Edmonton Festival City thrives on outdoor live entertainment all year round. The fun spills into the parks and streets of the city and surrounding communities. Check out www.edmonton.com/festivalcity for a comprehensive listing of festivals in Greater Edmonton.

Theatre and Film

These festivals build synergy with local theatre companies that produce and import entertaining work all year long.

• International Children’s Festival. May 29 - June 2. Fabulous acts from around the world are presented in a festival of theatre, music, dance, storytelling and puppetry. St. Albert. 780.459.1542. 
• Improvaganza. June 13 - 23. Rapid Fire Theatre hosts upwards of thirty improvisers, sketch comedians, stand-ups and musicians from across Canada, North America and the world. 780.448.0695. 
• Freewill Shakespeare Festival June 26 - July 22. Enjoy Shakespeare under the sky at Hawrelak Park, west of downtown. 780.425.8086. 
• Edmonton International Street Performers Festival. July 6 - 15. Laugh ’till you cry at the pass-the-hat magicians, clowns, jugglers, mime artists, musicians and comics. Sir Winston Churchill Square. 780.425.5162. 
• Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival. Aug. 16 - 26. Equal parts indoor theatre, street performance and party. The continent’s largest fringe takes over Old Strathcona for ten days. 780.448.9000. 
• Edmonton International Film Festival. Sept. 21 - 29. Come enjoy this festival of fantastic, independent films from around the world. 780.423.0844, 
• Global Visions Film Festival. Spring 2012 (dates TBA). Global Visions continues to champion alternative media through the art of documentary film. 780.414.1052. 

Visual and Mixed Arts

Art comes to life in festivals that take the galleries to the people.

• Nextfest: Epcor Next Generation Arts Festival. June 2012 (dates TBA). Inventive works by 250 emerging artists. Roxy Theatre, 10708 124 St. 780.453.2440. 
• The Works Art & Design Festival. June 23 – July 3. Art takes over downtown, with 50 exhibits and 200 events in foyers, parks and galleries. 780.426.2122. 
• Feats Festival of Dance. June 28 - July 8. Produced by the Alberta Dance Alliance it is a multi-disciplinary dance festival which includes performances, special events and educational programming. 780.422.8107. 
• Whyte Avenue Art Walk. July 2012 (dates TBA). The Art Walk Festival and Marketplace is one of the largest street celebrations of the visual arts in Canada. More than 130 artists paint, sculpt, exhibit and sell their work on the sidewalks of Old Strathcona. 
• Visualeyez . . . A Festival of Performance Art. Sept 11 - 26. Artists and audiences create and experiment with approaches to time-based art.  

Music

Choose your style and soak up the sounds.

• Vocal Arts Festival. May 18 - June 21. Canada’s only summer opera festival. 
• Edmonton International Jazz Festival. June 22 - July 1. Features top jazz concerts, workshops, club dates & free outdoor events for the entire family. 780.990.0222. 
• Big Valley Jamboree. Aug 2 - 5. Performers include Keith Urban and Miranda Lambert and many more, plus street performers, family stage and fireworks. Camrose, South via Hwy 2. 1.888.404.1234. 
• Blueberry Bluegrass & Country Music Society Festival. Aug 3 - 5. Western Canada’s biggest bluegrass fest. Stony Plain celebrating its 27th anniversary, west on Hwy 16A. 780.922.4973. 
• Edmonton Folk Music Festival. Aug. 9 - 12. North America’s premiere celebration of blues, Celtic, singer-songwriters, bluegrass, gospel and world music. Gallagher Park, with a downtown backdrop.780.429.1899. 
• Edmonton’s Labatt Blues Festival. Aug. 17 - 19. Top blues acts, from funk to zydeco. Hawrelak Park. 
• Friends’ Ukrainian Music Fest. Aug. 26. Showcase of Alberta’s finest Ukrainian folk musicians, plus traditional food and fun for children. Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village, east on Hwy 16. 780.662.3640. 
• Sobey’s Symphony Under the Sky. Sept. 2012 (dates TBA). Extravaganza of classical music and children’s entertainment. Edmonton Symphony Orchestra at Hawrelak Park. 780.428.1414, 1.800.563.5081. 

Heritage

Join us in celebrating Greater Edmonton’s multicultural roots.

• Canada Day. July 1. Activities in Edmonton and several communities in the region.
• Edmonton & Northern Alberta Historic Festival. July 2012 (TBA). This festival explores Edmonton's rich history within the context of the early fur trade. 
• Fête Au Village. July 2012 (dates TBA). Saluting the French culture of Legal’s pioneers. North via Hwy 2. 780.961.3773. 
• Servus Heritage Festival. July 28 – 30. Over sixty distinctive cultures showcase song and dance, arts and crafts, costumes and cuisine. Hawrelak Park. 780.488.3378.
• Cariwest – Edmonton Caribbean Arts Festival. Aug. 10 - 12. Edmontonians get the chance to experience Caribbean culture through a gala parade, calypso competition and dance. 780.421.7800. 
• Edmonton Dragon Boat Festival. Aug. 17 - 19. Races in Louise McKinney Park, below the Shaw Conference Centre. 780.493.8158. 

Fair & Fare

Edmonton’s oldest festival, Edmonton’s Capital EX, is as vibrant as ever, from the Thursday morning parade to the ever-growing exposition. Rounding out the scene are other events that tip their hat to our western roots.

• St. Albert Kinsmen Rainmaker Rodeo & Exhibition. May 2012 (dates TBA). Three days of fun that includes exciting rodeo action, mud races, live entertainment and a midway. 1.888.459.1725. 
• A Taste of Edmonton Festival. July 19 – 28. Ten days of delectable food sampling presented by some of Edmonton’s best restaurants. Sir Winston Churchill Square. 
• Edmonton’s Capital EX. July 20 – 29. Thrilling midway rides, international entertainment, exciting feature attractions, food from every part of the globe, colourful parades, Northwest Originals, Global Connections, and Ed Fest to rock your summer. 1.888.800.PARK. 
• Farmfair International. Nov. 5 - 13. Canada’s premier livestock showcase, features over 1000 cattle, 800 horses and alpacas and stock dogs. 1.888.800.PARK. 
• Canadian Finals Rodeo. Nov. 9 - 13. The country’s top professionals wrestle steers, barrel race, rope cattle and battle bucking broncos and bulls to become Canadian Champions. 1.888.800.PARK. 
• River City Round Up. Nov. 4 – 13. A ten-day celebration of Edmonton’s agricultural and western heritage. The official Kick-off will be held on Saturday, November 5 in Sir Winston Churchill Square.