(film fest fun) The final weekend of the Festival du Nouveau Cinema has arrived, but there are still plenty of all-new feature films, shorts and documentaries to see, from closing film Camille Redouble by Noémie Lvovsky to an autobiography of Monty Python’s Graham Chapman to concert films about Peaches and The Chemical Brothers, plus a multimedia, multi-DJ “Suicide Hotel” party on Friday night and closing party on Saturday night with DJ Thomas von PARTY, at Quartier Général. Meanwhile, the 4th edition of the Montreal Stop Motion Film Festival, October 19-21, screens over 70 new stop-motion animation films from Montreal and around the world.

(intrigue on stage) Explore the Plateau and Mile End neighbourhoods via a true Montreal creation: The Phénomena Festival, to October 26. The festival of music, performance and art, is a reinvention of the 10-year-old Festival Voix d’Amériques, dedicated to showcasing the beautiful, strange and poetic artistic voices in this city and further afield. see artist and musician Genisis P-Orridge on stage with spoken-word group Thee Majesty on October 20 at Cabaret du Mile End, in film The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye at Excentris, and with art showing at La Centrale; as well, see Kobol’s marionette show Voodoo at Usine C, Kabin tells 15 stories via 15 small booths on October 20, duo 2boys.tv span the history of their performance career in Generation on October 21, plus free music and performances every evening at 5 p.m. at Divan Orange, featuring Teen Sleuth, Free Opera Ensemble, Jef Barbara and many more, as well as free open mic nights at 11 p.m. at Casa del Popolo.

(frightful & delightful) Halloween starts early this year in Montreal. If you’re downtown at Place des Arts in the Quartier des Spectacles on Saturday around noon, don’t panic: the zombie apocalypse is not upon us, it’s just people dressed up for the Montreal Zombie Walk – join in if you’re zombie-inclined. Freaks of a different sort sing and dance for our pleasure in The Rocky Horror Show, garnering some great  reviews at Mainline Theatre, to October 20. And there’s also something a little freaky – in the most awesome sense – about DJ Food’s The Search Engine, an all-encompassing audio-visual experience like no other, screening in the dome of the surround-sound Satosphere at the SAT, to October 26.

(sports fans) A pro first for Montreal this week: the NBA Canada series pits the New York Knicks against the Toronto Raptors, October 19 at the Bell Centre. And while the NHL season is sadly on hold due to labour talks among hockey players and the league, the spirit of hockey is still strong in Montreal with national women’s hockey champions The Stars, featuring Olympic national team players Kim St-Pierre, Meghan Agosta, Caroline Ouellette and more. The Stars play Boston on October 20 at 5 p.m. and October 21 at 1 p.m. at Étienne Desmarteau Arena.
(tragedy & comedy) An epic 10th-century Japanese folk tale comes to life in choreographer Jiří Kylián’s Kaguyahime, The Moon, produced beautifully by Les Grands Ballet Canadiens, October 11-27. Quebecois playwright Suzie Bastien probes the human psyche in the dramatic The Medea Effect, at Theatre La Chapelle, to October 20. Old Montreal’s Centaur Theatre features Scapegoat Theatre’s take on Euripedes’ tragedy The Bacchae, to October 20, as well as Quebecois playwright Jean Marc Dalpé’s family drama August, An Afternoon in the Country. Meanwhile, the Segal Centre lightens the mood with Broadway musical Guys and Dolls to October 31, and well-known and even well-loved Montreal comedian and Just For Laughs festival veteran Joey Elias brings his One Man Show at Club Soda on October 21.

(urban art) The Montréal/Brooklyn collaborative contemporary art project makes its mark on the city’s gallery scene this weekend, highlighting the artistic similarities and differences between the two urban centres. On Friday and Saturday, new shows open at Centre Clark and artist-run centre articule, as well at galleries in the Belgo building – Galerie SAS, Optica, Galerie Division and Les Territoires – and down the street at Galerie de l’UQAM, featuring multi-artist Vidéozones exhibition (above), and the Musée d’art contemporain, featuring work by Janet Biggs and Aude Moreau.

(live music) Friday night is indie-rock alright with Cat Power playing tunes from her new album Sun at Metropolis, The Sea & Cake at Il Motore, Dragonette at the Corona Theatre, and Brooklyn electro duo Blondes at Le Belmont. Pittsburg rapper Wiz Khalifa, rolls into town with Juicy J, Chevy Woods and many others at Uniprix Stadium on October 20. Monday night goes punk with Off!, The Spits and Double Negative at Foufounes Electriques. On October 23, Dan Mangan brings his folk-rock sensibility to Theatre Corona, San Francisco’s Sic Alps play Divan Orange. The Jezabels rock Cabaret Mile End and Social Distortion shake up Metropolis. Montreal’s Papagroove release their newest album on October 24 at Theatre Plaza – free! Akousma 9, a festival of digital music, brings its immersive audio-visual wonders to Usine C, October 24-27. And the ‘80s are back with Air Supply in an “intimate evening” on October 25 at Metropolis.

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(fabulous food) Thanksgiving wouldn’t be complete without a proper feast or three, so if on October 5 you’re  in the area of Olympic Park, wandering through the Botanical Gardens or visiting the Biodome at the Space for Life, stop in at the stadium’s outdoor grounds where their First Fridays event features gourmet food from some of Montreal’s fanciest food trucks: tacos at Grumman 78, burgers at Winneburger, sandwiches, poutine and more from Lucky’s Truck and La Mangeoire, ice cream and sundaes at Monsieur Crémeux, coffee at Café Dispatch, and more, starting at 4 p.m. On October 11, caterer and food enthusiast Nicolina Servello pairs cook books with delicious rustic food in an afternoon event at Indigo Place Montréal Trust, noon to 2 p.m.

(fall film) New feature films, fantastic shorts and experimental video work from around the world all come out to play at Montreal’s Festival du Nouveau Cinéma, October 10-21. Along with plenty of international fare, the fest features some of the best sort of Canadian content in Ang Lee’s Life of Pi, based on Montreal author Yann Martel’s novel, opening films Simon Galiero’s La Mise à l’aveugle and Martin Villeneuve’s Mars et Avril, screenings of work by French singer Albin de la Simone, Sarah Polley’s new film Stories We Tell, Albert Nerenberg’s witty doc Boredom, and many more. As well, the popular Temps Ø program continues this year with off-the-beaten-track features, shorts and documentaries.

(dance party) The Black and Blue Festival is all about making this weekend into a three-day LBGT-and-friends party, culminating in a massive all-night, all-morning, three-room dance party a Palais des Congrès on October 7, with DJs Gareth Emery, Sander van Doorn, David Morales and more. On Saturday afternoon and evening at Palais  des Congrès, get lost in free live music and entertainment event, De-Light, with entertainment from Debbie Tebbs, The Easton Ellises, Donzelle and other great Montreal performers. Of course, there’s also the night-time party rituals of Leather Ball on October 5 and the HardBall on October 6 at Club Soda.

(world-class performance) Les Grands Ballet Canadiens pulls out all the stops October 11-27 with choreographer Jiří Kylián’s Kaguyahime, The Moon, a ballet based on a culturally influential 10th-century Japanese folk tale of beauty, violence and worlds colliding. On a different note, The Segal Centre presents big-time Tony-award winning musical Guys and Dolls, to October 28. At the Centaur Theatre, see family drama August, An Afternoon in the Country by award winning playwright Jean Marc Dalpé. And French circus troupe Akoreacro positively delights with their acrobatic, musical circus Pfffffff, while Montreal-based circus Cirque Éloize blends circus arts with hip hop and breakdance in all-ages show iD, featuring 14 high-energy performers, both at Montreal circus centre La Tohu to October 6.

(art & architecture) Two new exhibitions at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal are both real eye-openers: an amazing retrospective of the work of Montreal painter Pierre Dorion, and intriguing videos focused on far-off places and people by Brooklyn-based artist Janet Biggs – the MACM also holds its monthly Nocturnes music series on October 5, featuring Tanuki, 7 p.m. The Canadian Centre for Architecture opens its exhibition First, the Forests, looking at the relationship between forestry, planning and design. And definitely go to the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts to see their outstanding Tom Wesselmann retrospective show, which closes this Sunday, as well as their expanded permanent collection. See the Montreal Buzz Fall Arts Guide for more ideas.

(comedy & cabaret) On the stranger side of entertainment – and Montreal’s got a lot of that – comedy show Let’s Do This!, a night of comedy and drinking games, headlined by DeAnne Smith, on October 11 at Mainline Theatre, 9 p.m. On Saturday, October 6, Quality Theatre hosts not only a sing-along to The Rocky Horror Picture Show, but a full-on band, comedians and a bevy of sexy burlesque performers, also at Mainline Theatre, 8 p.m.

(jazz off) The Montreal International Jazz Festival may get most of the summer jazz hype in this town, but all that jazz and more goes on throughout the year: check out The OFF Jazz Festival, October 4-12, with shows (some of them free!) at several venues around town, featuring traditional and experimental jazz from local and out-of-town musicians and bands, including pianist Baptiste Trotignon, saxophonist Anna Webber, Ironico Orkestra, Jean Derome and many, many more.

(more music) A busy Friday night begins the music week with Swedish folk-pop musician Jens Lekman at Le National, while DJ Shadow plays what’s sure to be a sweet DJ set at SAT, arts and activism group Howl presents eclectic Montreal rock-tinged ensembles Léopard et Moi and Avec le Soleil Sortant de sa Bouche, at Sala Rossa, and How to Dress Well gets Club Lambi electro-hopping. Also on Friday, Montreal Symphony Orchestra conductor Kent Nagano teams up with DJ Champion, while on Sunday he conducts the orchestra through The Rites of Spring. More big tours make Montreal stops at rock venue Metropolis this week: on Saturday, October 6, see Irish indie-rockers Two Door Cinema Club, on October 7 it’s electronic party makers Crystal Castles with openers Health and more, followed on October 9 by ever-popular singer-songwriter Regina Spektor and captivating British singer Joss Stone on October 10, while French trip-hop DJ Wax Tailor (http://waxtailor.com/) spins cinematic electronic grooves at L’Astral that night.

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