An interactive art and music facility in downtown Victoria is offering free admission to seniors and post-secondary students on select days over the next two months.

Monkey C Interactive’s Artcade is offering free admission on three upcoming Thursdays – Jan. 29, Feb. 26 and March 26 – from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m.

The Artcade, located at 706 Fort St., is a “hands-on, screen-free approach to interactive art and music.”

It includes displays and stations where people can turn dials, press buttons, step on platforms, and generally interact and “explore” the displays in interesting ways.

Watch a deep dive exploring the Artcade in a CHEK VIBE segment from 2024 below, or read it here:

The free admission coincides with a 1,000-square-foot expansion that’s coming to the Artcade, called the “Alien Lab,” which is set to open later this spring.

The expansion extends into the former Steveson’s Shoe Clinic space, which closed last year after nearly 100 years in operation, and will include new rooms and musical machines.

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Monkey C describes the expansion as its “most ambitious yet.”

“Alien Lab is about pushing curiosity even further. It’s a space for experimentation, wonder and joyful noise,” said Scott Amos, co-founder of Monkey C Interactive. 

The Alien Lab expansion at the Arcade is being partially funded by the City of Victoria’s Storefront Activation Program, and is being designed in participation with Creative BC and the British Columbia Arts Council.

Locals may also recognize Monkey C’s work from its musical handrails that were previously set up at the Yates Street parkade.