Things to do in Ottawa this week: June 14–20
Jeff Goldblum brings his orchestra to Confederation Park on Saturday; Tim Hicks opens the week at Bronson Centre; a wet stretch gives way to the week's clearest evening.
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This week is a study in weather patience. Sunday through Thursday sit under rain or drizzle—17 degrees melting into cooler, damp afternoons—the kind of stretch that makes staying indoors feel like the right call. But Saturday clears, and that's when Ottawa gets its real event: Jeff Goldblum, the actor and musician who built a second life around his love of jazz, brings The Mildred Snitzer Orchestra to Confederation Park at 6:30 PM. Goldblum has spent decades performing live with the orchestra in venues across North America, and an outdoor show in the capital on the week's only genuinely clear evening is the kind of rare convergence locals should circle. Bring a jacket—it'll be cool, around 19 degrees—but the sky will be open.
Before that, the week's indoor calendar fills the rainy nights smartly. Tim Hicks, the Brockville country singer-songwriter with eighteen top ten hits on the Canada Country chart, plays Bronson Centre on Sunday at 7:00 PM. It's a straightforward country show in a wet evening, and the venue's indoor comfort suits the forecast.
Tuesday brings Sandra Shamas to Algonquin Commons Theatre at 7:30 PM—the Canadian puppeteer, comedian, and writer who has built a career at the intersection of performance and visual storytelling. Wednesday and Thursday tighten the wet spell with drizzle and showers. Thursday evening, before the weather finally lifts, Moontricks takes the stage at Overflow Brewing Company at 7:30 PM. The Canadian electro-folk duo offers something intimate and layered for a damp night indoors.
Friday's light drizzle shouldn't stop you from two strong picks: Jessi Cruickshank, the comedian and former MTV Canada host, plays Bronson Centre at 6:00 PM, and Daniela Andrade, the Honduran-Canadian singer and songwriter who built her following on YouTube covers before recording her own work, performs at The 27 Club at 7:00 PM. If you're hungry before or after, Wanpaku Sandwiches on L'Esplanade Laurier's mezzanine at Some Coffee & Some Tea serves crisp Japanese specialty sandwiches for under $10—worth timing a pre-show meal around.
Saturday closes the week with Wintersleep at Bronson Centre at 7:30 PM. The Halifax indie rock band formed in 2001 and has spent two decades refining a sound that sits between introspection and driving energy—a fitting indoor prelude to Goldblum's outdoor orchestra later that evening.
Beyond the stages, Museoparc Vanier's Sugar Shack has reopened as a fully rebuilt venue after a 2020 arson fire. The facility, now a $1 million state-of-the-art space with commercial kitchen and seating for 60, reclaims its place as the only urban sugar shack in the world. Claude Latour's 'Makwa's Blessings,' bridging Algonquin tradition with digital art, opens Friday at a local gallery—a quiet, contemporary counterpoint to the week's live music calendar.
If you're eating well and staying cheap, Meet Noodle on its favoured location serves clean, fast Asian fare well under $15, or aim for Bistro Ristoro for Italian comfort on a wet night. With a wet week and one clear Saturday evening, the choice is clear: save Goldblum for the only night the weather cooperates, and let the rain push you indoors for everything else.