Culinary Arts Cook Off, SpringFest, Edmonton Record Fair, Plantopia Expo & Much More

What’s Up Edmonton! (And surrounding areas)…

Thanks for tuning in. Here’s your local ad-free action report for: Saturday, April 12 through Monday, April 14, 2025.

I cover: Events & Entertainment happening in & around YEG.

Note: All links are non-monetized. They simply lead to event info.

If you’re enjoying this informative ad-free publication, please share it with your friends.

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My friend, hello hello. I wrote this following blurb on The Weekday Edition, sent earlier this morning. If you saw it, it’s copy pasted. Should you opt to skip directly to the good stuff, please note, no offense taken (& frankly, I would as well).

If you missed The Weekday Edition, then Welcome to the Weekend Edition! Here at What’s Up Edmonton, big things are happening that you should know about. Please read on to find out more!

Ahem, ahem…

I have an important change to announce regarding the letter.

From this point moving forward, I will be releasing two letters on Tuesday mornings, with the breakdown as such.

#1: Weekday Edition: Features events happening from Tuesday through Friday on a given week.

#2 Weekend Edition: Features events happening from Saturday though Monday on that same given week.

Due to the high multitude of fun times happening weekly in YEG, I’ve been forced to pick & choose events for you instead of posting everything I find. Picking and choosing because… I’ve been running into issues with Gmail clipping my lengthier editions & often sending the letters to your spam inbox (as they are auto-flagged as such due to overall length & data volume ~ links)

By moving to a dual email system, I am hoping, fingers crossed that I can continue to deliver the best value Edmonton has to offer, straight to your primary inbox every Tuesday morning.

If this works out, we’ll keep the system. But if you’re not a fan (or even if you are), please drop me an email by responding to any letter edition & let me have it. All feedback is valuable & it always makes my day whenever I hear from you.

Per the emails, expect to have both editions in your inbox as close to 6am as possible. I may need to tweak the send-out times if we run into deliverability issues, but my aim is for that 6am mark.

My fellow Edmontonian, it’s not even Spring (officially) & you’re getting 125 events this week! As the weather heats up, that number will only climb!

Thanks again for your continued readership. It absolutely makes my day = )

Jonah Chabaniuk

Some Things To Do This Weekend:

Saturday, April 12:

• 7am start | John Ross Bonspiel | Toss some rocks & smash others as you hurry hard your way to that coveted podium finish | $125-150/person |

• 10am - 4pm | Swing into Spring Show & Sale | FREE_ENTRY | Find bouncy castles, arcade games, carnival rides, a vendor market & more |

• 11am - 12:30pm | Baisakhi Celebration | FREE_EVENT | Check out the first ever Indian festival in St. Albert |

• 11am - 2pm | Culinary Arts Cook Off | FREE_EVENT | Pros & amateur chefs face off live | Also enjoy face painting, a photo booth & more |

• 11am - 3pm | ACUA Easter Market | FREE_ENTRY | Find scrumptious snacks & delightful wares at this Ukrainian cultural market |

• 11am - 4pm | Spring Market | FREE_ENTRY | Shop local vendors for delicious treats & artisan wares |

• 11am - 4pm | Spring Market | FREE_ENTRY | Find more vendors, more tasty treats & other cool finds here |

• 11am - 4pm | Vegan Spring Market | FREE_ENTRY | Similar to the two above, but vegan! |

• 11am - 5pm | Plantopia Expo | Shop & swap plants, browse a vendor market & silent auction, enter to win door prizes & support a great cause | $5/person |

• Noon - 2:30pm | Easter Egg Hunt | FREE_EVENT | Bring your little one to find some secretly stashed, colourful eggs |

• Noon - 3pm | SpringFest | FREE_EVENT | Featuring roving performers, balloon animals, games, samples, giveaways & more | Fun for the whole family! |

• Noon - 3pm | Potluck | FREE_EVENT | Find out about the Community Garden Program & enjoy tasty grub | Must bring something to share |

• 1pm - 2:30pm | Decorate Easter Eggs | Since all the good puns are taken, go paint some eggs in the spirit of Easter | $27.58/person |

• 1pm - 4pm | Easter Fun (Fort Sask) | FREE_EVENT | Enjoy games, crafts, face painting & a good ‘ol scavenger hunt |

• 1pm start | Skillmatics Foil Fun | FREE_EVENT | Kids 4+ can try this fun, mess-free craft plus story time |

• 1pm start | Townwide Easter Egg Hunt | FREE_EVENT | Road trip out to Redwater for a massive egg hunt, plus FREE hotdogs, a toddler area & more |

• 1:30pm - 4pm | Make It At Milner | Using sublimation, make a t-shirt & matching onesie for $30/person |

• 1:30pm - 4:30pm | Myrna Pearman Keynote | FREE_EVENT | Shimmy on down to Leduc & hear hot tips on building bird friendly backyards |

• 2pm - 3:30pm | Aquarium Talk | FREE_EVENT | Get the down low on fresh water aquariums & what you need to get started | 10+ |

• 2pm - 4pm | Treat: Reception | FREE_EVENT | An artistic exhibition celebrating the unfailing bond between humans & their pets |

• 2:30pm start | Don Berner Big Band | FREE_EVENT | Celebrate Jazz Appreciation Month with YEG’s flagship large Jazz ensemble |

• 4:30pm - midnight | Morinville Craft Beer Festival & Cabaret | Try brews from local makers & finish the night with lively music | $33.28+/person |

• 6:340pm - 8:30pm | Safer For All | FREE_EVENT | A documentary exploring systemic issues in policing & highlighting the voices of those most impacted |

• 7pm - 8pm | Super Not Super | Bring a date or fly solo & laugh along at the improv superhero tale | $14-18/person |

• 7pm - 9pm | Concordia Symphony Orchestra | Get your daily fix of Bruckner’s Symphony #4 for $16.43-21.70/person |

• 7pm - 10pm | Scissors & Social | FREE_EVENT | Sewers unite! | Bring patterns, current projects & make new friends |

• 7pm - 10pm | Megan Lange, Zoe Eila & Sophia Rathjen | See three budding local artists in a cozy cafe for $17.31/person |

• 7pm start | Kip Moore | This country music icon is in YEG & you could see him for $107.10/person |

• 7:30pm - 9:30pm | Edmonton Pops Orchestra | The music of Hollywood comes to Edmonton & you can hear it for $38/person |

• 7:30pm start | Canadian Arabic Orchestra | Hear Arabic hits & classics for $60+/person |

• 8pm - 10:30pm | Chick Corea Tribute | Anastasija Litvinyuk & her talented trio take to the stage for this epic performance | $27/person |

• 8pm start | La Fiesta | Pull out those Latin dance moves you’ve been practicin’ & light up the dance floor with live tunes from Banda Kuduro | $17.31-20/person |

• April 12 - 13 | Books2Buy | FREE_ENTRY | EPL is hosting another used book sale | Fill up your bookshelves for all those rainy nights |

• April 12 - 13 | Comics Zines & Books Market | FREE_ENTRY | Browse 21 local vendors & find yourself some great reads |

• April 12 - 20 | Easter Photos | FREE_EVENT | Take the kids for pics with the Easter Bunny |

Sunday, April 13:

• 9:30am start | Edmonton Record Fair | FREE_ENTRY | Hey You! Write this down! | Here’s a vendor fair featuring records, tapes, CD’s & other memorabilia |

• 10am - noon | Bird Seed Ornaments | FREE_EVENT | Take a lovely drive out of town (to Camrose) & enjoy making this fun, functional craft |

• 10am - 3pm | Spring Market | FREE_ENTRY | Head out to Sturgeon County for a bustling vendor market, face painting, easter bunnies, raffles & more |

• 11am - 3pm | Art Auction | Put some pictures on those walls of yours by first visiting here | $80/person |

• Noon - 2pm | A Momentary Museum | FREE_EVENT | Bring something historic from home & enjoy others artifacts, too |

• Noon - 4pm | Easter Eggstravaganza | Explore the historical Rutherford House in search of eggs & enjoy fresh cookies | Likely FREE-$7/person |

• Noon - 4pm | Exclusive Book Signing | FREE_EVENT | Get your copy of “Mother Earth’s Day” autographed |

• Noon - 5pm | Yellowhead Rail Club | FREE_EVENT | Venture out to Fort Sask to see a massive setup of model trains |

• 1pm - 2:30pm | FireSmart Your Property | FREE_EVENT | Learn how you can reduce wildfire risk on your property |

• 1pm - 4pm | Sunday Dance & Social | Join Wayne Felske & Timeless Music for an evening of dancing & making new connections | $12/person |

• 1pm - 4pm | Gardner Social | FREE_EVENT | Bring your seeds, plants &/or propagations to swap/trade, make friends & talk shop |

• 1:30pm - 3pm | Space Jam | FREE_EVENT | What do Bugs Bunny, Aliens, Basketball & 1996 all have in common? | Join in tow find out |

• 2pm - 3:30pm | STARFest: Claire Cameron | FREE_EVENT | Hear from the Spoken Word Youth Choir plus an in-person discussion with Claire |

• 2pm - 3:30pm | Over The Hedge | FREE_EVENT | Bring the kids & enjoy an improv movie while out |

• 2pm - 3:45pm | Peter Rabbit | FREE_EVENT | With Easter right around the corner, Peter Rabbit (movie) is sure to delight children young & old |

• 2pm - 4pm | Concordia Concert Choir | Enjoy an epic performance featuring the worlds oldest instrument | $16.43-21.70/person |

• 2pm - 4pm | Book Launch: Woman Life Freedom | FREE_EVENT | Enjoy poetry readings, a panel discussion, Q & A session & autographs |

• 2pm - 5pm | Jane & Kyle | Enjoy a hands-on-the-bow workshop & proceeding concert from this dynamic local Fiddler duo | $27.96-43.93/person |

• 3pm - 5pm | Fusion of Traditions | Possible FREE_EVENT | Skilled local fiddler Brianna Lizotte will be serenading ears in a fantastically acoustic hall |

• 6pm - 7pm | YEG Afrofusion | Join in on an instructor-led Afrofusion dance class for $6.66/person |

• 8pm - 1am | Blone Noble w/ guests | Check out this Darkwave show featuring a LA based artist & multiple guest acts | $17.31/person |

Monday, April 14:

• 9:30am - 11:30am | Stay & Play | FREE_EVENT | Spend time with your child aged 0-6 & make friends with other parents |

• 4pm - 9pm | Board Game Night | FREE_EVENT | Bring the pals & enjoy some games in a lively local sit down |

• 7pm - 8:30pm | Audreys Book Club | FREE_EVENT | Join in for a boisterous discussion of George Eliot’s classic, Middlemarch |

• 7pm - 9pm | Trivia Night | FREE_EVENT | Join a team & compete in a host of fast-fire games for top prizes and bragging rights |

• 7pm - 10pm | Green Drinks | Network with like-minded folks and enjoy keynotes from two local sustainability advocates | Now at Epic Market |

Some Things To Do This Weekend:

Thanks for checking in. Have a great week, everyone!