Toronto Irish Film Festival
The luck of the Irish? There is a romantic notion of the Emerald Isle, but the place has a history of troubles, and while that needn’t always refer to Northern Ireland’s violent 30-year conflict, in this case it does exactly that. Saturday’s program of the Toronto Irish Film Festival pays attention to Belfast’s bloody 1970s, with the dramas Good Vibrations (about the idealistic record-store owner Terri Hooley) and ’71 (a year-specific thriller about a British soldier lost behind enemy lines). To March 8. $15. TIFF Bell Lightbox, 350 King St. W., 416-599-8433 or torontoirishfilmfestival.com.
A Tribute to Joni Mitchell: Songs Are Like Tattoos
The new box set from Joni Mitchell is poetically titled Love Has Many Faces: A Quartet, a Ballet, Waiting to Be Danced, and on Saturday the worshipful singer-songwriters Julie Mahendran, Ben Hermann, David Celia, Jessica Stuart and Colleen Brown (above) partner themselves with the inimitable music of Laurel Canyon’s first lady. “We need goddesses,” the bohemian risk-taker Mitchell once said, “but I don’t want to be one.” But the choice is not hers to make. March 7, 8:30 p.m. $25 to $27.50. Hugh’s Room, 2261 Dundas St. W., 416-531-6604 or hughsroom.com.
The Toronto Vintage Clothing Show
Looking for that perfect out-of-sight dress? This eclectic bazaar of era-evoking garb and accessories has many of them, with colour schemes ranging from blue and gold, gold and white, blue and black and more. Which one suits you? The beauty – and the colour, according to a recent Internet meme – is in the eye of the beholder. March 7 (10 a.m. to 5 p.m.) and March 8 (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.). $10 (includes admission into the Toronto Antique & Vintage Market). Queen Elizabeth Building, Exhibition Place, torontovintageclothingshow.ca.
The National Ballet of Canada
Johnny Cash wore black for the sick and lonely old, and for the reckless ones whose bad trips left them cold. As for the performers in the National Ballet, they wear the gloomiest shade for The Man in Black, James Kudelka’s inventive piece that features dancers in cowboy boots and haunting cover songs the monochromatic balladeer recorded late in his career. A mixed program also includes pieces set to the music of Richard Rodgers, the White Stripes and Tchaikovsky. To March 8. $26 to $249. Four Seasons Centre, 145 Queen St. W., 416-345-9595 or national.ballet.ca.
Gertrude Kearns: The Art of Command
Salvador Dali has his The Face of War, and Canada’s Gertrude Kearns has hers. Those of the latter come from Ms. Kearns’ unprecedented access to senior Canadian officers who served in Afghanistan. The resulting portraits combine an intensity of colour, texture and intention to represent the complexities and consequences of military leadership under trying circumstances. An exhibition showcases 46 large-scale portraits and posters, many on public display for the first time. To June 14. $3.76 to $7.96. Fort York Visitor Centre, 250 Fort York Blvd., 416-392-6907 or toronto.ca/artofcommand.