May 22 – June 8, 2025
Various Locations
WeeFestival of Arts & Culture for Early Years, Toronto’s only festival of its kind, returns with live, in-person performances in Toronto, the GTA and Ontario from May 22nd to June 8th.
In what will be the 8th edition since the festival was launched in 2014, the WeeFestival offers a four-week dynamic and diverse program of performances and events for children newborn to six years old features music, dance, puppetry performances in English, French, or no words at all!
WeeFestival will take place at Toronto’s Tarragon Theatre Extraspace and The Spadina Theatre of Alliance Française in the Annex, The Redwood Theatre in the Upper Beaches, Native Earth’s AKI Studio in Regent Park, Small World Centre near Queen West, and Assembly Hall, next to Colonel Samuel Smith Park in Etobicoke. Finally, Theatre Aquarius with Centre Francophone Hamilton and the Aurora Cultural Centre will offer WeeFestival performances for their audiences in Hamilton and Aurora respectively.
Le Théâtre français de Toronto, returns this edition as the WeeFestival’s Francophone Programme Partner supporting efforts to reach Francophone and francophile families and students.
Full schedule/details below or at weefestival.ca/box-office
General information regarding the 2024 edition of the WeeFestival
2025 WeeFestival Programme in Chronological Order
Tree: a World in Itself
May 22 – May 23
Age range: For children with ASD
Venue: Deanne Taylor Theatre (Video Cabaret)
In this gentle and intimate show, settle into mama bird’s cozy nest while she warms her luminous clutch of eggs. Plants, insects, and animals visit, accompanied by soothing melodies and rhythmic music. As evening falls, you’ll rest under the rising moon, stars, and the shimmering Milky Way, gathering strength to spread your wings like a fledgling bird of light.
Tree
May 24 – May 25
Age range: For newborns to 3 years
Venue: Deanne Taylor Theatre (Video Cabaret)
Settle into your cozy nest with the mama bird brooding her luminous eggs. The magical world of the tree will open up to you, with its insects and animals accompanied by soft or rhythmic music. The moon will rise to lull you to sleep with its stars and milky way, to give you the strength to take flight like a baby bird of light.
Casa
May 29 – June 1
Age range: For ages 1 – 4 years
Venue: Tarragon Theatre ExtraSpace
Two characters meet and begin to get to know each other as they build a home. Building turns into play, and little by little, while playing, they build a story, a structure, a roof, a house. The rituals of daily life, of family roles, of childhood memories shift and change through play revealing new meanings and connections.
Mer Océane
May 30 – June 1
Age range: For ages 3 years +
Venue: Spadina Theatre at Alliance Française
A poetic multi-sensory experience in which the ocean is embodied through movement, music, fabric, and light.
In Tune – A Corps d’age
June 4 – June 5
Age range: For ages 4mo – 4 years
Venue: WeeFestival Nest (Tarragon Near Studio)
The incomparable Emmanuelle Lizére returns with a new work, inspired by the research and writing of Daniel Stern documenting the parent/infant relationship built through play, listening and synchronicity. A dialogue between dance, music, and electronic sound that explores the sensory perception of the toddler in their encounter with the world and the people around them.
Cooo
June 6 – June 8
Age range: For ages 6 to 24 months
Venue: WeeFestival Nest (Tarragon Near Studio)
Xin and Michael will offer a rich musical journey that the young ears can lean into woven from the music of Aperghis, Berio, and Canada’s own acclaimed composer Ana Sokolovic. Performed in an intimate setting with an array of percussion and vocal sounds recalling the bells of a monastery, a street call from southern China, rhythmic repetitions, and “I love you” sung in multiple languages, Xin and Michael play and connect with each other and the young audience in an unforgettable performance that will linger long after it ends.
