions Easter Parade run on Queen Street East from Munro Park to Woodbine Avenue.Tibor Kolley/The Globe and Mail
Toronto Beaches Lions Easter Parade
A year ago, then mayor Rob Ford was left with egg on his face when the organizers of the annual bunny-based procession banned politicians from the family event, leaving the blustery one-term chief magistrate (and current city councillor) with 10,000 unusable chocolate candies. There are no restrictions however on gigantic rabbits, those big-eared and fluffy-tailed mascots who get our vote for the surest signs of spring. April 5, 2 p.m. Free. Queen Street East (Munro Park to Woodbine Avenue), beacheslions.com.
The Bowmanville Antiques & Folk Art Show
Beggars can't be choosy, but pickers can be picky at a popular affair of vetted folk art and pre-1900 items. Television shows like Antiques Roadshow and American Pickers and Canadian Pickers reveal an intense interest in curios and collectables, and this annual event east of Toronto is chock full of painted furniture, stoneware, early lighting, native arts, pottery, textiles and decorative Canadiana. April 4 (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.). $8 to $12. G.B. Rickard Recreation Complex, 2440 Highway 2, Bowmanville, Ont., 613-283-5270 or bowmanvilleantiquesshow.com.
Carole Pope
Though her most famous song is the 1980 Rough Trade hit High School Confidential, Carole Pope is not against telling tales out of school. The latest music from the spike-haired alt-rock icon is Music For Lesbians, a four-song EP that explores "the funny and tragic things involved in being with another woman." Brash and dismissive of boundaries, on Saturday the artist has selected a particularly intimate venue – all the better for her to get into our faces. April 4, 9 p.m. $20. Handlebar, 159 Augusta Ave., 647-748-7433 or carolepope.com.
Pillow Fight Toronto
There's no gambling involved with this wacky outdoor happening, but bedding is definitely allowed. Toronto is just one of the cities participating in International Pillow Fight Day, an excuse to wear pyjamas in public and to gently wallop strangers with cushions in an urban setting. Participants are asked to bring feather-free pillows only – nobody is going "down" for the count – and it is suggested that any glasses be removed before the action begins. We're not making this up. April 4, 3 p.m. Free. Nathan Phillips Sq., 100 Queen St. W., pillowfightday.com.
In Transit
The artist Stuart Reid was commissioned to produce a seven-foot-high by 500-foot-long richly worked glass wall to be displayed on the subway platform at Union Station. For underground inspiration he rode the rocket, sketching the workaday commuters who will be portrayed in a giant mural that is expected to be fully mounted by the end of May. In the meantime, large-scale ink drawings of the subway-using talkers, texters, tourists and nappers comprise an off-site companion exhibit in Yorkville. April 4 to 20 (reception April 11). Free. Gallery Gevik, 12 Hazelton Ave., 416-968-0901 or gevik.com.
Brad Wheeler