Festival Street Kick Off Event: A Night of Jazz, in partnership with The Rex. Hosted by Raoul Bhaneja

Please join us on September 7 at 6:45pm as TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey and Mayor of Toronto Olivia Chow officially open Festival Street!

TIFF kicks off Festival Street on the Music Stage with a Night of Jazz in partnership with Toronto’s oldest running jazz club, The Rex (194 Queen St. W.) The lineup curated by The Rex’s Tom Tytel showcases some of Toronto’s most talented jazz musicians, including legendary bassist Dave Young. Join us at the Music Stage on John Street for the Festival Street Kick Off Event with special guests, hosted by Raoul Bhaneja.

Bhaneja is an award-winning actor, musician, writer, and producer who debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival in 1998 in Extraordinary Visitor, written and directed by John W. Doyle, opposite Andy Jones and Mary Walsh. The same year, he formed his band Raoul and The Big Time, performing their first show in the backroom of The Cameron House on Queen St. West. He has acted in theatres all across the country, the UK, and Off-Broadway, has more than 130 film and television credits, and has released seven albums of blues and jazz music. He has hosted The Maple Blues Awards, The Dora Awards, New Years Eve for The City of Toronto, and had his own two-hour radio broadcast on Jazzcast.ca called “Raoul’s Blues”.

Thank you to Anne-Marie Canning for her generous support of Festival Street and the Opening Night Kick Off Party.