MAD HOT II, The National Ballet of Canada’s annual fundraising gala, returns on June 17, 2008 to Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts. The National Post hailed last year’s MAD HOT as “the best gala” and The Globe and Mail named it the “best fundraising event” of 2007.

The National Ballet of Canada’s summer mixed programme opens on June 13 and includes Alberta Ballet’s The Fiddle and The Drum, presented at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts as part of Toronto's second annual Luminato – Toronto Festival of Arts & Creativity. Also on the programme are the second detail & Etudes & Five Brahms Waltzes in the Manner of Isadora Duncan.

The Toronto Symphony Orchestra today announced that vocalist Ute Lemper will perform Kurt Weill’s Seven Deadly Sins on Wednesday, October 1, and Thursday, October 2, at Roy Thomson Hall and then travel with the TSO to Carnegie Hall on Saturday, October 4, 2008.

The Bata Shoe Museum and Canada’s National Ballet School are ecstatic to announce their collaboration on an upcoming exhibition entitled On Pointe: The Rise of the Ballet Slipper.

Karen Kain, Artistic Director of The National Ballet of Canada, today announced the principal casting for Cinderella, on stage at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts from May 28 – June 8, 2008.

Today at news conference hosted at the Royal Ontario Museum by Caribana, the ROM announced that it will launch the Festival’s travelling art exhibit Roots to Rhythm: Caribana Art Exhibit. On display during the final week of Scotiabank Caribana 2008, North America’s largest outdoor event celebrating Caribbean and African Canadian culture, Roots to Rhythm will feature 50 to 70 works on canvas by artists of African Canadian heritage.

The Royal Ontario Museum is pleased to present The Nature of Diamonds, the most wide-ranging exhibition ever developed on the allure of diamonds. From Saturday, October 25, 2008 until Sunday, March 22, 2009, visitors to the ROM’s Garfield Weston Exhibition Hall on level B2 in the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal will be dazzled by the exhibition’s spectacular jewellery and stunning gemstones.

The Royal Ontario Museum is pleased to announce that work is underway on the Elizabeth Samuel Garden, a 10,000 square-foot "green roof" on the south portion of the Philosopher's Walk wing. Liza's Garden, as Elizabeth wanted it to be known, will be visible through the south-facing windows of c5 Restaurant Lounge, located at the pinnacle of the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal.

The Royal Ontario Museum presents Shanghai 1860-1949: Historical Photographs, on display in the Herman Herzog Levy Gallery, part of the Asian Suite of Galleries on Level 1 of the Philosophers' Walk Wing, through October 26, 2008.

Discover Toronto’s unique architecture and rich history through ROMwalks, a series of free, guided walking tours of the city. From May to October, tour leaders from the Royal Ontario Museum’s (ROM) Department of Museum Volunteers will lead the public through some of the city’s most distinctive neighbourhoods, visiting Toronto landmarks and illuminating their architectural and historical significance.

The 4th Annual NEW CREATIONS FESTIVAL will celebrate the centennial of Olivier Messiaen (1908-92) by presenting several of the vibrant French composer's most demanding, grand-scale orchestral works alongside world and Canadian premières by living composers who continue to be inspired by Messiaen's work. The festival will run from April 9 to 17, 2008.

The Royal Ontario Museum is proud to announce the opening of the Patricia Harris Gallery of Textiles & Costume, named in honour of Mrs. Patricia Harris, in appreciation of the ongoing generous support of Renaissance ROM and the Royal Ontario Museum from Mr. and Mrs. William and Patricia Harris.