Five interesting things that happened in Montreal in 2018

SQDC on Ste-Catherine

While there’s always plenty going in Montreal, 2018 provided an exceptional number of new and interesting events that have added to the city’s vibrant atmosphere. We’ve compiled a list of some cultural standouts that caught our attention this year.

The legalization of cannabis

With the nationwide legalization of cannabis on Oct. 17 came the opening of Montreal’s first SQDC stores. The Société Québécoise du Cannabis opened in three locations across the city — on Acadie, facing Marché Central, on St-Hubert just south of Bélanger and Ste-Catherine between Metcalfe and Mansfield — where people waited for hours in line for a chance to peruse the various strains of marijuana on offer (indica, sativa and hybrids), in various formats (dry flower, ground, pre-rolled, oil, oral spray and pills). Stock went so fast that the stores reduced their hours a couple of weeks later — they’re now only open Thursday through Sunday, forcing smokers and vapers to adjust their shopping schedules (or buy online). Undoubtedly marijuana production will be a booming business in 2019.

World-class skating events in Montreal 

During the Olympics, the entire world — and especially Canadians — became obsessed with figure skating, specifically with ice-dancing duo Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir. Soon after their third gold medal win, they announced a Thank You tour across Canada, with Stars on Ice presented by Lindt. Their Montreal stop treated us to phenomenal performances from Elvis Stojko, Patrick Chan, Kaetlyn Osmond, Gabrielle Daleman, Meagan Duhamel & Eric Radford, and more. And of course, we got to see a flawless performance of Virtue and Moir’s gold-medal winning “Moulin Rouge” dance, which in person was even more chilling than at the Olympics.

Skate Canada also came to Montreal this year, a huge honour considering the level of competition. Our audiences were treated to more amazing performances from Shoma Uno, Elizaveta Tuktamysheva, Vanessa James & Morgan Ciprès and Madison Hubbel & Zachary Donohue, who all took home gold medals in their respective categories. But it was Alberta’s Keegan Messing who stole the show with a routine that landed him the silver medal. A bright future ahead indeed.

Mile End gets a movie theatre

It’s been a long time since a neighbourhood movie theatre opened in Montreal. Despite repeated promises of the defunct Cinema V in NDG being resurrected, the only movie theatre news over the past decade has been negative… until Sept. 17, when a small cinema and café opened in Mile End. Cinéma Moderne screens international films, art films, hosts retrospectives and festival screenings as well as special presentations such as Blade Runner 2049, with filmmaker Denis Villeneuve in attendance. With 54 seats and 37 speakers, the theatre is small but boasts state of the art projection and sound systems, as well as a liquor licence, something no other cinema in Montreal has.

World Poker Tour visits Montreal

From Oct. 28 to Nov. 4, the World Poker Tour brought 792 players to town for a tournament at Playground Poker Club, with buy-ins set at CAD $5000 + $300. While most like to try their luck with online poker, playing in person at a world-class event like this one would be a thrill most never have a chance to enjoy. With a guaranteed prize pool of $5,000,000, the tournament was a huge success, and helped put Montreal on the map even more as a gaming destination for poker. Huge congrats to Patrick Serda, who took first place.

New festival in town

With a number of festivals happening in Montreal at any given moment, it’s easy for first-time events to get lost in the shuffle, but this year the Kizo Festival made its mark on the scene in grand style. The festival of kizomba — an Angolan style of dance and music that dates back to the mid 1980s — brought a series of dance parties and dance workshops to Bain Mathieu between June 22 and 24, offering a fun alternative to the Quartier des Spectacles action downtown.