Journalist and cultural critic Chuck Klosterman reads from his latest collection of essays entitled I Wear the Black Hat: Grappling With Villains (Real and Imagined). 6:30PM-9:30PM. July 23. Gladstone Hotel. $8-$10.
The 19th annual Dusk Dances Festival brings contemporary choreography to Toronto’s public parks. Host dancers lead neighbors, kids, and passersby into dynamic dance routines. Performers include Melanie Kloetzel, Carmen Romero, and Susie Burpee. 6PM. July 30- August 4. Withrow Park. PWYC.
The third Use Your Words workshop for young writers is directed by Toronto novelist Sheila Heti. Heti is the author of five books, including the Women’s Prize for Fiction nominee How Should a Person Be? 2PM-4:30PM. July 27. Toronto Reference Library. Free.
Empowering youth aged 10-18, the Unity Festival hands the stage over to positive role models in the fields of dance, beatboxing, hip-hop, and spoken-word poetry. Talib Kweli headlines a free concert at Yonge-Dundas Square. July 18-21. Various venues. Free-$10.
The inaugural Drunken Latte Art Smackdown is a contest that awards the best pattern poured into a foamy cup of coffee. Before each match, competitors are required to drink a shot of whiskey. Partial proceeds benefit Coffee Kids, a charity that improves the living conditions of coffee growers. 8PM. July 27. Lit Espresso Bar. $5 to participate. Free to watch.
Soundstreams Salon 21: Summer Sound Walk is an introduction to Deep Listening with vocalist and cellist Anne Bourne. Deep Listening develops the ear by emphasizing the differences between hearing, which is involuntary, and listening, which calls for focus and conscious decision-making. Providing the evening’s selection of sounds are Isla Craig (vocals), Ben Grossman (hurdy-gurdy), Brandon Valdivia and Germaine Liu (percussion), and Kyle Brenders (woodwinds). 7PM. July 19. Gardiner Museum. Pre-registering required. Free.
Professor Marc Steinberg reads Anime and the Media Mix, a lecture about Japanese animation and the different kinds of media that inform its creation and survival. 6:30PM. July 22. The Japan Foundation. Free.
Not-for-profit arts organization Meat Locker Editions holds a Literary BBQ. Hear about M.L.E.’s forthcoming publication, Gross, get familiar with Broken Pencil, and sample eats for carnivores, vegetarians, and vegans alike. 6PM. July 19. The Cloak & Dagger. $10.