| The RED Letter, Nov 2007 |
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Table of Contents
1. Words from Lisa Pijuan-Nomura
Hello lovelies! Hope this finds everyone well and warm and enjoying the fall! For me, November is the beginning of what I like to call “The Hibernation”. The Hibernation is a time where we stay at home, eat too much pasta and chocolate, stay in our pyjamas much too long and watch a LOT of movies (After the Wedding and Eden would be my most recent recommendations!) It is a time that comes before the insanity of what we like to think of as the Holidays. During November, I feel like it’s important to take some time to celebrate the past year and take note of the great things that we have accomplished. So, I urge you to go and find a corner in your house, or in a nice café, get out a journal and write down all of your acheivements that you are proud of from this past year. It’s amazing what we forget! And then on another page. Write down what you want in the new year. Smile. Breathe. And put the book away. And don’t make any goals, or do anything with it at all. Think of this activity of a whisper into the universe’s ear. Next November come back and read this page, you will be surprised at the results! Hugs to you all, Lisa
2. Feature Event – Clown Chowder
Clown Chowder is an evening of adult clown in the Pochinko, Bouffon, and European Hosted by Kathleen LeRoux. Info/Reservations: Free passes to Clown Chowder! The first two RED readers emailing owena@lara.on.ca with the subject line 'RED Chowder Rules!' win a pair of passes to Clown Chowder on Nov 19th. Only the winning emails will be contacted.
3. Feature Theatre – Unfortunate Misadventures of Masha Galinski
Lost to The Beast in a wager by her father, caught in the Erl-King's cage, shaken into a lycanthropic fit, and swung from the strings of a Gypsy puppeteer, Masha's bad luck never seems to run out. Equally acrobatic and poetic, comedic and erotic, violent and hysterical, Erin Shields' performance brings this feminist Gothic work to life. Groundwater Productions builds on a string of successes in 2007, including Dora Nominated Goblin Market (with Belltower Theatre, "****" – Globe & Mail), and the hit summer festival shows Ubu Roi (Massacred) ("****" - Eye Magazine, "Fringe Round-up: Best Production" – Now Magazine) and A Thought In Three Parts ("NNNN, Best of the Fest: Outstanding Production, Direction and Ensemble" – NOW Magazine). NOVEMBER 21-DECEMBER 2, 2007 Theatre Passe Muraille Backspace – 16 Ryerson Ave. Wednesday to Saturday, 8:00pm Sunday 2:30pm Tickets - $16.00 Artists/Seniors/Students, $22.00 Regular, Sundays PWYC Call Arts Box Office at 416-504-7529 or visit www.artsboxoffice.ca About the original production... "NNNN - Shields delivers her poetic, vivid prose (tinged with eroticism) with a captivating voice and physicality, and director Andrea Donaldson stages the action so expertly you'll swear the bare stage contains a forest or castle. A wonderful discovery." – NOW Magazine
4. Feature Theatre – Age of Arousal
Genre-busting, rule-bending and ambitiously original, award-winning playwright Linda Griffiths’ Age of Arousal is a lavish, sexy ensemble piece about the forbidden and gloriously liberated self. The setting is 1885: a time of great passion, great confusion. A population imbalance leaves London flooded with half a million more woman than men and an escalating suffrage movement has ushered in a rip-roaring New Age. Mary Barfoot, an ex-militant suffragette, runs a school for secretaries with her beloved Rhoda. The school’s invasion by three spinster sisters and a charismatic cad named Everard, creates a catalyst for political, sexual and emotional explosion. Ideas and libidos clash for dominance, as each character confronts the meaning of revolutionary courage. Age of Arousal makes its Toronto premiere fresh from an acclaimed run at ATP’s PlayRites Festival and a Betty Mitchell Award for Outstanding New Play. Season Passes and single tickets now ON SALE. Visit www.nightwoodtheatre.net or totix.ca or call (416) 944-1740 ext. 8 for more details. Starring: Clare Coulter, Sarah Dodd, Ellen-Ray Hennessy, Maggie Huculak, Gemma James-Smith and Dylan Smith Directed by Maja Ardal NOVEMBER 17 to DECEMBER 16, 2007 Factory Theatre Mainstage For times and ticket prices please see www.nightwoodtheatre.net Ticket Giveaway! The first two RED Readers who email me at lisa@girlcancreate.com with Age of Arousal in the subject line will win 2 pairs of tickets valid for the following dates: Saturday Nov. 17th, 8 pm
5. Feature Dance - MANGAAs part of its Mainstage Season, DanceWorks presents Manga, a subtle yet ferocious new duet from choreographer Serge Bennathan for superb dancers Susie Burpee and Linnea Swan. Inspired by the notion of movement in Japanese comic books, Manga has its Toronto premiere November 22-24, 8pm nightly, at Harbourfront Centre's Enwave Theatre two weeks after its debut in Vancouver. Using Japanese comic books (called "manga") as a springboard, Bennathan's choreography echoes the continuous movement seen in these simple yet intense and expressive drawings. "Like the heroes of these comic books, the dancers are not to be afraid of stillness, laughter, or exhaustion; the journey is to drive us to the unveiling of the elegance of the inner dancer, the one that dances in each of us" says Bennathan. Manga explores the triangular relationship of physicality, space and the purity of the piano music by composer Bertrand Chenier. DanceWorks 2007/08 Mainstage Season November 22 - 24, 8pm nightly Enwave Theatre, 231 Queens Quay West, Toronto For Tickets call the BOX OFFICE: 416-973-400
6. Crafty Happenings –City of Craft(As a newbie in the world of craft, this event is close to my heart! Some of you might remember Becky Johnson who has performed at RED many times as Ruby the Clown. Becky has been on the forefront of creating a vital and cool crafty scene in our city along with Leah Buckareff and Toronto Craft Alert’s Jen Anisef. Make this show a priority as it will be a great event! Oh, did I mention that Dave will be selling his photos there as well? Heehhe—yep, I’m crafty! – Lisa)
Just in time for the holiday crunch, City of Craft allows shoppers to skip the mall and discover unique locally-produced gifts in a dynamic and engaging crafty environment. Toronto's craft community is gearing up for City of Craft, an innovative and exciting event where those who are craft-inclined (or just plain craft-curious) can come together to buy, observe, experience, share and re-imagine all things handmade. WHAT: City of Craft WHO: 60+ craft vendors, community groups, installation artists WHEN: Saturday December 1, 2007, 11am-8pm WHERE: Theatre Centre, located at 1087 Queen Street West at Dovercourt. This craft fair come tradeshow come exhibition will not only feature the sale of contemporary, stylish, and off-beat crafts and fashion, but also promises to delight and inspire visitors with a variety of "how to" sessions, exhibitions and interactive installations. In addition to shopping from a selection of goods by celebrated local makers such as naynu, Soap Scum, Nomura Photography, Pop Noir, Shannon Gerrard, Daryl Vocat, and Pleasurecraft Fibre Studio, they will have the opportunity to learn about various DIY resources available in Toronto, such as glass fusing and goldsmithing workshops by nanopod: Hybrid Studio and CraftyCouture's fashion design workshops for teens. Craft-based installations on view will include the Soft City which invites participants to reconsider their conception of Toronto by contributing to a growing plush cityscape, as well as StreetKnit's hand-knit house, an inventive endeavor to bring awareness to issues of homelessness in the city. Donations of hand knit garments will be accepted by StreetKnit at the event. Patrons of City of Craft can also sit back, relax and indulge in the Toronto Zine Library's entire collection of zines in the cozy reading lounge. As expressed by co-organizer Becky Johnson, "Toronto is teeming with crafty talent, opportunities to become engaged, and awesome handmade stuff. We want to create an environment where all of these things can come together and be enjoyed by all". For more information on City of Craft,
7. Feature Music – Bageshree Vaze - TaranaTarana CD Release Concert
This performance features choreography of songs from the album, and live Kathak, featuring Vineet Vyas on tabla. Guest artists include Aditya Verma, Hemant Panwar, Reshmi Chetram, Mohan Singh and more. As both a vocalist and Kathak dancer, Bageshree has trained with some of India's top dance and music exponents, including Pt. Birju Maharaj and Smt. Veena Sahasrabuddhe. In 2004, MTV India named her an Ubbharta Sitara (rising star), the video of her song Deewana from her first self-titled album won the 2006 ReelWorld film festival award for Outstanding Canadian Music Video. Sunday, November 18, 2007 Enwave Theatre, Harbourfront Centre Tickets: Harbourfront Centre Box Office For more info see http://www.bageshree.com
8. Harbourfront Happenings
A story of one woman's powerful struggle to survive the most turbulent events of the 20th century. Rich with the music and arts of the East and West, The Veil is an original staging of Masoud Behnoud's novel, Khanoom, this play traces the epic journey of a Persian princess from the palace harem to war-torn Europe and her return to Iran, a country forever changed by revolution. See the world through her eyes: experience The Veil. “The Veil is a sweeping, epic drama that flows as fluidly and rapidly as a good movie..” (Chronicle Herald) “...visually stunning and totally engrossing...The story and images will stay with you long after you leave the theatre.” (The Coast) November 28 to
December 8 Tickets | $20 advance | $23 door
http://www.onelighttheatre.com
9. Classes and WorkshopsWriter’s Soup with Sarah Selecky An all-day Creative Writing Workshop designed to stir the creative impulse and satisfy the writer's appetite. For more info contact Sara at selecky@gmail.com Sarah Selecky has been facilitating non-competitive, inspiring workshops for writers since 2001. She has studied writing with Natalie Goldberg and is currently completing her MFA in Creative Writing at the University of British Columbia. Her writing has been published in The Sun, Geist Magazine, Prairie Fire, The New Quarterly, and The Journey Prize Anthology.Yoga with Ilse Gudino Ilse is teaching Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga at various studios in toronto. “As a dancer/ performer, i have found grounding, stability and increased awareness in my body and mind. Yoga has directed me inward and allowed a more profound knowledge of self.” There are a number of yoga studios cropping up in the city. Ilse would like to invite you to a few. Fireflow Yoga Roots Yoga Studio Downward Dog, Downtown Location Beginning Jewelry at Nanopod Wednesday evenings starting January 9th – Week #1: First evening: working with copper-safety, drilling, sawing, soldering. No experience necessary! *nanopod: Hybrid Studio Register online, at the studio or over the phone with Visa, Mastercard or Debit.
10. Read this Book! With Book Lady Sarah Selecky
Miranda July is already an accomplished artist, screenwriter and actor – now, she is an award-winning short fiction writer. She deserves it. This book is not like other books. When reading these stories, I felt immediate and joyous relief. Now that Miranda July has written these stories, maybe I can stop writing. She writes for all of us. Yes, it's true: the stories do all have a similar tone. There's not a lot of variety and many of the characters seem to have the same voice. But in July's hands, this seems to be a comment on the interconnectedness of all things – people, the universe, and love and intimacy in general. I could tell you about the plots – a woman falls in love with her neighbour as he has a seizure; strangers meet at a conference on Romance; someone is invited to a picnic where they see everyone they have ever known, and they all love this person – but this book is more than the sum of its plots. I would even say that the plots aren't important at all. What's important is the honesty, the vulnerability, the heart-ness of July's voice – it's like she's written a book for every one of us who has ever tried to be known and loved and understood in this world. The title is a message, a reassurance. You know those afternoons when you have 60 new emails and you don't want to read any of them and you're hungry with a pantry full of noodles and canned goods but there's absolutely nothing to eat and you're feeling particularly crazy and alienated and you wonder: what am I doing here? Miranda July tells you: Shh. You're okay. We're all here because we love. That's all. It's okay.
11. Calls for EntriesPostcard Fiction Contest at Bad Dog Theatre To launch the Bad Dog Theatre's new Writer-in-Residence program, writer Neil Muscott is launching a Postcard Fiction Contest. The question: How short can a short story be and still be a compelling story with all the elements of good fiction? The limit in this case is 100 words. Three top stories each win $25 Chapters gift certificate. Top ten stories get published. Deadline: Dec. 1 2007 First Annual Mayworks Poetry Marathon Hey! Are you a poet? Would you like to be? We want you to read for 3 to 5 minutes at the First Annual Mayworks Poetry Marathon - a fundraiser for the Mayworks Festival of Working People and the Arts, to be held on New Year's Day 2008! We are planning a 5-hour event from 3pm to 8pm on Tuesday, January 1st, 2008 that will feature well-known and published poets, as well as unknown and first-time-reading-in-public poets. This event will be child-friendly (children will be encouraged to read their poetry!) Let us know! Let your poet friends know! Contact the Marathon organizers by December 1 to ensure your spot in our lineup. More information soon! Helen Victoroshvictoros@sympatico.ca Call for submissions for Visual Artists Exhibition: Leaving Deep Water In "The Site of Memory," an essay written by the African American writer Toni Morrison, water, as "flooding," is linked to the flow of cultural memory contained by images or pictures. Viscerally, water is also considered a purifier in most religions around the world, and is often believed to have spiritual powers. Colourless, tasteless and odourless, this essential substance of all forms of life is both an economic commodity and the source of many sociopolitical contentions throughout historical ages. To explore the expansive metaphorical nature of water, Galerie SAW Gallery invites submissions from artists in Canada and the US, emerging or established, and from culturally diverse communities. The submitted works must demonstrate a strong intention in exploring the nature of water as a metaphorical element, a medium, a material, a site, or combination thereof. Works in drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, photography, mixed media, installation, media art and Internet-based art will be considered. Proposals from performance artists are also welcome. The exhibition is scheduled to take place in the spring of 2008. All selected artists will receive an exhibition fee. Please include: up to 10 images of your work (digital files, slides or prints), Please do not send original artwork. For digital images, please submit jpg files only, at a resolution of 72 dpi and 500 KB maximum. Title each file (image) with a number, your initials, the year and title of your work (for example: 01MN2007LeavingWater.jpg) Please send submissions to: Minh Nguyen, Curatorial Resident For more information on Galerie SAW Gallery, CALL FOR PROPOSALS: Queer Youth Digital Video Project Present us with your own saucy perspective being queer and young and having no outlet for your unique perspective. Inside Out and Charles Street Video will teach you how to develop your script, how to use a digital camera and how to edit YOUR 5 minute video to be premiered at the Inside Out Festival in May 2008! Applicants must be 24 years old or younger Applicants must have little to no experience making films or videos. Only one person per application – no duos or groups. Selected participants must be able to commit to 16 hours/week over 3 months starting in January 2008 In addition to shooting the video itself, this commitment will include weekend-long intensive workshops. Deadline for proposals: November 26, 2007 Visitwww.insideout.cafor full application details and form.
SUBMISSIONS DEADLINE: Friday Nov. 23, 2007 XPACE is seeking individual artist proposals of image-based work (photography, film, video, photo based printing, etc) for a curated exhibition to be part of the 2008 CONTACT Photography Festival. Under the theme, "Between Memory and History", CONTACT looks to examine the relationship between images and their accumulative role in constructing memory and history. XPACE seeks to facilitate this exploration with an exhibition of image-based works that push the boundaries of image making, encouraging submissions of work with a strong experimental focus. This includes, but is not limited to, film, video, photo-based printing, installation and performance. In addition to the submission package detailed below, XPACE suggests applicants express in their artist statement how CONTACT's theme "Between Memory and History" relates to the proposed body of work. Read the CONTACT thematic essay at http://www.contactphoto.com/ press.php In the submission package please include the following: Project Description Please send the submission package to the following address by CONTACT 2008 Submission If you have any questions regarding this call for submission or XPACE's CONTACT 2008 exhibition please contact: Stuart Sakai: stuart@xpace.Info
12. Upcoming Performances of InterestNovember 1 - November 30 November 9 – November 25 November 14 - November 18 November 15 November 16 November 20 November 21 November 21 November 22 November 30 December 2 December 5 December 6
13. Photography by Dave Pijuan-Nomura
You can buy Dave's photos online at nomuraphoto.etsy.com
14. Last Thought
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Canada's rising new-generation of Indo-Canadian artists, Bageshree Vaze celebrates the launch for her new album Tarana with a CD release concert. Produced by husband and tabla virtuoso Vineet Vyas, the album features North Indian compositions combining dance rhythms and melodies with the instrumentation of the tabla, flute, piano, sarod, sarangi and guitar.
No One Belongs Here More Than You
