Luminato Festival

Luminato is Toronto’s international arts festival dedicated to performance, media and visual arts, and programming that cuts across traditional artform boundaries. Luminato works closely with Canadian artists to support the development and creation of distinctive new work as well as presenting today’s most exciting artists from around the world.

Luminato has become one of the preeminent international arts festivals in North America, having commissioned close to 100 new works of art, with more than 3,000 performances featuring 11,000 artists from over 40 countries.

2026

Known for its bold curation of Toronto’s people, places, and stories, this iconic summer festival will once again transform the city’s identity through the aptly titled theme of PLAY. This year’s theme asks us to consider how a festival can truly PLAY its city. Encounter experiences that evoke child’s play using imagination and whimsy; stories that spotlight justice and reconciliation by boldly addressing equal play; and explore the uncertainty of shifting dynamics, the need to win and the imbalance of power play. This year’s programme spans a broad array of conversations designed to inspire, challenge and uplift.

Spanning four weeks, Luminato 2026 kicks off June 3 with over 50 free and ticketed events and more than 140 performances at over 25 locations across the city. The festival features over 1,000 artists, eight exclusive Canadian commissions and seven world premieres, lighting up Toronto with art, culture and creativity. We are proud to partner with our presenting and supporting partners, including TO Live as an official partner and co-presenter of five productions of this Festival.

• LOVIN’ YOU: THE MINNIE RIPERTON STORY: Juno Award-winner Divine Brown, featuring DJ Starting from Scratch and guest vocalist Glenn Lewis celebrate the timeless soul sounds that have influenced the likes of A Tribe Called Quest, The Fugees, J Dilla, The Roots and Kaytranada.
• HEARTBREAK HOTEL: This cathartic comedy of breakup ballads is a weird and wonderful space to sit with heartbreak, share a laugh, and reconnect.
• THEATRE OF DREAMS: Hofesh Shechter Company pulls audiences into a manic and surreal dance production where dreams – and nightmares – come to life (co-presented by TO Live).
• MASTERCLASS: Igniting the power play of gender wars, the award-winning satire by Brokentalkers examines masculinity, sexism, and power in contemporary art.
• 10 DAYS IN A MADHOUSE: This psychological opera by Rene Orth & Hannah Moscovitch follows journalist Nellie Bly as she fakes madness inside New York’s Blackwell’s Asylum (A Tapestry Opera production, co-presented with Canadian Opera Company in association with TO Live).
• NIMBA: A fusion of dance, exhilarating circus and ritual, Nimba celebrates the culture of Guinea (co-presented with dance Immersion in association with TO Live).
• PEARLE HARBOUR WALKS INTO A BAR: In this new commission, Canadian drag icon Pearle Harbour skewers digital distraction in this intimate cabaret bursting with satire, songs, and acid-tongued wit.
• KATMA: Street and club culture meet with Azzam Mohamed’s Canadian premiere which invites everyone to an immersive, all-ages dance experience.
• THE PHILIP GLASS ENSEMBLE: In a twenty-year milestone replay of a festival favourite, The Ensemble, assembled by groundbreaking minimalist composer Philip Glass, performs a seminal programme of early works.
• PLAY DEAD: The People Watching Collective invites audiences into a distorted world of striking acrobatics and movement (co-presented with TO Live).
• PENN & TELLER: 50 YEARS OF MAGIC : The “always amazing, always entertaining” (David Letterman) legendary magician duo will deliver an unforgettable live experience of mind play in Penn & Teller: 50 Years of Magic (Canadian premiere co-presented with TO Live).

Who is it for?
all-ages

Tickets : Varies – Free and ticketed events
How to get tickets?
Buy Online
Email: info@luminato.com
Phone: 4163684849

Date & Time: June 3 – 28, 2026 | Schedule

Free Parking, Street Parking, Paid Parking
Varies

Public transport accessible