Things to do in Montréal: January 23 to 29

It may be cold, but it’s cool, too. This week, Montréal is alive with the celebration of winter’s wonder, especially with the electrifying Igloofest outdoor dance party – but that makes the soul-warming indoor moments even more precious. Don’t miss the latest exhibitions, dance performances and live music shows.

Outdoor fun

Igloofest tops the charts of outdoor entertainment with its second weekend, featuring a mass of amazing DJs, including the spontaneous orchestrations of Germany’s Loco Dice and the heavy, hip-hop inflected tracks of Belgium’s Dave Luxe. Local acts include Enfants Malins, Da-P Dabeatx and Nick Wisdom, if you’re looking to move to Québec’s particular party sound. Parc Jean-Drapeau is a snowy haven of family activities during the Fête des neiges de Montréal, where the kids can skate, zip-line, slide, dog-sled and so much more. Get active alongside them and reward yourself with a feast from one of the food trucks. Or, in the Olympic Village, skate, go on sleigh rides or catch some live music all for free, as the Winter Village continues to emanate its charm. The free outdoor skating rink is one of the best maintained in the city, and what an impressive view!

Cozy culture

The latest, greatest show by Opéra de Montréal opens on January 24: Samson and Delilah, starring Marie-Nicole Lemieux as the female lead. Opus Award winner Alain Gauthier is at the helm of this new production of the classic by Camille Saint-Saëns. Meanwhile, at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, get an eyeful of gorgeous gems and game-changing metalwork in the Remarkable Contemporary Jewellery exhibition, on until March 8. The Biennale de Montréal has been extended in part until February 8 at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, plus the museum is launching a new work this week: The Forgotten Space, a video by Allan Sekula and Noël Burch about the sea and its role in consumer culture: it’s the “forgotten space” through which nearly 90 percent of the world’s cargo now passes. The film won the Special Orizzonti Jury Prize at the 2010 Venice Film Festival. At Monument National on January 23 and 24, an unusual performance experience awaits in the form of Entre, by Aurélie Pedron, a work designed to be experienced one person at a time, for 10 minutes at a time – it’s an invitation to live the profound intimacy of connectedness and to perceive the limits that separate us differently. And over at Théâtre Maisonneuve in Place des Arts, on January 22, 23 and 24, don’t miss a triple bill of contemporary dance courtesy of Ballet BC, and the post-performance talk with the artists on January 23.