6/11/2013 9:35:22 PM

June 11, 2013
The City of Toronto invites residents and visitors to enjoy some of Canada's best musical talent along with delicious food this summer at Nathan Phillips Square and Mel Lastman Square.

Fresh Wednesdays and Tasty Thursdays are presented weekly at Nathan Phillips Square. Mel Lastman Square is the site of the weekly Sunday Serenades and will host a spectacular Canada Day celebration on July 1. These popular summer events are presented by Timothy's World Coffee®.

"These are great summer activities for Torontonians," said Mayor Rob Ford. "I encourage everyone to come out on Canada Day as well as for the weekly events on our civic squares all summer long."

Canada Day celebration July 1
A celebration of Canada's 146th birthday will be held at Mel Lastman Square on Monday, July 1 from 5 to 10:30 p.m. On stage, world-champion hoop dancer Lisa Odjig will be followed by dance company Northbuck Krumping. Zero Gravity Circus will present its Open Air Big Top featuring aerial acrobatics at 5, 6 and 7 p.m. Singer-songwriter She King will perform at 8 p.m., followed at 9:15 by Juno-award-winning Derek Miller. The Canada Day celebrations will conclude with fireworks at 10:15 p.m.

Fresh Wednesdays
Nathan Phillips Square is the site of Fresh Wednesdays from July 10 to August 28, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Vendors sell fresh Ontario-grown produce, flowers, baked goods and more weekly until October 16 (excluding June 26). Lunch-time concerts by Canadian artists accompany the farmers market on the square from July 10. The performance schedule for Fresh Wednesdays is available at http://www.toronto.ca/special_events/wednesdays.

Tasty Thursdays
The Tasty Thursdays series at Nathan Phillips Square from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. each Thursday starts July 11 and will run to August 29 You can buy delectable international dishes served by participating restaurants for $7 or less while enjoying free noon-hour concerts featuring world music acts based in Toronto. The complete performance schedule and vendor list is available at http://www.toronto.ca/special_events/thursdays.

Sunday Serenades
Every Sunday beginning July 7 and running to August 18 - from 7:30 to 9 p.m. - you can dance under the stars at Mel Lastman Square in the Sunday Serenades free outdoor concert series. Sunday Serenades features the best of swing, jazz and big-band music. The performance lineup is available at http://www.toronto.ca/special_events/serenades.

More information about these events and others is available by calling 311 or by visiting http://www.toronto.ca/special_events.