Stuck for something to do tonight? Well, if you're looking to avoid the crowded malls and opting for something a bit more fun, we've uncovered a couple of hidden gems. Here's what's on tap in Montreal tonight…

1.) Alegria, a Spanish phrase for jubilation is a state of mind with emphasis on the state of power passed on to generation to generation. Use your power and watch the wonderful performers contort your sense of reality. Do you have the power? Alegria Cirque du Soleil is at the Centre Bell, tonight (Tuesday, December 22). More on Alegria and other fine events… here.

2.) Christmas isn't Christmas without The Nutcracker. Right? In all honesty, the best part of going to the see The Nutcracker is watching all the young’ns get all bewildered by it all. Otherwise, there's nothing new or interesting; the characters spend a good deal of the show coming to the front of the stage and doing a few pirouettes or whatever, and then retreating. The Nutcracker is at The Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, . More on The Nutcracker and other theatre events… here.

3.) At first blush, the achingly authentic drama "Precious" hardly seems like Christmas-season fare. But if you haven’t yet seen Gabourey Sidibe in the title role of the drama, Cinéma du Parc has a viewing of it tonight, and it is a stellar choice. Precious: Based on the novel Push By Sapphire, set in a poverty-stricken Harlem neighborhood circa 1987, is a harrowing and moving story of a teen forced to endure all manner of abuse -- physical, sexual, emotional -- every day of her painful life. Precious has a showing at Cinéma du Parc, 3575 du Parc, tonight. More on Precious and other happenings today… here.