The Valley examines police brutality and mental illness, with mixed resultsThe four actors of The Valley tackled sensitive subjects such as mental illness and police brutality in their opening-night performance on February 4 at the Belfry Theatre. But it didn’t start strong: in the first half of the play, I was underwhelmed by the acting and found the monologues extremely cheesy. I could easily guess […] Continue Reading |
Old Man Luedecke brings his toe-tapping tunes to dinner in VictoriaBanjo player extraordinaire Chris Luedecke is the genius behind Old Man Luedecke (loo-deck-ee); the Chester, Nova Scotia-based musician was in town for not one but two shows last night at downtown Victoria restaurant Northern Quarter. The venue was perfect for this show, but not for obvious reasons. First of all, Northern Quarter is actually quite […] Continue Reading |
Victoria Film Festival tackles comedy, drama, and moreThe Victoria Film Festival is back for its 22nd year of screening films for local audiences. The festival has a very large and comprehensive line-up of movies; Victoria Film Festival communications coordinator Fulya Ozkul says that no matter who you are, you’re sure to find something you’ll love. “You can expect 150 films over ten […] Continue Reading |
Camosun Visual Arts students to display art at Lansdowne campusStudents from Camosun College’s Visual Arts program are displaying their artwork in three spaces around the Lansdowne campus this month. The works will be on display as of February 16 in the entrance foyer of the Lansdowne library, on the second floor of the library, and at a space between Young 111 and 117. Camosun […] Continue Reading |
Three decades of Propagandhi: prairie punks prove that music still mattersAfter a 20-plus-year absence, Canadian political punk legends Propagandhi are returning to Victoria. Embarking on a tour of western Canada while crafting new material for their seventh full-length album, the Winnipeg band, who got together in 1986, will be returning to Vancouver Island for a show at Sugar on Sunday, February 7. Naturally, the return […] Continue Reading |
Star Wars: The Force Awakens a triumphant, yet not flawless, returnStar Wars: The Force Awakens 4/5 How Star Wars: The Force Awakens executive producer J.J. Abrams has gone almost 50 years without ever encountering the concept of subtlety is beyond me. Fortunately, he subsidizes this gaping hole in his creative efforts by jamming every second with dazzling imagery and exciting action. Star Wars: The Force […] Continue Reading |
Victoria’s Astrocolor offer weird take on holiday music with debut releaseAround the holidays, Christmas music is inescapable. From shopping malls to private parties, the blithe choruses of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and “Deck the Halls” will follow you from Thanksgiving dinner right up until your Christmas feast. Some relish how these songs carry with them the spirit of the season, while others fiercely detest them. […] Continue Reading |
New Music Revue: Reversing Falls rock ragged, rawReversing Falls Reversing Falls 2 (Independent) 3.5/5 This Montreal-based noisy rock band storms out of the gates strong with “This Is Why,” the song taking an almost-surf-rock guitar line and filtering it through shoegaze production and a ragged garage-rock/indie-rock sound. It’s a stellar way to start off their second album, and it doesn’t stop there. […] Continue Reading |
Shawnigan Lake School brings The Wizard of Oz to VictoriaShawnigan Lake School is celebrating the centennial year of their grand opening. With that grand celebration they wanted to do something big with their Performing Arts department, and Victoria gets to reap the rewards of it. “As it turned out, in the school’s 100 years, The Wizard of Oz had never been done before,” says […] Continue Reading |
Raffi wins over kids and adults alike at recent Victoria showOn Saturday, January 16, “Beluga grads” and children alike gathered at Victoria’s Royal Theatre to sing along with Raffi (Beluga grads are adults who have grown up with Raffi’s music). As soon as the children’s entertainer walked on the stage, it was obvious by the smile on his face that he was excited and ready […] Continue Reading |
