Weekend events in Toronto is our guide to events happening this Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Here's what's happening in Toronto this April 11-13, 2014.

Songkran
Songkran is a Thai New Year tradition that involves people getting wet en masse: water will be poured and clothes will be soaked in celebration. Maha Songkran is Sunday, April 13 this year - a.k.a. the day and night are equal lengths. The New Year itself will fall on April 15, but that's after all the fun has already gone down. The ritual of cleansing bad vibes and starting fresh will involve a heated tent at Khao San Road for the pouring of the water (a dry bag for items like cellphone will be supplied for each guest). No water guns are allowed, but there will be a raffle for one lone gun (good luck). La Carnita, Come and Get It, Ardor Bistro and more will make sure you're well-fed. Saturday, April 12, 8pm, Khao San Road (326 Adelaide St. West).

FOOD

Yum Cha Dim Sum Fest
The sold out Yum Cha Dim Sum Fest is happening this Sunday at the Chinese Freemasons Association. Didn't get a ticket? No worries - tickets go on sale Monday for Yum Cha 2, which takes place Sunday, May 4 at 36 Wagstaff Dr. (next door to Leftfield Brewery). Sunday, April 13, 11am-6pm, Chinese Freemasons Association (436 Dundas St. West, 3rd floor).

Boozy Bingo at 2nd Floor Events
Bingo! BB is celebrating Grilled Cheese Month with "special sandwiches" (hmm) from Cheesewerks. Remember Grilled Cheese Fest? This will make everything better. Sip some Stop and Go Caesars and leave your troubles behind. Classic rules of bingo play are enforced. Sunday, April 13, 3-7pm, 2nd Floor Events (461 King St. West), $5 for first five cards.

For more food events, check out our Toronto Food Events, Spring Food Events, and Spring Beer Events post.

PARTY

Promise Garden Party
It's not quite warm enough for real outdoor parties yet, but the annual Promise Garden Party helps you pretend that it is, as they turn a banquet hall into a whimsical indoor garden. DJs on hand for the night are Montreal's Seychelle, Ottawa's Brink, and locals Richard Brooks and Ben Cormier. Pastel suits and wispy dresses encouraged. Friday, April 11, 10pm, The Lithuanian House (1573 Bloor St. West), $40.

The Dirty Hustle w/ Skyler & Hua Li
Oh, what is this? Rappers Hua Li (化力) (Montreal) and Skyler (Berlin) will perform live at The Steady on Saturday night. Watch this video and you'll know if you need to be there. There will be $4 Red Stripes and Booty Drops, plus a dance party to follow, naturally. Saturday, April 12, 10pm, The Steady Cafe (1051 Bloor St. West), $2. (It's seriously $2.)

See also

• Trash Video Dance Party (Friday, Milk Glass Co.)
• Laurent Garnier (Friday, CODA)
• H O M E W O R K (Saturday, Baltic Avenue)
• TechnoColour Dreams Toronto 2014 (Saturday, The Phoenix)

For more dance listings, check out our Top Dance Parties in Toronto in April post.

SPORTS

Axe Throwing: Like Darts, But Not
BATL (Backyard Axe Throwing League - yeah, nice) are throwing the most dangerous event of the weekend. There will be axe throwing for beginners and these beginners are advised to BYOB (but no glass bottles). Fragile objects or no, these axe throwing peeps are still going to be tipsy. Thrills: they are to be had at your own risk. Friday, April 11, 8pm, BATL (213 Sterling Rd.), $40.

MUSIC

L'homme et le ciel - PWYC Opera Preview
"PWYC" looks weird next to "Opera," but that's fitting enough since this is an electro-acoustic performance presented by FAWN Opera & New Music. This will serve as a preview to all the work the two groups have been doing along with three singers, a six piece ensemble, electronics and a responsive multi-media set. Friday, April 11, 8pm, Ernest Balmer Studio (55 Mill St.), PWYC.

ZONES, Bile Sister, Nick Persons, Doom Tickler, Fleshtone Aura
This local gig will be literally in a separate universe from the chain. Doom Tickler watches two hundred hours of throat singing YouTube videos every month and growls over the pop production she makes in her swanky east end loft. Bile Sister is killing it lately with her new full band which hasn't managed to damage her wavy psych sound - the opposite, in fact. Saturday, April 12, May Cafe (876 Dundas St. West), $7.

See also

• Henry Grimes Aurochs (Music Gallery)
• Jef Barbara w/ Diamond Atlas (Drake Undergound)
• Steam Whistle Unsigned #29 ft Jane's Party, Young Guv and Blonde Elvis (Steam Whistle)
• A Grayowl Point Crosswires (Handlebar)

For more music listings, check out our This Week in Music, April Concerts, Spring Concerts, and Spring Music Festivals posts.

FILM

Images Festival
TIFF's Wavelengths program is great - a survey of the current state of affairs in the international avant-garde scene - but Images has that section beat in terms of the sheer breadth of art, video, and new media on display (for a whopping ten days, no less), which spotlights a ton of work made locally and abroad. A mix of installations, performances, gallery exhibitions, and on-screen programs, it's the perfect palate cleanser before a summer of big-budget blockbusters. Read our preview here. April 10-19, multiple venues, tickets available here.

Cleopatra [Complete 248-Minute "Roadshow" Version]
From Joseph L. Mankiewicz, most well-known for All About Eve, comes this gaudy, campy (translation: Elizabeth Taylor), Hollywood super-production that all but ended a steady stream of insanely budgeted historical epics (the film cost $31 million in 1963, which adjusts with inflation to be a whopping $240 million today). There's a reason why the typically prolific Mankiewicz took four years to make this, and, regardless of its merits as a film, you can't deny that every dollar and day of production is visible on screen. Sunday, April 13, 6:30pm, TIFF Bell Lightbox (350 King St. West).

Mistaken for Strangers
One of the more talked-about film's from last year's Hot Docs festival, mainly because The National are one of the most talked about bands from any year in which they release a new record. The film itself is made and shot by lead singer Matt Berninger's younger brother, Tom, an aspiring horror filmmaker who "listens exclusively to heavy metal." The result isn't great art, but it's definitely what one might call a "curio." Bloor Cinema (506 Bloor St. West).

Also opening in theatres this week

• Algonquin (Carlton)
• Dom Hemingway (Cineplex Yonge-Dundas)
• Draft Day (Varsity, Cineplex Yonge-Dundas, Rainbow Market Square)
• The Galapagos Affair: Satan Came to Eden (Bloor Cinema)
• God's Not Dead (Cineplex Yonge-Dundas)
• Oculus (Carlton, Scotiabank, Rainbow Market Sq.)
• Perfect Sisters (Carlton)
• The Raid 2 (Scotiabank)
• Rio 2 (Cineplex Yonge-Dundas, Carlton, Rainbow Market Square)

See also

• Video Vengeance #5 - NINJA III: The Domination - Free VHS Screening (KITCH)

For more film events, check out our Top film events this spring post.

ART

Portrait People
Ivy Lovell (full disclosure, she used to shoot for us) is opening a show at Oz with a unique concept: Pay-what-you-can portraits in the gallery (for your lacklustre dating profile) and free beer. Lots of free beer! So your portrait is going to look great. Friday, April 11, 2pm-2am, Oz Studios (134 Ossington Ave.).

Laura Vegys' Chaos, Decadence and Damnation
AWOL on Ossington has a cute and creepy illustration show up, and the official opening is tonight. Laura Vegys' delicate paintings imagine a strange world where mermaids, bunnies, and Russian nesting dolls keep hearts imprisoned in jars. It's nothing way original but it's charming, and you've been meaning to get some cute new stuff for your place. The show runs until April 27. Opening reception: Friday, April 11, 7-10pm, AWOL Gallery (76/78 Ossington Ave.).

See also

• Glenn Priestley - Yonge Street (ongoing, Odon Wagner Contemporary)
• Vanessa Maltese (ongoing, Cooper Cole)
• Spring Made by Hand Show (Saturday, International Centre)
• Easter Egg Painting Family Workshops (Saturday, Todmorden Mills Heritage Site)
• Studio and Remnant Sale (Sunday, Artscape Youngplace)

For more art listings, check out our Top 10 must-see spring art shows post.

THEATRE

Belleville
The Company Theatre's bold and in-your-face presentations are some of the city's most memorable contemporary productions: A Whistle in the Dark, Festen, Through the Leaves, The Test, Speaking in Tongues. Their newest, Amy Herzog's Belleville, features Allan Hawco (Republic of Doyle) in a parable about the entitlement of a generation struggling under the weight of its own potential. Let's hope Canadian Stage renews their partnership with Company - or that another theatre offers them residency soon. Until May 4, Berkeley Street Theatre (26 Berkeley St.), $22-$49.

For more events on stage, check out our Top theatre productions in Toronto for April 2014 post.

FASHION

Nudie Jeans Pop-Up Repair Shop
Nudie Jeans knows all about the wear and tear their raw denim has to go through to look just right, so they're bringing a pop-up repair shop to Dutil to give those bad boys the TLC they've been waiting for. Drop in April 12-13 to have your crotch blowouts and pocket holes mended for free by repair specialist Phil Rodriguez. And, if you're ready to part with your Nudies, you can trade 'em in for a special gift. Saturday April 12-Sunday April 13, 12-5pm, Dutil (704 Queen St. West), free.

Through Being Cool Flea Market
Through Being Cool is bringing a flea to a neighbourhood formerly devoid of fleas. The Bloor and Lansdowne bakery will throw its first market, full of local treats, on Sunday. There only will be about nine vendors at the bakery, but fresh flowers, vintage clothing, zines, and artwork will all be represented by various sellers. Read more about the flea's debut here. Sunday, April 13, 12-5pm, Through Being Cool (1277 Bloor St. West).

The Annex Flea
It's a flea market, and it's darling. The Centre for Social Innovation will host the Annex Flea, where you'll find dainty items like vintage-wear, antiques, crafts, homemade snacks, and much more. Take a date or treat yourself. Rumour mill: the Flea might move outside later this spring or summer. Sunday, April 13, 10am-4pm, Centre for Social Innovation (720 Bathurst St.).

For more fashion listings, check out our This Week in Fashion post.

GAMES

Toronto Gaymers Board Games Night
Head over to Glad Day to play Garfields King of Tokyo, a dice-based tabletop game, with Toronto Gaymers. Don't know how? There will be people on hand to guide you, plus games of 7 Wonders, Ticket to Ride, JENGA, Candyland, and more. Come early as the event will fill up fast. Saturday, April 12, 7pm, Glad Day Bookshop (598a Yonge St. 3rd floor).

Have an event you'd like to plug? Submit your own listing to the blogTO Toronto events calendar or contact us directly.

Film writing by Blake Williams, contributions by Keith Bennie, Bianca Venerayan, Ben Boles, Sarah Ratchford, Liora Ipsum