SATURDAY, AUGUST 20TH

MUSIC | Hoodie Allen @ WRONGBAR
Hoodie Allen, NYC hip hop artist, plays Wrongbar tonight. This guy is a mensch, who can drop killer flows! His first two releases, "Bagels and Beats" and "Making Waves", caught many ears, and landed him a lot of attention... even an MTVU Best Music on Campus Award. His YouTube videos and mixtapes have gone viral, in a big way! This month, he made the Top 10 of Billboard's "Uncharted Territory" chart - a sure sign that it might be a good idea to catch this guy at a smaller venue like Wrongbar tonight while you can.
Wrongbar (1279 Queen Street West) 8PM $18

FILM | Kubrick's Odyssey
There's something about "conspiracy theories" that fascinates us all. Whether or not you bought the premise behind "Fahrenheit 9/11", it was clearly a compelling film. Tonight, the Canadian premiere of filmmaker Jay Weidner's "Kubrick's Odyssey" will cause similar headscratching. Theories of the moon landings being 'staged' have been quietly circulating for some time, but this film will attempt to give them credulity, context, and substance. The basic premise is that Stanley Kubrick directed the Apollo moon landings, and the making of "2001: A Space Odyssey" provided the training ground for this mass deception. This is the first in a series of documentaries that will explain the 'hidden meanings' in Kubrick's films, and even the most die-hard skeptic will find checking this out hard to resist.
The Toronto Underground Cinema (186 Spadina Avenue) 9:30PM $10

MUSIC | Queen West MusicFest 2011
"Music" plus "outdoors" always equals... "fun"! Trinity Bellwoods Park will be the place to hang today if you agree with that formula. A free music festival featuring independent acts like Stephen Prickett, Lazybones, Miss Emily, Adam's Rib, and others will take place, and run until 7pm. Donations will be accepted to the Toronto Western and General Hospital Foundations, so you can enjoy the music, and contribute to a great cause all in one place!
Trinity Bellwoods Park 1PM FREE (donations accepted)

CLUBS | Beat Junky
If you're addicted to beats, the ElMo is the place to be tonight! An "open format" convergence of some of the city's top stylus specialists will have your booty shaking and your ears smiling! Club regulars Splattermonkey, Public Relations, Philter, and M Chan will deliver the sounds, and there's an added twist: all profits will be donated to the website Stop Canine Profiling, which is against government legislation that could potentially "target" certain breeds of dogs.
El Mocambo (464 Spadina Avenue) 10PM $5 (after 11:30PM)

OTHER EVENTS ON OUR SATURDAY RADAR

• BASTID'S BBQ!
• Havana-Cultura
• AMOS THE TRANSPARENT, FAST ROMANTICS, PARKS & REC, ELVYN at the Horseshoe!
• Make it Funky Summer Jam w/ Dub FX, DJ Czech & Marcus Visionary

SUNDAY, AUGUST 21ST

CULTURE | Masala!Mehndi!Masti!
Masala!Mehndi!Masti! is Toronto's largest South Asian cultural event, and it's in full swing at Harbourfront! The fest began on Friday, and ends today. Check here to get a full schedule for the weekend. Today, there is a diverse selection of events, presentations, and performances to check out. The Royal Ontario Museum will be displaying some of its collection of South Asian art, including woodworking, and metalwork from various regions. There will be cooking demos, and a chance to try Bollycore - a new Desi workout, plus there will be several live music areas and stages, and the Masala Bazzar will be the place to get cool South Asian crafts and goods, plus some deelish eats! Check it out!
Harbourfront Centre (235 Queens Quay) 11AM FREE

LITERATURE | Plasticine Poetry Series
The Plasticine Poetry series is a monthly get together for readings that evolved from a workshop of the same name. This series has moved to Pauper's Pub in the Annex from the nearby Central, where it was held for years. Tonight, a chapbook launch for Clara Blackwood's "Arcana" will be the main feature, but there will also be great readings from Kimberley Dawkins, Sonia Diplacido, Jim Johnstone, and Dane Swan. A regular part of the series is the "open mic," which has a reputation for consistently exposing great new talent.
Paupers Pub (539 Bloor Street West) 6PM FREE

MUSIC | The 'Mbira Queen' Stella Rambisai Chiweshe and the Chivanhu Band in concert
Mbira virtuoso, Stella Rambisai Chiweshe, will play a much-anticipated show tonight at Lula Lounge with her locally-based Chivanhu Band. The mbira, (also known as the "kalimba", or "African thumb piano") is a very evocative instrument, with a beautiful timbre and sound that could be described as sounding like an acoustic version of Rhodes electric piano.... sort of. Stella Rambisai Chiweshe, who has been playing the instrument since her early years, has an extensive and international discography, and is also an educator, and healer. There are some great YouTube clips posted on the wall of the FaceBook event page for this gig, so check them out, and catch the real thing tonight, if you like what you hear. The Ijovudu Dance Company opens the show.
Lula Lounge (1585 Dundas Street West) 8PM $15

CULTURE | Zine Dream 4
Zine Dream, the annual small press fair, takes place at The Tranzac this aft! This pwyc event features over 50 vendors of self-published works, including comics, books, music, crafts, fine art prints, and more. This will be a great event for TO culture vultures to swoop down on what's happening at 'street level' in these various DIY formats. There will also be musical performances by Kathleen Phillips, Fresh Flesh, Amelia Ehrhardt, and Skull Bong. Come out and support your scene!
The Tranzac Club (292 Brunswick Avenue) 12PM PWYC

OTHER EVENTS ON OUR SUNDAY RADAR

• After Funk, The First Pass and Real Good Kids @ Sneaky Dee's
• M.O.T.O. @ Parts and Labout
• Power Kids: Project Object

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

For Toronto movie showtimes, view our Movie Listings section.

Photo by ZensLens in the blogTO Flickr pool