Summer Sights and Sounds in the City.

Comedy on the island

A huge hit last summer, the Great Outdoors Comedy Festival will once again take over Prince’s Island Park with a load of laughs in a pretty incredible setting. The weekend fest, which takes place Aug. 25 to 27, features some of standup’s biggest names.

Headliners this year are Nick Offerman (Friday), Jonathan Van Ness (Saturday) and Andrew Schulz (Sunday).

Offerman is known best for his role as Ron Swanson in the sitcom Parks and Recreation. He is also no stranger to the city, having filmed several things in Calgary, most recently a stunning and incredibly memorable role in an episode of the dystopian zombie series The Last of Us.

Other comedians who will perform over the course of the weekend include Sam Morril, Annie Lederman, Dan Soder and Monet X Change.

For the full lineup and tickets — VIP and general admission ducats are available — please go to greatoutdoorscomedyfestival.com.

Look up and get a BUMP

It’s that time of the year, when the writing is on the walls — or rather the murals.

The beginning of August marks the start of the Beltline Urban Murals Project (BUMP) Festival, which is a “community-led, artist-focused … city-wide street art movement reimagining public spaces through the visual arts and expanding the capacity of the local arts community.”

Chosen by a panel of judges, the artists from the city, as well as national and international creators, will showcase their talents with new murals, road works and graffiti works throughout the heart of Calgary.

Some of those whose works will be featured in those public spaces include: Yasaman Mehrsa a Toronto-based visual artist; Brazilian street painter Dinho Bento; Montreal-based muralist and illustrator Milkbox; and collaborative Canadian duo Diane and MSHL.

Things kick off in earnest Aug. 5 with Graffiti Jam, taking place from noon to 6 p.m. at High Park, and featuring seven graffiti artists creating their work live, along with DJs, food, beer, basketball and local vendors.

Throughout the rest of the month there will be artist talks, guided mural tours, a screening of Dune, and the BUMP Alley Party to close things out Aug. 26.

For more information, as well as a map of where the murals are located, please go to yycbump.ca.

Summer spins

We’ve had the folk, we’ve had the blues, we’ve had the country, we’ve had the rock — now we get the beats.

For lovers of EDM, it’s time once more for the Chasing Summer fest, showcasing some of the finest and most well-known DJs from around the world.

Running Aug. 5 and 6 at the Max Bell Centre Festival Grounds, the roster for the twoday, outdoor rave is who’s who of club culture, including Tiesto, Zed, Griffin, Seven Lions and James Hype, along with dozens of others.

Single-day and weekend passes are available in general, VIP and cabana options.

For tickets and more information, go to chasingsummerfestival.com.

Get Loopy

It is the longest-running street festival in Calgary and it’s one many other area’s of the city model theirs after— the yearly Marda Gras in the southwest community of Marda Loop.

The walkable, family-friendly, car-free day takes place Aug. 13 when they shut down the stretch of neighbourhood on 33 Ave. between 19 and 22 St.

All the usual street activities will be on hand — music, area vendors, kids entertainment and the pet photo booth and pageant, with proceeds from that favourite going to the Tails of

Help charity, which “helps fund essential veterinary care for ill or injured pets of owners who are experiencing financial hardship.”

Making it a little easier to get there and not have to worry about parking and annoying the Marda Loop locals, there will be a shuttle service to and from the festival leaving from the Military Museums and dropping folks off and picking them up on Garrison Gate S.W., just south of the festivities.

Cirque to quench your thirst

Peanuts. Check.

Popcorn. Check.

Cotton candy. Check.

Beer. Oh, my, yes. Checked.

The circus-going experience just got a little more enjoyable and livelier thanks to a new collaboration between local craft brew legends and a legendary Canadian-born performing troupe.

Trickster is the new Village Brewery brew to commemorate Cirque du Soleil’s upcoming Calgary performances of their hit show KOOZA, which will take place under the Big Top on the Stampede Grounds from Aug. 25 to Oct. 8.

The limited edition beer — a clean, quaffable “crispy lager” — will be available in the KOOZA beer garden during the show’s run, alongside other Village faves.

Sunalta gets hopping

The community of Sunalta is fast becoming an inner-city gem that more and more people are discovering.

That should only be furthered by the first

(and hopefully first annual) Sunalta Grassroots Fest, which takes place Aug. 27 in the southwest community.

The family-friendly “bar hop” style event, features local music and beer in the ever-expanding craft brew hotspot, home to Two House, Tailgunner and Best of Kin.

Those three taprooms will feature — along with their suds — a sampling of Calgary talent throughout the day: Amy Nelson, Elle McAndrews, Red Hot Hayseeds, Clinton St. John, Sean Hamilton and the Amber Hour, and Carter Felker.

Tickets are available from Eventbrite through sunalta.net, and all proceeds from the day will go to support the Sunalta Community Association.

Help us out

Perhaps you’ve seen it in these pages the past couple of months, but we want to know who you are.

We’re conducting a readership survey to help us serve you better.

We want to know what you like, what you hate, what you can’t do without (once again, horoscopes didn’t make it in this month’s issue — let your voice be heard!), what we’re missing and more.

It doesn’t take much time — and there’s free stuff to be had!

Head to the contents page, scan the code and please fill out the survey.

Up for grabs are gift certificates from friends such as Turn It Up! Records and Hi-Fi, and Inner City Brewery.

We’d appreciate your participation.