Entertainment Alternatives in Kitchener, ON

Kitchener's cultural highlights include CAFKA, The Open Ears Festival, Multicultural Festival, and Blues, Brews & Barbecues, all of which are free to the public. Kitchener is also home to venues such as Homer Watson House & Gallery, Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, The Centre in the Square, and Theatre & Company. Live music by popular artists can be heard at venues such as the Centre in the Square and The Aud. The Kitchener Public Library is another community stalwart.

Kitchener's Oktoberfest celebration is an annual nine-day event. Based on the original German Oktoberfest, it is billed as Canada's Great Bavarian Festival. It is held every October, starting on the Friday before Canadian Thanksgiving and running until the Saturday after.

While its best-known draws are the beer-based celebrations, other cultural and entertainment attractions also fill the week. The best-known is the parade held on Thanksgiving Day; as the only major parade on Canadian Thanksgiving, it is televised nationally.

Another icon of the festival is Miss Oktoberfest. This position was formerly selected in a televised beauty pageant, the applicant coming from across North America. The position is now selected by a closed committee of judges from a panel of local applicants; community involvement and personal character form the main criteria under the new system. A ribald spin-off of the Miss Oktoberfest pageant is celebrated in some local high schools, in which all participants are male, but dressed as women.

The Contemporary Art Forum Kitchener and Area (CAFKA) is a non-profit organization that holds a biennial international arts festival in downtown Kitchener. It brings cutting-edge works out of art galleries, studios and artist-run centres and places them in public spaces. Art installations have traditionally been located in and around Kitchener City Hall. CAFKA events are always free of charge to the public.