Welcome to 2020! It's new year's resolution time, and instead of subscribing to the newest fad, why not be kind to yourself and add some arts and culture into your life? The Bloor St. Culture Corridor is the perfect place to start, with offerings below that will delight all ages and tastes.

Bata Shoe Museum

It's the start of a new year and the perfect time to walk on down to Toronto's coolest shoebox! Step back in time by visiting the All About Shoes gallery that goes through 4,500 years of footwear history. Venture into the Arctic gallery, Art and Innovation, take a trip through the tumultuous decade of the 1930s in WANT and be inspired by glittering treasures in The Gold Standard. Have some family fun at the BSM! Every weekend, kids can make shoe-themed arts and crafts, try on some funky footwear and play ISpy in the galleries. With exciting galleries and activities for kids, and a gift shop inspired by our shoes and collection, there is something for everyone to enjoy! Don't forget, PayWhatYouCan is every Thursday between 5-8pm.

Miles Nadal Jewish Community Centre

Miles Nadal JCC winter Arts and Culture programs begin on January 7 with a gallery exhibit about Kensington Market, Storefront Stories, co-presented with the Ontario Jewish Archives. On January 8, join guitarist Nathan Hiltz for an open drop-in sing-a-long at This is Not a Choir. Beginning January 13, film critic Adam Nayman discusses The New Hollywood of the 60s & 70s: Geniuses in the System on Monday afternoons. Kaeja d' Dance is offering dance workshops for older adults in The Moving Connections Project, starting January 15. On January 19, comedian Hart Pomerantz discusses his 1970 CBC variety show with Lorne Michaels, The Hart & Lorne Terrific Hour. The Toronto premiere of a mesmerizing one-woman Broadway show, Golda's Balcony: The Film, is on January 19 at Hot Docs Cinema, presented by the Toronto Jewish Film Society. We close the month on January 30 with a Meet the Artist Event: The House of Martin Guerre (In Concert), featuring ensemble members from Toronto Musical Concerts.

The Gardiner Museum

Don't miss two must-see exhibitions at the Gardiner Museum. Cannupa Hanska Luger: Every One & Kali Spitzer: Sister, closing January 12, is a monumental social sculpture commemorating murdered and missing Indigenous women, girls, trans, and queer community members across Turtle Island. There are also only a couple weeks left to see Savour: Food Culture in the Age of Enlightenment, an immersive journey into one of the most radical moments in food history. Discover surprising stories through stunning ceramics, knitted delights, theatrical sets, and more before the exhibition closes on January 19. Make time for yourself this winter by signing up for a mindfulness and clay workshop in our studios. Led by art therapist Suzanne Thompson, these unique classes focus on helping you find calm and presence through clay, and will equip you with essential mindfulness techniques.

The Royal Conservatory of Music

21C Music Festival, a celebration of newly-minted music by the world's foremost stars of independent musical thinking, returns! Don't miss Against the Grain Theatre's Juno Award-winning Ayre and other works by Osvaldo Golijov on January 11, Philippe Sly & Le Chimera Project's unique take on the song cycle Winterreise on January 17, Zane Dalal conducting the Royal Conservatory Orchestra with Zakir Hussain, John Patitucci, Danilo Pérez, and Brian Blade on January 24, and Danilo Pérez's Global Messengers and Allison Au Quartet on January 25. Following the festival, Canadian pianist Louis Lortie presents an all Ludwig van Beethoven program on January 26 and Lisa Fischer & Grand Baton return on January 31.

Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library

The Thomas Fisher Rare Library not only begins the new decade with brand-new carpet on the main floor, but it has two new exhibitions opening in January. Strength in Numbers: The CanLit Community draws on the library's rich literary archival material to explore how Canadian literature and publishing have been shaped by a diverse community, from writers to illustrators to agents to publicists. One highlight will be a focus on Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, including pages from the original handwritten first draft. The exhibition opens on January 27 and runs until May 1. Also on display, beginning January 6, is Horrors that Cannot be Expressed in Words: Visual Testimonies of the Holocaust, which commemorates the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. It features visual and artistic materials from the collections that capture Jewish life before the war, the horrors of the war, and liberation from the camps.

918 Bathurst Centre

2020 is here - and 918 Bathurst starts the year off with a bang! On Sunday, January 5, Lemon Bucket Orkestra present Oy Holy Night - A Slavic-Balkan-Klezmer-Party-Punk-Super-Christmas Special. This is the premiere of a new project from LBO, featuring new video design by Roman Lubiy and projection mapping by David Mesiha. The Music Gallery presents two shows this month -The Mouth That Roars on January 10, a co-production with New Music Concerts, featuring Gabriel Dharmoo and Janice Jackson - two of Canada's leading performers of experimental vocal music. On January 25, the Music Gallery helps celebrate the release of Anishinaabe experimental-electronic producer Ziibiwan's debut album Giizis, featuring Phedre and Melody McKiver. They also have one more surprise performance in store at the end of the month, which they cannot reveal - but, keep your eyes peeled! 

The Japan Foundation

Are you tired of turkey and holiday films? The Japan Foundation, Toronto will kick off the new year with JAPANESE MOVIES AT HOT DOCS CINEMA on January 11 & 12; Mirai, Shoplifters (winner of the 2018 Palme D'Or), Mori The Artist's Habitat, Before We Vanish and Tremble All you Want - all at Hot Docs Cinema, free admission. Following this, we will have the RAMEN FILMS series starting with Chef of the South Polar on January 17 and Ramen Heads on January 31. At the end of the month, on January 29, Professor Eric Cazdyn of U of T will present his Blindspot Machine project in his talk, The Blindspot of Japan.

The Music Gallery 

The Music Gallery kicks off the second half of their 19/20 season with two spectacular shows. First up on January 10, an outrageous double bill of vocal pyrotechnics featuring Montreal composer/performer Gabriel Dharmoo and Halifax-based soprano Janice Jackson. And later in the month, the much anticipated release event for Anishinaabe experimental-electronic producer Ziibiwan's forthcoming album Giizis. Ziibiwan has gathered a few of their close allies to celebrate the occasion, including experimental-Pop duo Phedre and electronics-meets-classical composer Melody McKiver, January 25.

Alliance Francaise de Toronto

Do you want to start off 2020 with Alliance Française Toronto? We have plenty of events. Starting with the lecture Identifying and abolishing medical inadmissibility in Canada's Immigration Act on January 15. Then, you can discover the exhibition The Parrot's Intrigue from January 6-30, with a special night with the artist on the 24. On this same night, the amazing bands Beyond the Pale & Oktopus will be on stage.What about young audience events? On January 24 the writer and illustrator Marianne Dubuc will help you travel through her tales and drawings. And she will tell you more about her work through a talk on January 27. Their Movie Thursdays are still on with The Young Girls of Rochefort on January 9, Ugetsu on the 16, Another House on the 23, and La Vie en Rose on the 30! 

Toronto Reference Library

Explore the lineup for their signature literary series, the Appel Salon, where they host local and international authors in conversation about their new books and big ideas in the Bram & Bluma Appel Salon, a literary and cultural programming space on the second floor of Toronto Reference Library. On January 13, The Social co-host Cynthia Loyst discusses her deeply personal lifestyle book, Find Your Pleasure, about how to take the guilt out of pleasure. On January 16, Hall-of-Fame hockey goaltender Ken Dryden talks about his new book on Scotty Bowman. Check out the full series lineup and register for free tickets online.

Royal Ontario Museum

Sink your teeth into Bloodsuckers: Legends to Leeches, on until March 22. Discover the incredible diversity, evolution and interconnected world of nature's vampires, and the myths, legends and pop culture they have inspired. A new year of ROM Speaks begins on January 14 with the lecture, Our Deadliest Predator: A Human History of the Mosquito. In celebration of the ROM's must-see exhibition Bloodsuckers, this special program explores the untold saga of the mosquito's reign throughout human history, and the indelible impact on our modern order. On January 28, join them for the ROM Speaks lecture, The Tree of Life: The Remarkable Dawn of Life in Eastern Canada. From Anticosti and Mistaken Point, to the Bay of Fundy and the red cliffs of Prince Edward Island, Senior researcher John H. Calder will uncover the Canadian stories that are changing our understanding of the history of life on Earth.

Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema

Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema has everything you need to feed your imagination in 2020. The popular Curious Minds Speaker Series returns with new courses on literary cities, Toronto architecture, and the French Impressionists. The new five-day Art, Architecture, Design Film Festival features 11 fascinating documentaries that explore the beauty and grandeur of the built world that surrounds us. Game Changers returns to inspire with biographies of Malcolm X, Edward Said, Susan Sontag and more. Explore this year's most thought-provoking human stories for free at the 2020 Human Rights Watch Film Festival. Grammy Award-winning artist Laurie Anderson joins them live for her acclaimed film Heart of a Dog at Music on Film, in partnership with The Royal Conservatory.

University of Toronto Faculty of Music

The University of Toronto Faculty of Music kicks off 2020 with the New Music Festival, Jan 12-21. The festival features Brazilian pianist, composer and arranger André Mehmari, for 10 days of free concerts, master classes, a new opera, and more. Jan 23, Professor James W. Wright presents a talk focusing on his recent monograph on the life and work of prolific Canadian composer Eldon Rathburn. Thursdays at Noon resumes Jan 9 with Juno Award-winning artists Mark Fewer and James Parker joining forces on two of Beethoven's sonatas for violin and piano. This collaboration provides a free preview of their ticketed Beethoven celebration happening Jan 27. Another celebration takes place Jan 23 as tenor Lawrence Wiliford, pianist Steven Philcox and speaker Eric Domville mark the 25th anniversary of Music and Poetry, and on Jan 30, DMA competition winner pianist Bryn Blackwood presents a program of 20th century music.

Women’s Art Association of Canada  

Women's Art Association of Canada kicks off the New Year with FLOW a curated members exhibition in the Dignam Gallery that runs from Jan 6-Feb 3. Accompanying the Opening Reception Jan 9 from 5:30pm to 8:00pm is a live drawing event. And an artist talk is scheduled for Jan 19 from 1:00pm to 3:00pm. In the RUTH UPJOHN GALLERY from Jan 20-Feb 10member artist Brenda Brown presents her new solo exhibition, Spontaneous Diversity. Opening Reception, Feb 6, 5:30-7:30pm ARTIST HAND WORKSHOP: Jan 10 - Chine Collé, 10am-3pm Susan Farquhar and EvaGerold lead a class in this unique printmaking technique. Cost per workshop: $20 for non-members (pay at door). Register in advance to save a space and receive info about any required materials including materials fee. ARTIST VOICE TALK: Jan 16 - WAAC artist-in-residence Heather Gentleman will give a talk entitled Ether: Flow and the Muse. Here she will discuss her process of creating a body of work and how the role of the muse comes into play. Cost for non-members $15.

Museum of Estonians Abroad (VEMU) 

On Sunday, January 19 at 4pm the Museum of Estonians Abroad/VEMU will be organising a film screening: TCFS presents: Best of EstDocs: Vello Salo - Everyday Mysticism (Estonia, 2018, 82min). The film is in Estonian with English subtitles. Admission with voluntary contribution. On January 24-25, VEMU will be co-hosting the Comedy festival FunniEST. Friday, January 24, doors open at 7pm: performance by Improteater IMPEERIUM (EE). In Improv everything is created here and now, under the eyes of the public. The actors in Improteater IMPEERIUM are professional actors who belong also to other theatre groups in Estonia or work in theatre, tv and film projects. Saturday, January 25, doors open at 7pm: StandUp Night. On the stage they have Andy Valvur, Tanya Henley, Paul Lillakas, Liia Kajak and Helle Wichman. Before the festival, on Thursday, January 23 at 7pm there will also be a Free Improv Workshop for 20 participants. Register at vemu@tartucollege.ca. Tickets sold at ECU, Tartu College Rental Office and Eventbrite. All the events will take place at Tartu College (310 Bloor St West).

Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and Chamber Choir

Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra presents Gone with the Winds from January 16-19, 2020 at Jeanne Lamon Hall, Trinity-St. Paul's Centre. Spirited and appealing arrangements of Mozart and Rossini's greatest operatic hits sit side by side with a sublime serenade by Mozart, an arresting sextet by Beethoven. In Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven's day, the hits from the latest operas were arranged for groups of wind musicians who performed in the homes of the rich, and in spas, pubs, and pleasure gardens for the public.Tafelmusik Chamber Choir presents More Bach Motets, a magical evening of Bach family motets, written for choir and continuo, interwoven with movements from J.S. Bach's suites for solo cello played by the newest member of Tafelmusik, the brilliant young cellist Keiran Campbell. January 25, 2020 at 8pm at Trinity-St. Paul's Centre.

Istituto Italiano di Cultura

A Clown from Rimini Named Fellini - A Lecture Series by Dr. Franco Gallippi, commemorates Fellini's hundredth birthday (January 20, 2020) by taking a journey through the decades of the Maestro's filmography. Each lecture will be dedicated to two decades of Fellini's career by concentrating on certain dominant themes that characterize the films of the decade in question. Lecture 1: Fellini's Beginnings and his Masterpieces - January 16 - 10 to 12. Lecture 2: Fellini and TV Culture: The 1980s and Early 1990s - January 23 - 10 to 12. On January 22 is the CD launch for A Goblin's Chamberby Maurizio Guarini. Maurizio Guarini, member of Italian progressive rock band, Goblin, will perform a brief concert of some of the tracks from the new album, accompanied by a string quartet. Goblin's most popular tunes are revisited with a classical twist. 

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