Jane’s Walks by OTL on May 8th – Montreal Red Light District and Greening the Plateau & Quartier des Spectacles
Optative Theatrical Laboratories, forever exploring cultural issues related to social justice, is pleased to team up with Montreal’s Urban Ecology Center for the 2011 edition of Jane’s Walk.
Celebrating “walkable neighbourhoods, urban literacy, cities planned for and by people,” Jane’s Walk advocates the ideas and legacy of urbanist Jane Jacobs by encouraging people to explore their neighbourhoods and meet their community.
Free walking tours held on the first weekend of May each year are led by locals who want to create a space for residents to talk about what matters to them in the places they live and work. Since its inception in Toronto in 2007, Jane’s Walk has expanded rapidly. In May of 2010, 424 walks were held in 68 cities in nine countries. In 2011, many walks are being offered in Montreal.
This year OTL is offering TWO exciting Jane’s Walks on Sunday, May 8, 2011!
OTL JANE’S WALK #1:
11:00 am. Greening the Plateau and the Quartier des Spectacles.
Discover hidden and unique greening initiatives in Montreal! The walk will start at the Maison de l’Amitié‘s community garden. It will then visit green alleys and green roofs, guerrilla gardens, and other ecological urban projects, moving south towards the new Quartier des Spectacles!
Guided by Donovan King and Melanie Leavitt. 90 minutes. bilingual.
Meet at the Maison de l’Amitié, 120 Duluth Street East.
RSVP by email – optatif@gmail.com
OTL JANE’S WALK #2:
4:00 pm. Montréal’s Red Light District
There is a cultural war being waged in the old Red Light District, and this tour looks at both the history of the infamous area and current issues in the newly rebranded Quartier des Spectacles, such as attacks on artists and immigrant businesses, destruction of heritage, and Disneyfication.
Montreal’s new Quartier des Spectacles is rising from the ashes of the storied old Red Light District, but the historical area has not entirely disappeared! This walk looks at the infamous Red Light district from the glory days of New France, right through Prohibition and into the 21st Century, and all the attempts by political leaders to “clean it up”. This is a very popular tour that is receiving a lot of media attention, so reserve early. RSVP by email – optatif@gmail.com
Guided by Donovan King and Velma Candyass. 90 minutes. In English.
Meet at the Midway Bar & Salon, 1219 Saint-Laurent Boulevard.
