THEATRE | It's A Wonderful Toronto
In this musical comedy piece by Matt Baram, Mayor Rob Ford is preparing for the opening of a performance that is intended to up his approval ratings when he begins to realize that it may not present him in the best light. As confrontations happen between the cast and crew of the performance and Ford's personal image consultant, the Mayor threatens to end it all by jumping from the balcony teaching all of Toronto a valuable lesson about politics, civic duty, and the holidays. Starring Aurora Browne, Brandon Firla and Paul Bates, the production opens at Theatre Passe Muraille tonight.
Theatre Passe Muraille (16 Ryerson Avenue) 7:30PM $25-$30

MUSIC | A Merry TSO Christmas with Colin Mochrie
Toronto Symphony Orchestra plays Christmas classics in tonight's opening presentation of A Merry TSO Christmas with full narration of classic stories like "The Night Before Christmas" by Colin Mochrie. Accompanied by the Etobicoke School of the Arts Chorus and conducted by Jeff Tyzik, the programme includes songs like "O Holy Night" and "The Twelve Days of Christmas." Only three shows will be performed in total with a matinee and evening performance happening on Wednesday in addition to tonight's premiere.
Roy Thomson Hall (60 Simcoe Street) 8PM $29-$110

MUSIC | St. Lucia with Gold Fields
South African choirboy turned Brooklyn pop musician, St. Lucia has been around the world and stops in on Toronto for a show at the Drake tonight. With his self-titled debut EP released in 2012, the classically trained musician has turned to pop Africana with a heavy 80s influence that has made him an indie fave in New York. St. Lucia will be joined by Gold Fields, the five-piece neo-New Wave Aussie band that has just come off tour with Diamond Rings, making for an awesome night of new music at the Drake. Tickets are available on TicketWeb.
The Drake Hotel (1150 Queen Street West) 8PM $12

FILM | Freshest Goods Classic Holiday Movie Night--A Christmas Story
Manifesto Festival is celebrating the 12 days of Christmas over the course of three weeks with double bill Christmas film screenings happening each Tuesday. Tonight, the 1983 classic A Christmas Story, about a boy named Ralphie and his BB gun, will be shown at the festival headquarters along with A Charlie Brown Christmas. In the spirit of the season, donations are required to gain admittance to the cinema and are accepted in the form of cash (minimum $5), non-perishable food, toys or gently used clothing.
Manifesto Festival (37 Bulwer Street) 7PM by donation

POLITICS | NOW Talks presents: Occupy The Mic with David Miller
In the second installment of the popular Occupy the Mic series, former Toronto mayor David Miller hosts an unconventional town hall meeting with music, comedy and discussion that probe civic issues. Looking for solutions, Miller sits down with NOW editor and publisher Michael Hollett with performances by singer-songwriter Sarah Harmer and comedian Graham Chittenden as they fight the good fight with some harmless entertainment along the way. Tickets are available at the NOW offices and at the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema.
Bloor Hot Docs Cinema (506 Bloor Street West) 9:30PM $15

OTHER EVENTS ON OUR RADAR:

• Deirdre Kelly at Toronto Reference Library
• The Book Revue presents: The Fantastic Mr. Fox
• "Madness of My Mind" Book Launch

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 swiminto in the blogTO Flickr pool