Two festivals celebrate words, ideasPeople in Victoria are talking this month. With both the Victoria Spoken Word Festival and the Ideawave conference happening on the same week, Victorians are being exposed to a variety of artists and critical thinkers with something to say. The second annual Victoria Spoken Word Festival is one of the few opportunities for young Canadian […] Continue Reading |
New Music Revue: February 22, 2012 issueBaby Eagle & the Proud Mothers Bone Soldiers (You’ve Changed Records) 3/5 Bone Soldiers, by Canadian outfit Baby Eagle & the Proud Mothers, lays claim to being the most confusing, but “okay, I’m starting to enjoy this now” listening experience so far this year. The album starts off really poorly, with some of its worst […] Continue Reading |
Local, Live, and Loud: February 22-March 6Thursday, February 23 Brave New Waves, Hillside Hooligans, Step Back Dave, Tuff Jelly Club 90NE9, $16.50, 9:30 pm This event is a tribute to the ska-punk greats Sublime. The Victoria Ska Society has to be one of the hardest working music collectives on the south island; it seems like there’s a new ska or rocksteady […] Continue Reading |
Local burlesque performer full of surprisesA common misconception is that burlesque simply consists of parading around on stage in one’s underwear. People also sometimes figure that burlesque performers are extravagant people whose whole lives are an extended version of their onstage persona. But one local burlesque performer is trying to get rid of these stereotypes. Cheesecake Burlesque Revue’s Champagne Sparkles […] Continue Reading |
Sunflower Hour a rousing documentary about puppetsSunflower Hour This brilliant mockumentary puts overlooked children’s entertainers in a whole new light. I wish this was a TV series so I could continue to watch these characters on a weekly basis: it’s that funny. Aaron Houston wrote and directed this comedy, starring four unlikely puppeteers who audition for the children’s show Sunflower Hour, […] Continue Reading |
Proops tackles all aspects of comedyDespite Greg Proops’ reputation for being sharp and sarcastic, he sounds sincere, reflective and maybe a little tired on the phone from San Francisco. He’s performing at the city’s Sketchfest, before heading to Victoria for a live version of the hit improv television show Whose Line Is It Anyway?, but he doesn’t have the luxury […] Continue Reading |
Midnight Son gets film fest bloodyWriter/director Scott Leberecht did pretty well for his first feature-length movie. Indeed, Midnight Son may just be the next big cult classic. The movie stars Zak Kilberg as Jacob, a young man born with a rare skin disorder that prevents him from being in the sun. After he meets and falls in love with cokehead […] Continue Reading |
New Music Revue: February 8, 2012 issueThe Soul Rebels Unlock Your Mind (Universal) 5/5 Get ready to eargasm. Over and over and over again. With Unlock Your Mind, eight-piece New Orleans jazz band the Soul Rebels (a.k.a. the Soul Rebels Brass Band) bring you the funkiest 13 tunes this side of 1978. Trumpet, trombone, tenor sax, tuba, and percussion are all […] Continue Reading |
Tanya Stephens rocks MarleyDancehall veteran Tanya Stephens appreciates the iconic affect Bob Marley has on Jamaica’s arts and culture, there’s no doubt about that. But the Jamaican headliner of the upcoming Bob Marley’s 67th Jubilee Celebration confesses she doesn’t even have a Marley album in her collection. But that’s okay: she’s always done things her own way. Unlike […] Continue Reading |
Garnhum re-imagines CarmenWay before Lady Gaga, and way before Madonna, there was Carmen. And, according to Dennis Garnhum, the artistic director of a production of the age-old opera about the gypsy girl, Carmen was a true outsider. “Everybody loves the outsider, everybody hates the outsider, and everybody wants to be, at some point in their lives, the […] Continue Reading |
