Winnipeg Master Class – The Guide, Part One – Arts & Culture

Esmeralda Fawlty’s* Winnipeg Master Class showcases what you need to know about the city when it comes to culture, attractions and events.

To delve deeper, we’ve created this supplementary guide to our top spots from the video. Below you’ll learn a bit of their history, what the vibes are like, and what not to miss when you’re there.

This is your Winnipeg Master Class, Part 1 – Arts & Culture

Winnipeg Art Gallery-Qaumajuq

Ms. Fawlty’s main interview is set within Gallery 1 at WAG-Qaumajuq. Here you can find striking late Renaissance and Early Modern paintings including Pieter Brueghel the Younger’s The Peasant Lawyer (1618), and George Agnew Reid’s The Story (1890) – one of the WAG’s most popular paintings.

WAG-Qaumajuq is celebrated (opens in new window) for showcasing the world’s largest collection of contemporary Inuit art within Qaumajuq, the snowdrift-like Inuit art centre that was added onto the original angular WAG building in 2021. Both buildings and their subsequent galleries are connected across the 185,000 square foot campus, so you can seamlessly go from one section to another. WAG-Qaumajuq’s permanent collection includes sculptures representing nearly every Arctic community (hundreds of which can be viewed for free in the Visible Vault in the building’s atrium), notable works by Indigenous artists in a variety of mediums, and plenty of decorative and contemporary works too. In summer, its Rooftop Sculpture Garden is a popular spot to catch some sunshine.

Manito Ahbee Festival

One of the largest gatherings of Indigenous peoples on Turtle Island, Manito Ahbee Festival is an annual three-day celebration that is open to everyone. For more than two decades Manito Ahbee, meaning “where the Creator sits” in Ojibway, has illuminated and honoured Indigenous cultures while being guided by the seven sacred teachings of love, respect, courage, honesty, wisdom, humility and truth.

The festival’s marquee event is one of the world’s largest pow wows, featuring upwards of 800 dancers and drum groups from all over the continent. Plus, there’s NextGEN – a multi-faceted event featuring dancing, singing, social media influencers and teachings to inspire youth; the Red Road Cultural Clothing – Wearable Art & Showcase with its fashion shows run by Indigenous designers and models; the Ignite Your Spirit Stage featuring jigging contests, hoop dancers, ribbon skirt and braiding competitions and plenty of live music; and the Manito Ahbee Marketplace & Food featuring hundreds of vendors.

This year’s Manito Ahbee will occur for the first time in autumn, October 30 to November 1, 2026, at the RBC Convention Centre Winnipeg to coincide with the hosting of the World Indigenous Business Forum here on Treaty 1 Territory.

Festival du Voyageur (FDV)

Western Canada’s largest winter festival takes place every February at Fort Gibraltar, with satellite events happening across Saint-Boniface and downtown. The two-weekend event (which includes school programs running throughout the week) is all about joie de vivre, celebrating the region’s fur trading, Francophone and Métis culture and heritage in zesty fashion. Outside, you can stroll amongst massive snow sculptures carved by artists who come from across the globe, while there’s plenty of activities for the littles from snow slides to boot hockey and voyageur games. Inside its giant tents the stage is set day through evening with live bands, saucy children’s performers, DJs and headline acts that are sure to get you dancing on the wood chip covered floors.

FDV also excels as a showcase for French cuisine, with kiosks run in each tent by local restaurants, food trucks and catering companies. The last event of the festival is the Rendez-vous de chefs – the pea soup contest – which always features entries from some of the city’s best restaurants who go far beyond peas and ham. Be sure to join the line leading into the Cabane à Sucre (Sugar Shack), where the people from the village of St-Pierre-Jolys pour fresh maple syrup on snow to create your own maple taffy on a stick.

As to Ms. Fawlty’s “I too Caribou!” That’s the name of FDV’s signature spirit, an assertive fortified wine that’s bottled with a little bit of whisky (get it served in an ice glass). You’ll also find a fine selection of local beers from sponsor and Métis-owned brewery, Nonsuch.

Fort Gibraltar itself is also home to a colourful cast of characters living life like it’s the early 1800s throughout the festival.

Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet

Canada’s oldest ballet company and the longest continuously operating ballet company in North America is world-renowned for its artistic excellence and boundary-pushing new works. The repertoire of Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet (opens in new window) embraces a wide array of dance styles, including classical story ballets and an intriguing collection of shorter dances. Now under the artistic leadership of Christopher Stowell, an internationally respected choreographer and arts leader, the RWB is entering an exciting new chapter — one that honours its legacy while embracing innovation and contemporary voices in dance.

The company stages three professional performances from October to May, along with Nutcracker every year during the Christmas season. Come summer, you can occasionally catch free performances on the Lyric Stage in Assiniboine Park.

Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre

Canada’s oldest regional theatre, each season Royal MTC produces ten plays at two venues as well as the Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival, Pimootayowin: A Festival of New Work, and an annual regional tour. From autumn to spring, you can catch marquee productions on the John Hirsch Mainstage, while just up the street the Tom Hendry Warehouse regularly hosts edgier fare.

*Kudos to our star, local actress Amanda Shimoji for embarking on this year-long project with us.
Guide and video script by Mike Green.

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For the full Winnipeg Master Class experience, don’t miss the other instalments:

Winnipeg Master Class – The Guide – Part One: Arts & Culture (opens in new window)

Winnipeg Master Class – The Guide – Part Two: Landmarks & Architecture (opens in new window)

Winnipeg Master Class – The Guide – Part Three: Attractions & Culinary (opens in new window)