Weekdays are more than commutes, leftovers and another episode of the Netflix show that you’ve been binge watching. Edmonton is stacked with things to do Monday to Thursday, with seats to great shows still open, patios and bars with weekly specials that are worth leaving the house for and something to talk about in the group chat on Wednesday morning.
Plus, weeknights are cheaper and much more spontaneous. Here’s what’s up in Edmonton this Week
Partner Pick: Get First Dibs at the Under $100 Art Show Opening Night
Thursday is the night to go. The Under $100 Art Show opens downtown with more than 100 local artists across 20,000 square feet, and nothing on the walls costs more than $100.
Opening night gets you the full selection before the weekend crowds arrive. Paintings, prints, photography, ceramics, textiles: the best pieces go early, and once they’re gone, they’re gone. There’s live music until 10 pm, so make it your after-work plan and leave with something for your walls or a head start on holiday gifts.
When: Thursday, November 5, 5 to 10 pm (the show continues Friday to Sunday, 11 am to 7 pm)
Where: 10310 102 Ave NW
Extras: VIP tickets include a guided tour of the Backroom, where you can buy fresh art before it hits the floor
Odd Wednesday at Rapid Fire Exchange
If your Wednesdays need shaking up, this is the show. Odd Wednesday is Edmonton’s monthly alt comedy showcase, where the city’s funniest performers bring the material that’s too strange for anywhere else.
Sketch, characters, musical comedy, performance art: it’s been going since 2016, and nobody can tell you what’s coming next. Hosts the Debutantes keep it moving, and you’ll be home before 9.
November 11 is Remembrance Day, so if you’ve got the day off, it’s an easy way to round it out.
When: Wednesday, November 11, 7 to 8:45 pm
Where: Rapid Fire Exchange, 10437 83 Ave NW
Cost: $16.50 to $21.66
Catch a Gala on a Tuesday
A Tuesday gala, with beef tenderloin, for a good cause. Sawmill turns 50 this month, and it’s celebrating by giving back: every dollar of your $99 ticket goes to five Edmonton community organizations.
The night starts with bubbly and live music from Jeff Hendricks, then food stations with passed hors d’oeuvres, a beef tenderloin carving station, and sautéed shrimp and scallops. After a toast to 50 years, the room opens up for dancing.
Proceeds support iHuman Youth Society, Adaptabilities, the Zebra Child & Youth Advocacy Centre, Chrysalis and the Centre for Autism Services Alberta.
When: Tuesday, November 3, 5 to 10:30 pm
Where: Sawmill, 4810 Calgary Trail (south entrance)
Cost: $99, with 100% going to the partner organizations
$5 Arctic Expedition Escape Room at the U of A
The best deal on this list: one $5 ticket covers your whole group.
A blizzard is closing in on a remote Arctic research station, the research team is missing and the emergency beacon is down. You have 50 minutes to crack the codes and get the beacon back online before the storm cuts you off.
The U of A Students’ Union runs it, and groups of 2 to 8 get the room to themselves, with no strangers joining. It’s open during the day and ends Friday, so grab your team for a long lunch, or take the afternoon off.
When: Daytime through Friday, November 6
Where: Carlson Quiet Room, lower level of SUB, University of Alberta
Cost: $5 per group (2 to 8 people)
Curious Brews at MKT
Science talk, but make it a bar night. Curious Brews brings local researchers out of the lab and into the upstairs lounge at MKT, where you can ask questions with a drink in hand.
This month, U of A engineering professor Dr. Rashid Mirzavand is talking about a future without dead batteries. His team builds tiny wireless sensors that power themselves on radio waves, so they never need charging and can be sealed inside clothing, couch cushions or the walls of a building.
Get there early for food and drinks, stay for the Q&A, and pitch your own ideas for where the tech could go next.
When: Tuesday, November 3, 6 to 9 pm
Where: Upstairs lounge at MKT, Old Strathcona
Ages: 18+
Sushi Making Class 101 at Izakaya TOMO
Turn Monday into the night you learned to make sushi. Yuwa’s Studio runs this small-group, hands-on class with the chefs at Izakaya TOMO in south Edmonton.
You’ll learn to cook and season sushi rice, then make pressed oshi sushi, salmon hoso maki, and salmon and shrimp nigiri. The chef also breaks down a whole Atlantic salmon in front of you.
No experience needed. Show up hungry and leave with a new skill.
When: Monday, November 2, 6 to 8 pm
Where: Izakaya TOMO, 3739 99 St NW
Included: Aprons and all ingredients
Bao Tuesday at Baijiu
Tuesday is the cheapest good night out downtown. Baijiu does 2 bao for $10, with flavours that rotate, so there’s always something new to try, plus $5 pints of Coors Light all night.
Grab a seat in the Mercer Building after work, order a round, then another. If it’s not your usual Tuesday, it should be.
When: Tuesdays, doors at 5 pm
Where: Baijiu, Mercer Building, 10359 104
Deadmonton: Last Week to Get Scared (Unless you’re holding out for Lights Out this Weekend)
Missed Deadmonton in October? This is your last chance. The regular haunt is open this week, so you can go mid-week while the lines are shorter, then come back for the finale.
This year’s three haunts are all new: a graveyard that was never really abandoned, a dinner invitation you should probably decline, and an asylum hidden somewhere nobody was supposed to find. Each takes 10 to 25 minutes in groups of six.
On Friday and Saturday, Deadmonton ends its season with Lights Out. The lights go off completely, and your group gets one small light to get through all three haunts. After Saturday, it’s gone until next year.
When: Regular haunt this week, Friday, November 6 and Saturday, November 7 (Lights Out)
Where: 9300 47 St NW (the former Edmonton Sun building)
Where We Are: Opening Party at Wild Skies Art Gallery
Free art, a glass in hand and the artist in the room. Wild Skies Art Gallery opens Where We Are, a new show from Edmonton artist Kelly Dean, with a Thursday night party where you can meet her and see the work up close.
Expect big, layered abstract florals in deep teals, creams and gold. It’s free and wraps up by 8:30, so it’s an easy weeknight plan that still leaves room for dinner.
When: Thursday, November 5, 7 to 8:30 pm
Where: Wild Skies Art Gallery, Renaissance Edmonton Airport Hotel
Cost: Free
Carload Night at Horizon Drive-In
Pile everyone into one car and pay one price. Horizon Drive-In is doing carload nights at the Valley Zoo on Thursday and Friday, with a triple feature each night that runs from family-friendly to genuinely terrifying.
Thursday starts with Moana, then Back to the Future, and ends with Smile. Friday goes Indiana Jones, Grease, then Annabelle. Pick your film or stay for all three.
Bring blankets, snacks and a working FM radio, since the audio plays through your car. Get there 30 to 45 minutes early to get a good spot.
When: Thursday, November 5
Where: Edmonton Valley Zoo, 13315 Buena Vista Rd NW
Cost: $32/carload
Find More Things to Do in Edmonton This Week
Didn’t find your night yet? New events land on the edmonton.events calendar every day, from last-minute pop-ups to shows that just announced. Check the latest at www.edmonton.events/calendar and pick your weeknight.
