Canada After Dark summit kicks off at National Arts Centre

Music and nightlife industry professionals from around the world are in Ottawa to discuss fun after dark. CTV’s Dave Charbonneau reports.

More than 150 professionals in the nightlife and music industries gathered at the National Arts Centre Wednesday for the launch of Canada After Dark, a two-day summit exploring the future of nighttime economies.

The event, part of the city’s first-ever Capital Music Week, is co-presented by the City of Ottawa’s Nightlife Office and the Ottawa Music Industry Coalition.

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Ottawa’s nightlife commissioner says the city is taking steps to align its nightlife policies with other major urban centres in Ontario.

“We’re bringing Ottawa the same level, same framework conditions of other Ontarian cities like Toronto,” said Mathieu Grondin. “We’ve undergone a bylaw review process that’s going to make some changes. For instance, there’s going to be more flexibility in terms of noise, if there’s, you know, a delay for a festival because of weather. If businesses wanted to extend their licensing hours up to 4 a.m. and use a provision that was delivered by the AGCO (Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario), the temporary extension of hours, before, they had to acquire an all-night dance event licence from the city. That was $400 ... so, what we’re proposing to council is to remove the need for this licence whenever the businesses get a municipal letter of significance for these temporary extensions delivered by the AGCO.”

Mayor Mark Sutcliffe says the city’s nightlife scene is already thriving, and the goal now is to help it grow even further.

“There’s so many great events and festivals and, there’s a wonderful nightlife in our city already,” said Sutcliffe. “Our job now is just to improve on that and to make it easier for artists and entrepreneurs to build the nightlife economy in our city. It’s already significant. It’s $2 billion and employs thousands and thousands of people. And there’s a lot going on in our city.”

Free Ontario Music City Showcases are also taking place during the summit, with lunchtime performances by artists from Ottawa, Mississauga, London, Hamilton, Kingston and Toronto at the Peter A. Herrndorf Place.

The new downtown concert venue, History Ottawa, ready in early 2026, aims to fill a gap in Ottawa’s live music scene and attract more touring artists to the capital.

“We’re probably one of the only major markets across the country that doesn’t have kind of that mid-sized venue,” said Ali Shafaee, Live Nation Canada Regional Vice President. “We have the NAC, we’ve got other venues, you know, the Bronson Center, which is a little bit smaller. But, to have this type of venue, it’s just a need right now for touring artists to be able to help build themselves in the market and, you know, kind of get on that touring cycle between Toronto and Montreal.

Canada After Dark runs through Thursday at the National Arts Centre’s Fourth Stage.