22 things to do in Montreal this weekend: February 15 to 17

Montreal gained a few extra pounds of snow throughout the week but shovelling aside, it looks pretty gorgeous (especially now that it’s the weekend). From a slew of great outdoor events to concerts, sugar shacks and parties, here are 22 things to check out this weekend from February 15 to 17.

Beautiful – The Carole King Musical

montrealtheatrehub/Instagram

Beautiful tells the inspiring true story of King’s remarkable rise to stardom, It features a stunning array of beloved songs written by Gerry Goffin/Carole King and Barry Mann/Cynthia Weil.

The show opened on Broadway at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre in January 2014, where it has since broken all box office records and recently became the highest grossing production in the Theatre’s history.

A string of shows will take place at the Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier this weekend.

When: February 15 – 17
Time: 8 pm
Where: Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, 175 rue Ste. Catherine
Price: $46.05 – $139.05, available online

Kurt Vile & The Violators Concert

Kurt Samuel Vile is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He is known as the former lead guitarist of rock band The War on Drugs.

He’ll be at the gorgeous MTELUS Theatre this weekend with his new project, Kurt Vile & The Violators.

When: Friday, February 15
Time: 8 pm – 11 pm
Where: MTELUS, 59 Ste. Catherine
Price: $38.75, available online

Sucrerie de la Montagne

Maple Syrup/Shutterstock

And guess what? You can have it.

There’s also horse-drawn sleighs, wagons and an all-you-can-eat sugaring off feast.

When: From now until March 10
Time: 10 am – 7:30 pm
Where: 300, Chemin St-Georges, Rigaud
Price: online$14 – $34, available

The Montreal Outdoor, Hunting, Fishing and Camping Show

Quebec’s largest event dedicated to hunting and camping kicks off this weekend. Manufacturers, retailers, and 100 outfitters will be site to showcase everything from clothing to accessories.

There’s also a hunting hall with 35,000 square feet showcasing the leading brands and new products.

When: February 15, 16 and 17
Time: 9 am – 6 pm
Where: Palais de Congrès, 1001 Jean Paul Riopelle
Price: $14 – $16, available online

Don Juan – Maison symphonique de Montréal

Acclaimed by audiences across Canada, France and South Korea (more than 600,000 spectators total) the Don Juan musical returns in a symphonic version.

Presented by the OSM, right in time for Valentine’s Day, these symphonies  feature Marie-Eve Janvier, Jean-François Breau and Mario Pelchat.

Music and libretto by Félix Gray, in an orchestration by musical director Simon Leclerc.

When: February 15 and 16
Time: 8 pm (2:30 pm on February 16)
Where: Maison symphonique de Montreal
Price: $50 – $220, available online

Marie Mai Concert

Marie-Mai Bouchard, known professionally as Marie-Mai, is a Canadian singer from Quebec. She was initially known as one of the finalists of the first season of the Quebec reality show Star Académie.

She returns home on Friday to what’s going to be a full show at the Bell Centre.

When: February 15 and 16
Time: 8 pm – 11 pm
Where: Centre Bell, 1909 avenue des Canadiens de Montreal
Price: $63 – $95, available online

Art Battle

Visual artists create a work of art in 20 minutes right inn front of your eyes, on a predetermined format.

Guests can observe the creative process and vote for your favorite piece at the end of each round.

During the event guests can also take part in the silent auction of all the works of art that were created in front of you during the event.

When: Friday, February 15
Time: 7:30 pm – 10:30 pm
Where: Bar La Shop, 4177 rue St. Denis
Price: $15, available online

Saturday, February 16

Parc-Nature du Cap-Saint-Jacques

La Navette Nature/Facebook

The City of Montreal wants you to see more of this gorgeous province this winter by checking out the city’s biggest national park – for free.

So, pack a lunch, hop on a shuttle bus and spend the day in the great Canadian outdoors!

Parc-Nature du Cap-Saint-Jacques is offering free shuttle services from downtown Montreal this weekend (and six days afterwards).

With 330 hectares of land, the Parc-Nature du Cap-Saint-Jacques is the largest park in Montreal. It’s bordered by Lac des Deux Montagnes and the Rivière des Prairies, offering magnificent views of icy, snowy, land.

The park is also boarded by ecological farms that include cows, goats, sheep, donkeys, rabbits, ponies and pigs as well as a rustic sugar shack where guest can enjoy locally produced maple syrup.

When: Saturday, February 16
Time: 9 am – 4:15 pm
Where: Shuttle pick up Dorchester Square
Price: Free

Forum Sports Bar

Start the weekend off with some bowling.

The Forum Sports Bar hosts 16 lanes of 10-pin bowling, a giant square bar, arcade games, billiards and TV screens.

You strike that one off the list.

When: Saturday, February 16
Time: 11 am – 1 am
Where: 2313 rue Ste. Catherine
Price: $8 per game, shoe rental included

Natrel Skating Rink

Old Port Skating rink

From indoor skating to outdoor, we can’t call ourselves true Canadians without offering both.

Known for its outstanding quality of ice, excellent facilities, and breathtaking views of the city and the Saint Lawrence River, this is the place to go outdoor skating in Montreal.

There’s no better way to stick it to winter than bundling up and hitting the ice.

The chilled 2,500-square-metre rink features a cozy village right in front of the ice and is a puck’s throw away from Bistro Bonsecours for a little post-game refresher.

Natrel’s Skating Rink plays rock, classical and jazz music on large outdoor speakers to add to your soundtrack of whizzing down the ice.

When: Saturday, February 16
Time: 10 am – 10 pm
Where: Natrel Skating Rink, Bonsecours Basin
Price: $6.95 general admission, $4.90 kids aged 6 – 12, free for children under 6

TaBURNak! 9 – Burning Man Party

TaBURNak! returns for its 9th edition this weekend.

Besides having a great name, the festival urges burners (Burning Man hopefuls) to come flex those creative muscles, dance the night away and celebrate all things Burning Man culture.

The one-day party (it goes til 6 am) has art installations, food trucks, bars, performances and workshops.

When: Saturday, February 16
Time: 9 pm – 6 am
Where: 1499 rue William
Price: $40, available online

Mont Avila Snow Tubing

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If you haven’t gone snow tubing yet, it’s not really winter.

This weekend might be perfect for some snow tubing on Mont Avila. 12 of the mountain’s 13 trails are open and the snow surface is “solid,” as per the website, which means you can zoom down the hill real fast.

Nobody will blame you if you knock back some taffy on a snow stick either.

When: Saturday, February 16
Time: 8:30 am – 10 pm
Where: 500 Chemin Avila, Piedmont
Price: $32 – $38

Ultimate Mario Smash Tournament

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The South Shore is hosting a massive Super Smash Bros. Ultimate gaming tournament on Saturday.

The tournament is a best two of three to move on to the next round. Participants are urged to bring their own controller and there are prizes to be won for both the winning and the loser bracket.

The 64-person  tourny will be streamed on Twitch and ZerolagGaming.

When: Saturday, February 16
Time: 5 pm – 11 pm
Where: Coin Game Over, 3067 montée St-Hubert, Longueuil
Price: $10 to enter

POP Yoga Neige

Downward dog-sled, anyone?

Montreal-based fitness company POP Spirit is hosting a series of outdoor snow yoga sessions this winter.

Aptly titled POP Yoga Neige, classes will take place every Saturday and Sunday from now until March 24 at Parc La Fontaine and Parcours Gouin, respectively.

All classes are free to the public and boast top-notch, professional instructors. All you have to do is bring your own mat and dress warmly (and we mean, really warm).

When: February 16 and 17
Time: 1 pm on Saturdays, 10:30 am on Sundays
Where: Parc La Fontaine and Parcours Gouin
Price: Free

La Grande Roue de Montréal

gcgd.1/Instagram

As Saturday calls for some sun, hit up Canada’s largest observational wheel and take in some absolutely breathtaking views of the city, covered in snow.

Not to mention, some primetime photo ops that’ll make your Instagram crowd jealous.

When: Saturday, February 16
Time: 10 am – 11 pm
Where: 362 rue de Commune Est
Price: $14.79 – $25

Harry Potter Trivia Night

If  you’re a witch or wizard who never received a letter to Hogwarts, you’re in luck on Saturday.

BDP is hosting a Harry Potter trivia night and all questions will stem from the books, the movies, and from Pottermore.

When: Saturday, February 16
Time: 7:30 pm – 10:30 pm
Where: Bar des Pins, 3714 Av du Parc
Price: $5 per player

LEGO Family Day Event

Dear City Council

Bring the family for an interactive building and Scholastic story time inspired by THE LEGO® MOVIE 2™ and DUPLO®.

LEGO is one of those things where you pretend it’s for the kids, but it’s really for you.

When: Saturday, February 16
Time: 11 am – 12 pm
Where: Chapters Pointe-Claire, 6321, aut. Transcanadienne, Pointe-Claire

Sunday, February 17

Blue Man Group

stminfo/Instagram

After popping up around Montreal earlier this week, it turns out Blue Man Group is actually playing a series of shows this weekend in Montreal, not just riding the Blue Line for fun.

Known around the world for their various stage productions, the group incorporates different categories of music and art, both popular and obscure, into their performances and that’s exactly what they’ll be doing this weekend at Théâtre St-Denis.

When: February 15 – 17
Time: 2 pm and 7 pm (on Sunday)
Where: Théâtre St-Denis
Price: $44 – $106.50, available online

Volcanoes 3D – IMAX

The Montreal Science Centre invites guests to a “very hot immersive experience” as Volcanoes 3D takes over the IMAX screen for the first weekend, taking patrons where few humans dare to venture: into the heart of a volcano.

When: From now until June
Time: Various times
Where: 2 de la Commune Ouest
Price: $10.50 – $12, available online

Snow Tubing on Mont Royal

lemontRoyal/Twitter

Take advantage of the pride of Montreal by snow tubing down it.

Discover the exhilaration of snow tubing down reserved lanes next to the toboggan hill overlooking Beaver Lake.

When: Sunday, February 17
Time: 10 am – 4 pm (until 6 pm on Saturdays and Sundays)
Where: Mont Royal Park
Price: $5 for 4 – 11-year-olds, $9 for 12 years old and up

Harley Ice Drag Race

Lac Saint-Louis in Beauharnois is hosting a giant Harley Davidson drag race on Sunday – on the ice.

Motorbikes will be slipping, sliding and revving all over the lake.

When: Sunday, February 17
Time: 10:30 am
Where: Lac Saint-Louis, Beauharnois
Price: Free

Pente à Neige

Pente à Neige/Facebook

No offence, Mont Tremblant, but we might hit the slopes a bit closer to home this weekend as La Pente à Neige has constructed a man-made ski hill at Parc Ignace-Bourget.

If you’re up to braving the cold, the second edition of the urban hill is big enough for up to 250 people and there’s also a mini slope on site to accommodate up to 50 mini-skiers.

The hill welcomes skiers, snowboarders, tubers and sledders of any age and features a cozily heated yurt, mulled wine, hot chocolate and music.

Guests can bring their own equipment or it can be rented on site.

When: Sunday, February 17
Time: 10 am – 6 pm
Where: Parc Ignace-Bourget
Price: Free admission