The view from atop the fashion world
TUESDAY
á Hard to Do by Kelli Korducki: The Toronto Launch Watch this if: Your better half is yourself. The first book from author Korducki has already struck a chord with millennials in Toronto, happily or unhappily coupled or single. Hard to Do: The Surprising, Feminist
History of Breaking Up, published by Coach House Books, was inspired by Korducki’s own life-changing breakup, which propelled her to investigate the societal reasons that have made coupledom the norm for adult life (spoiler: it’s especially complicated for women). The launch of the book will also feature an anti-Valentine’s craft table and loads of angsty breakup tunes, so what else could you ask for? (The Loveless Café, 1430 Dundas St. W., 7 p.m.) — Carly Maga á Hellfire Heroes
Watch this if: You’d like a behind-thescenes look at the life of a firefighter. Into the specialized category of reality shows about dangerous jobs (think
Deadliest Catch or Ice Road Truckers) comes this new Canadian-made entry. It follows two fire departments that cover more than 30,000 square kilometres combined in rural Alberta — Lesser Slave Lake and Yellowhead County — as they deal with everything from car crashes to house fires to forest fires and yes, delivering babies and fetching cats out of trees. If you like to live vicariously through people who earn their paycheques in risky ways, this series from the network behind Highway Thru Hell and Heavy Rescue: 401 might be for you (Discovery at 10 p.m.) — Debra Yeo
FRIDAY
á Stones
Watch this if: You were caught off guard by the incel movement. Violence against women is not a new problem, even if the term “incel” — the name given to a misogynistic ideology involving men who describe themselves as involuntarily celibate — felt like a new discovery after last month’s van attack in Toronto. A new production from Aluna Theatre, a company known for productions that advocate for social justice with international perspectives, tracks the history of one of the most extreme practices of violence against women: stoning. Anita La Selva directs an ensemble of diverse women, including Roshanak Jaberi, Sarah Murphy-Dyson and Waleed Abdulhamid. This one promises to be worth witnessing. (Geary Lane Studios, 360 Geary Ave., 8 p.m., on until June 10) — CM á Evgeny Kissin
Watch this for: The last of the great cummerbunds. The Russian-born pianist’s 1991 Toronto debut came around the time of the fall of the Soviet Union. A one-time prodigy, he’s been around long enough that his appearances have evolved from headline events to reunions with the world’s finest concert halls that are easy to take for granted, while the classical world has thrown up younger keyboard pyrotechnicians at a dime a dozen. Less one of those slam-dunking athletes, then, and more the wizened but still fiery explorer at age 46, Kissin’s journey features a Romantic soul, a history of standing ovations and copious climbing encores. None of that will change here, with a Beethoven/Rachmaninoff program that sounds compact but will be anything but. (Roy Thomson Hall, 60 Simcoe St., 8 p.m.) — Chris Young
SATURDAY
á CBC Music Festival
Watch this because: As big-tent festivals decline, this all-Canadian endurance test continues. July Talk gets the biggest type on the poster, with Charlotte Day Wilson and A Tribe Called Red right behind. All well and good, including a kids-are-free provision, but it’s some of the names down the bill that provide a sense of occasion beyond grooving by the lake. Take the Northern Touch All-Stars, named for the game-changing ’90s anthem that helped take Canuck hip hop mainstream. The Rascalz, Kardinal Offishall, Choclair et. al. are back on board for a set and, in a week chock full of younger rappers from near and far, they’re the vintage act that runs the gamut from Van City to the T-Dot. Of the rest, Montreal duo Milk & Bone and Nunavut’s Jerry Cans have wowed local audiences already this spring. (RBC Echo Beach, 909 Lake Shore Blvd. W., 1:30 p.m.) — CY
á Après le Déluge — The Buddy Cole Monologues
Watch this if: You want another visit with your favourite lounge lizard. Scott Thompson and his drink-swilling, cigarette-puffing, piano-loving alter ego Buddy Cole are bringing back the act. After The Kids in the Hall went off the air in 1995, Buddy Cole and his monologues on life as a gay man-about-Canada continued through Thompson’s live act, a book and a blog, plus a brief stint as a correspondent from the Sochi Olympics on The Colbert Report. Now he’s back with a tour of new monologues with over two decades of material to draw from. And we imagine an older Buddy is an even more fearless one, so we’re bracing ourselves for the hottest of takes. (The Royal Cinema, 608 College St., doors 7 p.m.) — CM á The Gospel According to André
Watch this if: You want to hear the word straight from the mouths of two fashion legends. This documentary about the legendary André Leon Talley, one-time Vogue editor and fashion world fixture, made its debut at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival. The movie, from Vancouver’s Pacific Northwest Pictures and director Kate Novack, looks at Talley’s history as one of the first African American men to break through in the fashion industry. What makes the doc’s return visit even more special is the post-screening chat between Talley and a Canadian fashion legend, Jeanne Beker. Fingers crossed for major dish. (TIFF Bell Lightbox, 350 King St. W., 7:10 p.m., film screens until May 31) — DY
SUNDAY
á Private Eyes
Watch this if: You like your TV detectives with a side of snark. This Toronto-shot series makes its midSeason 2 premiere with private detectives Angie (Cindy Sampson) and Matt (Jason Priestley) bantering their way through new cases. Part of the fun, of course, is the “will they or won’t they” romantic tension between the two leads, and the cases have their own entertaining twists and turns. The first new episode features a boxing plot, so former Canadian heavyweight champ George Chuvalo is one of the guest stars. (Global at 9 p.m.) — DY