A supersonic boom in your living room! 

Ottawa, January 18, 2021 - On February 13 and 14, the internationally renowned BIG BANG festival is coming to the National Arts Centre for the third straight year. This time the extremely popular sound and music festival for the whole family will be presented in a completely digital format. Mini concerts, online radio, interactive dance parties, a podcast, playlists and more: the BIG BANG's got you covered for the entire weekend! Programming of this special edition is entirely free and will be available online so that children and families can join in from home. Be sure to make some space in your living room for all the BIG BANG fun coming your way!

The BIG BANG has undergone a transformation: this year, it’s finding new ways to tickle your ears, said Mélanie Dumont, festival program director and Associate Artistic Director of Youth Programs for NAC French Theatre. However, the spirit of the festival hasn’t changed a bit. Even in digital format, it will be fun, unifying and musically brilliant.

Since its very first edition, the BIG BANG festival has attracted thousands of families to the National Arts Centre for a musical experience like no other! This year’s digital edition will allow the BIG BANG to expand its reach beyond the National Capital Region and to bring together curious minds and ears from all across Canada. 

The wait is over!

A wide range of amazing, free activities await you. Reserve your virtual seats and plan your weekend of sound adventures now at www.bigbangfestival.ca  

 

For kids ages 5 to 12 and inquisitive minds of all ages. 

Click here to view the trailer. 

 

Saturday February 13 

Sunday February 14  

Live events and musical discoveries to listen to anytime. 

 

LIVE EVENTS 

BIG BANG Radio

Our super ambassadors have lined up a full hour of radio for you. From wacky features and interviews with amazing personalities to performances by artists of all kinds and answers to everything you didn’t realize you ever wanted to know about music and sound.  

Saturday February 13, 11 a.m. 

Sunday February 14, 11 a.m.  

60 minutes ● Bilingual ● For all ages ● Free 

 

Zoomé Décalé

Presented in collaboration with the Mois Multi

It’s time to get dressed up for a crazy costume ball and join the party on the gleaming virtual dance floor. Join us as DJ Sixtopaz, alias Alexandre Berthier, orchestrates this merry masquerade and gets everyone moving in sync! 

Saturday February 13, 6 p.m. 

(Booking required) 

120 minutes ● Bilingual ● For all ages (with adult supervision) ● Free 

 

Robot House Party

Presented in collaboration with the Place des Arts

Here’s your chance to experience Kid Koala’s famous Robot House Party live from home. Roll back the living room rug, and as a family, get set to become state-of-the-art futuristic robots or just funny dancing machines. Whether or not you’re a robot enthusiast, it will be great! 

Sunday February 14, 1 p.m. 

(Booking required) 

90 minutes ● Bilingual ● For all ages (with adult supervision) ● Free 

 

One-on-one with Karine and Nicolas

Did you binge-watch all three episodes of Chansons pour le musée? You and your family are the perfect candidates for a Zoom with Karine Sauvé and Nicolas Letarte-Bersianik!

The creators and musicians of this delightful theatre for the ears welcome you to a comfortable virtual space for a friendly and informal exchange.  

Sunday February 14, 10 a.m 10:30 a.m., 3 p.m. and 3:30 p.m

(Booking required) 

25 minutes ● In French ● For all ages (with adult supervision) ● Free 

 

LISTEN ANYTIME 

Chansons pour le musée

Mammifères

Grab your headphones and find a comfortable spot! Chansons pour le musée (“songs for the museum”) is a story in three episodes about Karine-Pas-Sauvé’s unusual quest. At night, she visits a museum and its works to seek comfort after the breakup of a family unit. But don’t get out your handkerchiefs just yet!  

In French ● 7 years+  

 

Musical postcards 

Even though the pandemic has nailed us to the ground, we wanted to give you a smooth takeoff during this BIG BANG—hence the idea of sending you short music videos from across the country.Who will share a bit of their musical universe with you? We’re sworn to secrecy! After all, it’s supposed to be a surprise ... 

Multilingual ● For all ages ● Free 

 

Music Rooms 

Ever been curious about what goes on backstage? Well, here’s your chance to find out. Enjoy three mini concerts as you weave your way through the labyrinth of corridors behind the NAC performance halls. Are you up for the adventure? Let’s go! 

Multilingual ● For all ages ● Free 

 

Lulling Time: an exhiplosion of soothing songs  

Berceurs du temps

What did your grandmother hum to put you to sleep? What do you sing to soothe your own little ones? The lullabies you’ll hear come from many traditions and are sung in different languages. Together they form a collection of gentle songs from all over the world, like a precious balm for our restricted daily lives. 

Multilingual ● For all ages ● Free 

 

ABOUT THE BIG BANG 

The BIG BANG loves to travel, and what's more, it loves to take visitors of all ages on adventures. It builds on the legacy of the Oorsmeer festival, founded by Wouter Van Looy in 1995, to offer children an artistic and musical program designed specifically for them, and which they even help deliver by participating in certain interactive installations. 

 

Over the past 10 years the festival has travelled to several European cities, from Tallinn to Lisbon, from Antwerp to Athens, from Seville to Dublin, from Lille to Enschede, via Ghent, Brussels, Rouen, and soon Reykjavik and Rennes. And in 2019, the event took a giant leap across the ocean to land in its first North American city: Ottawa! The first two editions were a resounding success, bringing together thousands of curious people attracted by the many guest artists and some 30 invigorating performances and micro-concerts. Don't miss this first all-online edition! 

 

BIG BANG AMBASSADORS 

For this rather special edition of the festival, former Ambassadors are coming back to lend us a hand! They’re between 11 and 14, and they’ll be in your ears and on your screen to share their boundless enthusiasm for the BIG BANG! 

 

THANK YOU TO ALL OUR BIG BANG FRIENDS 

The Ottawa presentation of the BIG BANG is the result of the NAC’s relationship with Belgium’s Zonzo Compagnie, which specializes in musical theatre for young audiences and is directed by Wouter Van Looy. Over the past few years the NAC has presented several Zonzo performances, including Listen to the Silence, set to the music of John Cage; Slumberland, an exploration of the world of dreams and the night; and Mile(s)tones. a show about the legendary Miles Davis. 

 

The BIG BANG at the National Arts Centre is supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, Winterlude, the European Union’s Creative Europe Programme, and the Sandra and Alain Bouchard Foundation. The BIG BANG is an initiative of Zonzo Compagnie. 

PLAN YOUR VISIT 

Explore the full lineup and book your spot right here: www.bigbangfestival.ca. 

 

ABOUT THE NAC 

The National Arts Centre is Canada’s bilingual, multi-disciplinary home for the performing arts. The NAC presents, creates, produces, and co-produces performing arts programming in various streams—the NAC Orchestra, Dance, English Theatre, French Theatre, Indigenous Theatre, and Popular Music and Variety—and nurtures the next generation of audiences and artists from across Canada. The NAC is located in the National Capital Region on the unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabeg Nation.