Weekend events in Toronto is our guide to events happening every Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Watch for it here on Fridays around midday. Here's what's happening in Toronto this weekend, April 20-22, 2012.

PARTIES

Friday Night Live at the ROM
There is a party happening at the ROM tonight. Yeah, you heard us. To put it in their words, "history just got hot." This is the kick off to ROM's themed programming happening every Friday for the next 10 weeks. Check out more details on the events that'll follow this one. Royal Ontario Museum, 100 Queen's Park, April 20, 6 p.m. - 11 p.m., $9 general cover, $8 for students and ROM members free entry. Food and drinks start at $5. Visitors must be 19 years of age and provide ID.

Alabama Shakes recently rolled through Toronto for a sold out show at Lee's Palace. Joining them in support was Birmingham's The Glory Fires, who opened the night by taking the stage sheepishly, before dismantling the place with songs from their debut LP, There is a Bomb in Gilead. It was a little awkward at first, but working through songs echoing The Allman Brothers and The Band, the crowd warmed and the band relaxed.



Kid Koala returns to Toronto on May 3rd and 4th with a live show at 918 Bathurst. It's all part of the Space Cadet Headphone Concert Experience co-presented by Wavelength and the Toronto Comics Arts Festival. In a change of pace from the usual live music show, this one will see audience members stationed in inflatable "space pods" where they listen to the show through individual headphone systems as Kid Koala brings the Space Cadet score to life on a piano and several turntables. Sound like a trip? If so, you'll want to enter this contest where you have a chance to win tickets to the show, plus other goodies.

Having spent a considerable amount of time in Japan, my expectations for this newcomer to Toronto's quick-growing izakaya scene were't all that high. Upon walking in, however, I was thrilled to experience a wave of nostalgia that speaks to authenticity of the experience on offer here. Now if they could only get the service dialed in, things would be great.

Read my review of Don Don Izakaya in the restaurants section.

When the High Park cherry blossoms hit full bloom, you know spring has arrived in Toronto. A yearly tradition, the pilgrimage to shoot the Sakura trees — a gift from the Japanese Ambassador to Canada in 1959 — is rite of the season for hordes of local photographers. And while the scene doesn't tend to change much from year to year (aside from the increased number of visitors), the excitement that accompanies the promise of warm weather to come is always palpable. And besides, who can really tire of such pretty photos?

Open 24/7, 365 days a year, this popular Church St. bathhouse is the place to go for fun and, uh, other stuff. Here, guest contributor Paolo Kagaoan gives us the lowdown on what it's like inside.

Read more about Steamworks Toronto here.