I came here for the first time for the comedy fest in Montreal and I loved this theater! Extremely…read morespacious, there's helpful + friendly staff at every corner and staircase, and comfy seats. We were a group of 26 (you heard me) and we had no troubles finding our seat or grabbing something in the lobby bar before the show. It was so cool to be sitting watching rising stars doing their thing! Not to mention knowing all the iconic comedians who have been part of this very comedy fest in the past. Also it was nice to be sitting inside since some of the comedy shows were on the main stage outdoors.

The Place des Arts is an entire complex dedicated to visual and performing arts. Three great…read morecultural organizations make their home here. Place-des-Arts is a beautiful art venue nested in the middle of Montreal and a great spot to hang out as there is always something to see, do, or hear in there. It is the largest cultural and artistic complex in Canada. Place-des-Arts is Montreal's central entertainment complex. This fun entertainment area hosts many concerts, plays, festivals, parties, and many other events (Opera, theatre, or Broadway musicals).

Happy 30th Anniversary, Cirque du Soleil…read more In a frozen Northern night of Montréal, under darkest blue sky you ever seen, old church was colorwashed in lights, and people lined up on endless steps to get inside. It was magical. There were no acrobatics - but instead, it became a game of light and shadow on church's ceilings and domes - and memories came alive, snow has fallen and stars blinked in the dark sky. Beautiful songs from all previous shows, in all different languages, made us sway and sings inside of our hearts. The performances were amazing. The acoustics of the church was really perfect for this. The choir and sound of pipe organ was outstanding. A whisper of the song escaped my lips when I recognized languages - Italian, Spanish, French, English... ~Standing ovation on the end~ Encore, encore!

This venue is a tiny independent theatre putting on mostly anglophone or bilingual shows…read more It is really just one room seating maybe 50 people and a little entrance hall where you can purchase tickets and a bottle of beer - nice and cozy. You might not get to see big famous companies here, but rather newcomers and those who enjoy the freedom of the fringe. I enjoy going to the Sunday Night Improv (every Sunday night 8 pm) - a competition in improv with many regulars and a few new faces every time, guaranteed to make you laugh! The crowd in the audience gets quite involved, too. And for those who want to be on stage themselves, there is a workshop every Sunday prior to the show. Everybody can attend for free, and then perform in the evening! The theatre is also one of the regular venues for the Zoofest, the more independent branch of the Montreal comedy festival.

I love art. This…read moretheatre is a gem, pushing work ranging from experimental to polished, from English to French and everything in between, from comedy to tragedy to some other thing. I've had the pleasure of performing here at their annual Sketch Festival. Alain and Mark run the place, and they treat their performers like performers are supposed to be treated. Which is, incidentally, very good. By consequence of performing here, I've also been able to catch a few of the shows they put on, including original bilingual productions, and weekly improv nights. It's all about the art here. It's about people who love what they are doing, and love pushing it to new levels. The venue itself is an intimate space, with a bar up front and two-ish levels of seating. It's across from a strip club where you might be able to catch the silhouettes of lovely-ish ladies dancing in the windows during the early hours of the night! If you live in the area, check out what they have going on, and go to it. I'm so upset I missed the a Capella / barbershop group that was performing last time I was in town.

After several visits to the Centaur Theater, I can say that this place deserves to be known. This…read moretheater with magnificent exterior pillars is located in Old Montreal and is therefore easily accessible by public transport. The interior is not very extravagant but there is a lobby, a coat check and a bar which is always useful while waiting for the show to begin. The theaters are of medium size, which automatically gives an intimate scale to the performances. The programming is very diverse and the shows that I attended were among the best I've seen in recent years, they really allowed me to discover talented artists. I strongly recommend that place if you enjoy shows that are off the beaten track.

What I think is great about the Centaur is the effort they make to try and balance the needs of the…read morediverse communities they serve and have served since 1969 - everyone from young theatre innovators to amateur producers and lovers of musicals to season ticket holders who are senior in the community and want to see important groundbreaking work as well as lighthearted comedy. The space is wonderful. A short walk toward the Old Port from Place D'Armes metro along the tiny cobblestones of St Francois Xavier brings you to the sudden sense of open space created by the massive columns of the Centaur Theatre - formerly the Montreal Stock Exchange. The front of house and lobby bar and coat check are all on the ground floor. The bar is big and full of comfy chairs and the staff is generally made up of cool, friendly members of the local arts scene. The theatres are upstairs, they aren't incredibly spacious in terms of leg room, but they're not airplane-bad. They have a steep rake so pretty much every seat is a good one. About 15 years ago I saw a version of Waiting for Godot here that devastated me, and part of the shock and loveliness of it was that all the curtains and backdrops were removed leaving bare brick walls looming around the actors. The brick is over 100 years old and shows repair, windows bricked in, time passing. Something about this one production symbolizes everything I love about the Centaur after 15+ years seeing shows there, maybe something about the willingness to remove all the trappings to create a different kind of magic? Anyway I look forward to the years to come!

WARNING: If you're sensitive to LAUGHTER or ALLERGIC TO COMEDY, do not attend any shows at Montreal…read moreImprov. I can't emphasize that enough and won't be held responsible if you don't heed my warning and are overcome with laughter. That said, if you have a high tolerance for humour, you'll find yourself right at home at Montreal Improv. With weekly shows running Thursday through Sunday, there's no shortage of laughter available to you. Oh, and if you ever want to take classes, they've got some of the funniest people in Montreal teaching as well.

This place is a gem. Guaranteed laughter and lots of familiar faces. The decor is bohemian teenage…read morechic. Thankfully, it's air conditioned. The staff is always lovely and it pretty much feels like home.

The first time I came to Usine C was to see Nitzer Ebb a few years ago, nearly 18 years after I…read morefirst saw them opening up for Depeche Mode back in 1990 and couldn't get over what a great venue it was, small enough to feel intimately involved in the show, large enough to take a break from the crowd and mind your own business in the gardens outside. A bar, a place to buy T-shirts and just hang with your friends, Usine C is a very civilized, CLEAN and amazing venue to take in a show . The acoustics are great, the crowd and staff are really chill and I love the fact that it's an old, industrial factory which still maintains it's old architectural features while having a new lease on life as an artistic venue.

I love this venue. I believe it is usually used for theatre events in Montreal, but when I have…read morebeen to this venue it has been for the Kinetik music festival. There is one large room for the bands to play in, equipped with lighting and techies at the back. There is a smaller lounge on the other side of the building, down a spiral staircase as well. For me, this was a good spot to sit down and give those heels a rest, and still pound back the drinks so the feet hurt less. Usine C also has an outdoor patio for the smokers, the organizers of Kinetik had a hot dog and hamburger stand set up out here so that we wouldn't starve since the festival started at 4pm and went until 3am. Too bad they ran out of food each night! It was ok though, we had in/out privileges. Usine C had really cool lights in the main hallway that were made from broken glass bottles, making them look like glass chandeliers, which was very beautiful. There was an upstairs area as well, which, for the festival, had clothing vendors, artists, and this was also where the bathrooms were hiding. Now my rating could be biased, since we have pretty much NO venues like this in Vancouver, so having a venue like Usine C that you can rent out for live shows, that has two rooms, and a place where you can throw in your own vendors is pretty fucking amazing.

I've been to the Theatre d'Aujourd'hui during the 2017 edition of the Fringe Festival. It is…read morelocated near the Sherbrooke Metro station on the very busy St-Denis street. I really liked the entrance filled with posters and the room with the comfortable seats. The play that I saw that day was awesome but the acoustics and lightening really helped. Overall a great experience!

The best pole dance studio in Montreal ! Whether you're practice pole regularly or want to discover…read morethe sport, you can find the perfect class with amazing and professional teachers. There are many different classes as pole fitness, flow, heels, but also hoop, flexibility, hammock, and chair dance, so it's the perfect place if you like discovering and learning new things with a lot of fun and in the best atmosphere possible ! All classes are designed to ensure safety, with an appropriate warm-up and cool-down, and also with the support and explanations of the teacher throughout the entire course, which is perfect to bring confidence ! If you want to try pole dancing in Montreal, it's definitely the place you have to go !

What does pole dancing mean to me? A new shot at life…read more Let me explain. (CW/TW: The following contains topics related to suicide, mental health and such.) I've been battling with suicidal thoughts and multiple mental illnesses for years. Prior discovering pole, I didn't see any value in life. Every night, I'd cry myself to sleep hoping that I could end my suffering. I was ready to give up. However, my friend made me join a pole class with him. To my surprise, for the first time in a very long time, I felt happy. All the dark thoughts disappeared, and I was mesmerized by my instructor's skills. I fell in love with how pretty and captivating she made all the moves look. After that one class, I told to myself that I wanted to become like my instructor. In a way, that class saved my life. I started taking better care of myself and picking up healthier lifestyle habits in order to be able to become as good as my pole instructors. I'd highly recommend this studio to anyone wanting to try or get into pole dancing! The instructors are very nice and supportive, and the community is very wholesome