It’s off to the races! Toronto’s newest society event at the races, Greenwood Stakes, recently announced programming details for its inaugural festival to take place on May 26, 2018, at Woodbine Racetrack from 12 – 7 p.m. The afternoon will include high stakes thoroughbred horse races, style contests, lawn games, art installations, culinary fare
as well as a cocktail showcase with Toronto’s top mixologists and more!
In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Deighton Cup – dubbed by press and attendees as Vancouver’s biggest fashion and social affair of the summer, attracting more than 5,000 people every year – event producers Parade Agency and the Social Concierge are launching its sister event in Toronto, the Greenwood Stakes. Named in homage to the 19th century Greenwood Raceway that had its heyday in Toronto’s roaring ‘20s, the event will bring out the see-and-be-seen crowd clad in bespoke seersucker suits, fascinators and Southern Belle-inspired finery, for a day of festivities at the track.
Tickets start at $75 and are available for purchase online at www.greenwoodstakes.com. A portion of proceeds from all ticket sales will benefit motionball for the Special Olympics Canada Foundation.
PROGRAMMING HIGHLIGHTS
Style Stakes Best Dressed Awards: The Style Stakes Best Dressed Awards challenges attendees to step up their style game and push the fashion envelope for a chance at one of two $500 cash prizes and to become Greenwood Stakes Style Ambassadors in 2019. Ten finalists (five women and five men) will be selected by a panel of tastemakers including Melissa Austria (GotStyle), Kevin Gardiner (Indochino), Lowell Hall (Ireland & Hall PR), Elise Purdon (lifestyle influencer) and a few others we’ll be announcing exclusively on social media in the coming weeks, who will then award the coveted Belle Du Jour and Gallant Sartorialist awards, respectively. The style competition will also be put into the people’s hands with The People’s Choice Style Stakes award, a social media competition voted on by public in the week after the event.
Cocktail Jockey Showcase: One of Deighton Cup’s fan-favourite elements is coming to Greenwood Stakes: the Cocktail Jockey Showcase. Toronto’s top mixologists will shake up their own unique takes on the classic champagne cocktail, mint julep and other famous bourbon libations, to create the perfect summer refreshments inspired by recipes dating back to the early 1800s. Led by Cocktail Director Evelyn Chick (bar manager of Pretty Ugly Bar), the Cocktail Jockey Showcase will feature cocktails crafted by Zak Doy (Figo), Casey Ryan (Civil Liberties), Sally Gillespie (Pretty Ugly) and Tyler Newsome (Bar Raval).
Entertainment: With something for everyone, the afternoon will feature a combination of live music from one of Toronto’s most unique emerging bands, folk-rock quartet Birds of Bellwoods, and popular DJs Eric Carver, Simon Jain and Conor Cutz, who between them will cover a variety of genres including Hip Hop, RnB, Dancehall, Classic and Deep House.
Art: Proudly supporting local talent, the Greenwood Stakes Pop-Up Art Gallery will be curated by Meghan Kraft, a Toronto-based creative director, video producer and clothing designer. The pop-up gallery will feature works from emerging Toronto artists including:
• Alpo Snow who fuses art and fashion to create bold and colourful works that can be worn or displayed.
• Arturo “Duro the Third” Parada, the highly recognizable and charismatic muralist and graffiti artist
• Briony Douglas whose unique style of photography captures raw emotion and features striking, vibrant visuals
• Coup de Tête, the Canadian bespoke house specializing in handmade, one of a kind hats & leather goods.
• Jacqueline Poirier A.K.A. The Crazy Plate Lady, the resident artist at Toronto’s Ritz Carlton who brings her art to life by painting on porcelain
The most stylish event of the summer hits Toronto for its inaugural debut in 2018. On Saturday, May 26, 2018, Woodbine Racetrack will play host to over 1000 dapper gentlemen and stylish ladies alike popping bottles of bubbly and enjoying games of chance at the Greenwood Stakes. pic.twitter.com/yYpMGvcv0g
— Greenwood Stakes (@GreenwoodStakes) March 21, 2018
The Races: Greenwood Stakes’ exciting race card includes the Grade 2 $175,000 Eclipse Stakes featuring some of the finest horses in the country. Originally known as the Eclipse Handicap, this 1 1/16-mile race was first contested at Greenwood Raceway in 1956 when Fleet Path scampered to victory. The race was moved to Woodbine Racetrack in 1967 where it has been held ever since. Live racing will get underway at 1 p.m.
THE SOCIAL CONCIERGE
The Social Concierge is a boutique branding and marketing agency that specializes in
consistently delivering unique, premium solutions to a select range of experientially-focused clients. With a growing range of signature in-house events, The Social Concierge are also proud purveyors of fine culture. For more information, visit our website: www.thesocialconcierge.com
PARADE AGENCY
Parades aren’t just about garish getups and big balloons. They’re a coming together of people with a collective goal to create, manage, and occupy a special experience. And special experiences are our specialty.
Whether it’s about strategically planning an innovative corporate event, creating a captivating brand activation strategy, or designing and implementing an outstanding visual identity, we have precisely what you need— and then some. For more information, visit our website: www.paradeagency.ca