LuminoCity

On Friday June 7, Luminato in the Square at David Pecault Square swung into action with the opening night of nine days of music, art, food, crafts, and that urban festival feel. JJ Hunt was on hand to describe the scene, with Christine Malec joining in from her home studio. Listen in for performances from the main stage by Elder Duke and Jeremy Dutcher!

Recorded live at the Art Gallery of Ontario on June 5th, 2024, this on location episode documents and describes Miles Greenberg’s RESPAWN, co-commissioned and co-presented by the AGO and Luminato Festival Toronto. With a microphone in hand, describer and host JJ Hunt captures the chest-rumbling thrums and excited audience chatter that accompany Greenberg’s nine hour fight with an imaginary foe, lo...

Miles Greenberg is a sculptor and performance artist based out of New York. His Luminato performance, RESPAWN, where he features as the primary performer, is a strikingly lengthy 7 hour durational performance piece inspired by first person shooter video games. Only wielding a sword, he defends himself from a moving camera on a crane. Listen to learn about the deeper meaning behind this piece.  Reb...

In this episode host, Theodore Walker Robinson Theodore interviews the world class Ivory Coast choreographer Oulouy about his career and the story of the dance crew Supa Rich kids ahead of their presentation of Afrikan Party at the Luminato Festival Toronto. Afrofuturism: The World of Black Sci-Fi and Fantasy Culture by Ytasha Womack  The Dreamer and the Dream: Afrofuturism and Black Religious Tho...

Christine and JJ sit down to interview Duane Bobbsemple. Duane is creating installations to be displayed in Toronto's subway stations as part of this year's Luminato Festival. The trio reflect on the power, importance, and possibilities of the shared spaces we so often take for granted.

Every year Luminato offers a long list of shows, concerts and public art pieces. Many of those experiences are interactive. Hosts JJ Hunt and Rebecca Singh tell us how we can participate more in these interactive experiences. Audio Description of Raphael Montañez Ortiz’s Cowboy/Indian, and Guided Tactile Description of Andy Warhol’s Black Rhinoceros courtesy of Prime Access Consulting. Audio Descr...

DJ and multi-disciplinary artist, Sarah Barrable-Tishauer, discusses the raves she organizes as part of her work. However, these aren't the type of raves you imagine when you hear the word "rave". These are inclusive, safe, and transformative, and seek to create collective utopias where self-expression can thrive, while maintaining the distinctive cultural feel of raves. Christine l...

For one night only, celebrate the 25th anniversary of The Nathaniel Dett Chorale, Canada’s first professional choir specializing in Afrocentric music, with this must-see performance. “And Still We Sing…Missa Afro-Brasileira: A Syncretism of Voice and Dance” by The Nathaniel Dett Chorale erases the divisions between the sacred, the secular, the popular and the classical. Featuring Measha Brueggergo...

Rebecca Singh, along with fellow audio describer, Janis Mayers,  sit down for an in-depth chat with Indigenous multi-disciplinary artist, Terrance Houle. His latest piece, Dance/  Ipásskaa, is a photographic mural that honours his mother’s creations. 

This never-the-same-twice show written and performed by Dora-award winning Haley McGee, is a gripping story about how our relationship with mortality shapes the way we live. Inspired by hospices, mystics and trips to the cemetery, Age is a Feeling wrestles with our endless chances to change course while we’re alive. Charting the seminal moments, rites of passage and turning points in an adult life...

Christine Malec and JJ Hunt discuss the wonder of on-stage illusions and how blind and low-vision audiences can come to experience them through audio description. Plus, the creator of the Luminato show HOME, Geoff Sobelle, comes on to talk about his show.

Luminato will take over David Pecaut Square again this year for the duration of the festival. Luminato in the Square, our free festival hub will delight festival-goers with concerts, performances, activities, food, and markets for that summer festival feeling in downtown Toronto. Host Christine Malec interviews the Creative Programmer, Veronica Barton and Tamar Ilana from the Miigwech Collective t...

The North American premiere of Dancer of the Year represents the seminal work within Trajal Harrell’s artistic journey, offering a deeply emotional and immersive experience for viewers, regardless of their familiarity with dance. Host Christine Malec speaks with Trajal Harrell about this performance.

Gene Peterson is the producer of 360 ALLSTARS, a show that he describes as a “modern circus”. Featuring B-boying, BMX, Freestyle basketball and live music, it’s a fast paced show that will surely be a challenge to live describe. Radio LUMI host and audio describer Rebecca Singh recorded this short interview with Gene to learn more about his show. You’ll also get a peak into the types of conversati...

I Am from Reykjavik is more than a performance—it's an invitation to introspection. It challenges us to examine our relationships with space and time, to reconsider the boundaries between self and other, and to embrace the possibility of forging meaningful connections in unexpected places.  Host Christine Malec brings Sonia Hughes on for an interview and takes a deep dive into her journey as...

Host Rebecca Singh leads this conversation about the many evolving ways to interpret place in art and audio description as inspired by a better understanding of Indigenous artworks. Special guests and AD professionals Janis Mayers and Trina Moyan share with us their unique perspectives and important reminders.

How can we do more with audio description? How can it go further as a professional profile? What happens when it includes Indigenous voices? What creative approaches to AD can enrich the experience of AD users? Those are the questions our hosts seek to answer. Rebecca Singh and JJ Hunt, are joined from all over the world by describers Kat Germain, Alanah-Jay Harris, Elaine Lillian Joseph, and Nico...

Host Christine Malec leads the conversation with co-hosts JJ Hunt and Rebecca Singh. In this episode they take a deep dive into Urban Parks and Public Squares. They get into how they are different and how they are used. 

In this episode, host Rebecca Singh talks about public art, what it looks like and how it fits into a city scape. Hear about the art selected for the festival this year and how Luminato is making the work accessible.

Christine heads up this round-table discussion that takes a deep dive into the intricacies of audio description, both for live in-person productions or your favourite TV shows. If you've never heard of audio description before, (sometimes called "described video") this episode will be an amazing introduction to the world of AD. This episode features special guests Kim Kilpatrick, Am...

This episode serves as the grand opening for the 2024 season of Radio LUMI. Theo leads the conversation with our three other co-hosts, Christine, Rebecca, and JJ about what you can expect this year at the festival. Welcome to Radio LUMI 2024! 

In this episode, Emily Maxwell and Ali Hand join our host Christine to talk about the accessibility features we're offering this year.

Welcome to Radio LUMI Season 4. In this opening episode Indigenous educator Trina Moyan highlights the significance and importance of Land Acknowledgments. Learn about the Indigenous perspective of Land Acknowledgements, as well as how to give better, more thoughtful ones yourself. 

Ramya Amuthan sits down with Christine Malec and JJ Hunt to discuss audio storytelling and archives and Luminato 2023 prepares for Aalaapi , presented by Native Earth Performing Arts and Le Théâtre français de Toronto, in association with Luminato Festival Toronto. 

In “Grounding Conversations, Part 6: Archives as Storytelling,”  Dev travels to the future in an audio adaptation of a short documentary they created with Helen Lee with production assistance from the Liaison of Independent Filmmakers Toronto (LIFT).