Today Luminato Festival Toronto announced that it will return from June 11 to 13, 2020 with 3 days of virtual programming, bringing artists and thinkers together with audiences from across Canada and around the world. Streaming on Luminato’s website and social media channels, the weekend will feature live and pre-recorded performances, conversations, panels, dj sets and participatory programming, alongside key works from past Luminato Festivals. This free event will run from 7pm on Thursday (June 11) until late Saturday night (June 13), and will include family programming beginning at 10am on Saturday.

Following the cancellation of the June 2020 Festival due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19), Luminato was determined to make an offering to its community which would celebrate the artists and cultural workers who had created the beautiful 2020 programme. Some works originally destined for the 2020 Festival will appear in future festivals, and there will be sneak peeks into some of that programming during this year’s virtual re-imagination of the Festival.

“We were all heartbroken to lose this year’s Festival which promised our community so many exceptional experiences, but in its place we’re thrilled to be presenting this re-imagined virtual version, to our international friends as well as all our Toronto family. Of course it doesn’t substitute for the ‘live’ days we had planned on the stages and streets of Toronto from June 11 to 28, but we’re all very excited by it as a completely fresh kind of Luminato adventure,” said Anthony Sargent, CEO Luminato.

“For three days, we will take you to artists’ homes, into virtual spaces, and onto the streets of Toronto, reminding you of past Luminatos when we were able to gather together, and anticipating a future when we can meet in person once more. Our virtual festival honours artists and audiences, our donors, funders and volunteers, as well as our indefatigable and resilient front-line workers, and we trust it will offer hope, joy, solace and much food for thought as we ponder our uncharted future,” said Naomi Campbell, Luminato’s Artistic Director.

A complete schedule including performers, participants, productions and activities will be published in the coming weeks.

About Luminato Festival Toronto

Luminato Festival Toronto is Toronto’s international arts festival dedicated to performance, media and visual arts, and programming that cuts across traditional artform boundaries. Luminato works closely with Canadian artists to support the development and creation of distinctive new works, as well as presenting today’s most exciting artists from around the world. For more information visit luminatofestival.com or follow us on Twitter: @Luminato | Facebook: LuminatoFestival | Instagram: @LuminatoFestival | LinkedIn: Luminato | Youtube: LuminatoEvents