alex.browne@peacearchnews.com
Fionn
Talented White Rock sister-act Fionn (also known as Alanna and Brianne) have two live shows coming up this month to celebrate the inking of contracts with 604 Records and new manager Jonathan Simkin (Nickelback, Carly-Rae Jepsen, Mariana’s Trench and Coleman Hell) – not to mention just graduating high school.
They’ll be playing The Cannery in Steveston at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, July 22 in a show to be taped by Shaw Cable for broadcast throughout August.
And they’ve also been added to the line-up of the TD Concerts at the Pier series of free concerts, for the Saturday, July 23 show, starting at 7 p.m. at the RE/MAX Live stage next to White Rock Museum and Archives on Marine Drive.
Concerts at the Pier
The TD Concerts at the Pier series switches venue this Saturday night (July 16) to the Five Corners business district – in honour of the annual Tour de White Rock event (performances start at 8 p.m., following the Criterium cycle races).
The evening will feature the exciting local debut of headliners The Moulettes, one of the U.K.’s strongest – and most individual – independent bands.
Standing out from the pack in the current Bjork/Kate Bush-influenced alt. folk wave may be a difficult trick, but The Moulettes – a blend of self-taught and classically-trained musicians who started out playing together in school – have managed it with their own unusual fusion of acoustic and electric instruments.
Feeding vocals, cello, violins, guitars, drums, bassoon, double bass, brass and synths through pedals and valve amps, they weave multiple genres into their own pop/rock/folk sound, which has been described as “breathtaking” in live performance.
Featured act Twin River is a Canadian band based on the collaboration of Montreal singer-guitarist Courtney Ewan and Vancouver-based lead guitarist Andy Bishop, with a promo blurb that promises “fiery rock scorchers that channel peppy pop catchiness with an undercurrent of atmospheric synth-infused darkness.”
The series continues on Saturday nights throughout July and August as the city and the White Rock Business Improvement Association strive to build the city’s reputation as a destination for live music fans.
On July 23, the series returns to Marine Drive (and the regular 7 p.m. starting time) with the above-mentioned Fionn, Beyond The Eyes, Field Study and The Washboard Union; followed on Aug. 6 by CBC Music Searchlight winner Desiree Dawson and Ava Carich, Jordan Klassen, and Dustin Bentall & The Smokes.
On Aug. 13 opening acts Sean & The Strangers and Joshua Hyslop will lead into headliner Dave Jacobs-Strain; and the series wraps Aug. 20 with Richard Tichelman, JP Maurice and Harry Manx.
Dr. Strangelove
The music continues this Friday (July 15) at 8 p.m. at White Rock’s Blue Frog Studios with popular six-piece dance band Dr. Strangelove.
A mainstay of Vancouver’s live music scene – with the ability to bounce effortlessly between styles as diverse as The Beatles and Lady Gaga – Dr. Strangelove is also known for shows that are highly audience-interactive, always humorous, and sometimes a bit naughty.
Promising an evening of dancing and entertainment based on a “vast and varied repertoire,” the band’s two female and three male lead vocalists also welcome audience requests.
The venue is located at 1328 Johnston Rd.; tickets are available at 604-542-3055 or through www.bluefrogstudios.ca
Red Beans & Rice
The White Rock Traditional Jazz Society house band Red Beans & Rice – led by Ocean Park-based cornetist/leader Rice Honeywell – is keeping Club 240 (the Royal Canadian Legion Crescent Branch) jumping with a summer series for listeners and dancers, 2 to 5 p.m. each Sunday during the society’s hiatus.
Next session is July 10.
Red Beans & Rice also includes regular sidemen Ray Batten (trombone and vocals), Gerry Green (reeds), Peg Thomson (piano), Don Ogilvie (guitar), Casey Tolhurst (bass) and Scott Robertson (drums).
The band can also be caught some Fridays at 6:30 p.m. at Porter’s Bistro, in Langley’s Murrayville district (for more information, call 604-530-5297).
Admission to the Sunday shows is $10 for WRTJS and Legion members, $12 for everybody else.
The venue is located at 2643 128 St.
Barrymore’s Ghost
Actor John Cousins (featured in last season’s White Rock Players Club production I Hate Hamlet) revisits familiar territory – and a celebrated, larger-than-life theatrical character – with Barrymore’s Ghost , opening tonight (July 13) at Coast Capital Playhouse, and running until July 23.
Produced by The Page Theatre, Jason Miller’s play – directed by Dale Kelly – finds the legendary John Barrymore (Cousins) as a spectre haunting a present-day theatre in the midst of rehearsals.
As Barrymore relates to a young actor, the ‘great profile’ – who many had hailed as the finest classical actor of his generation – is in purgatory as punishment for abandoning the theatre and squandering his talents in pursuit of fame, greed and dissipation.
The playhouse is located at 1532 Johnston Rd.
Tickets (previews July 13-14, $10; all other nights $15, are available at the boxoffice, 604-536-7535 or online at www.whiterockplayers.ca/tickets
Body Parts
The ever-interesting, challenging and dynamic painting of local legend Elizabeth Hollick will be showcased until July 20 at Semiahmoo Arts’ Turnbull Gallery at the South Surrey Recreation and Arts Centre, 14601 20 Ave.
Titled Body Parts In Unexpected Places, the new show is inspired by the artist’s health-motivated ruminations on human anatomy – which, with typical unconventionality, she relates to physical features of the geography of South Surrey and White Rock.
The artist will also be in attendance at the gallery each Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Pop-Up art
The Uptown Art Affair, a cross-disciplinary set of local artists, have taken over the City of White Rock’s Pop-Up Town space, at 1459B Johnston Rd., until July 28.
Among the assemblage of talents are artists-in-residence Sherron Fairbairn and Georgina Johnstone; photographers Geoff Milne and Joci Sirak; balloon and party embellishment artist Heather Crawford; and singer-songwriter Ron Fairbairn (with special guest guitarist Craig McGregor).
The Uptown Art Affair’s tenure will also include a workshop on creating a leather-bound journal by artist Jess Rice.
For full information on upcoming demos and workshops, visit www.facebook.com/uptownartaffairwhiterock/
Volunteers needed
There’s an immediate opportunity for those seeking volunteer work – and valuable experience – in the arts throughout the summer, as Outside the Box, ‘A Celebration of Fibre – Plus’ gears up for its 2016 city-wide festival in September.
Artistic director Alicia Ballard says OTB is looking forward to expanding the festival this year to include all forms of artistic expression – including mixed-media, 3D and the culinary arts.
Volunteers are needed for positions in public relations and marketing, acquisitions and sponsorships, media and information technology and videography, as well as volunteers at large, she said.
Organizers are also extending an invitation to all local eateries, cafes, and other businesses in the city to get involved, and encouraging new participants.
Those with enthusiasm and appropriate qualifications are asked to contact Ballard at studiogaleria@gmail.com
Artists interested in being involved should visit http://outsidetheboxwhiterock.blogspot.ca
Lisa Brokop
Surrey-raised country songbird Lisa Brokop returns to her roots for an intimate show at White Rock’s Blue Frog Studios, July 22 at 7 p.m.
The Nashville-based singer-songwriter – working with sister-act Carly and Britt McKillip (One More Girl) as her backup band – will revisit favourites from her 25-year career, plus songs from her most recent show The Patsy Cline Project, in which she pays tribute to the traditional country music that was her original inspiration.
The venue is located at 1328 Johnston Rd.; tickets are available at 604-542-3055 or through www.bluefrogstudios.ca
Swing City
Peninsula-based band Swing City – in partnership with Legion 240 Crescent Branch – is presenting a series of summer dances for ballroom enthusiasts.
Upcoming dates are July 22, Aug. 12 and Aug. 26 from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. Formerly known as the Blue Echoes, Swing City boasts a wide repertoire of fox trots, waltzes and Latin numbers and has built up a following of ballroom-style dancers over the last 20 years.
Admission (at the door) is $15 per couple and $8 for single participants. The venue is located at 2643 128 St.
Beach House Theatre Society
Online sales are open now for the return of summer theatre to Blackie Spit (Crescent Beach) in August, as Beach House Theatre Society readies another short season for its state-of-the-art tent theatre.
The community-based group’s fifth season will feature the contemporary comedy The Foreigner, by Larry Shue, directed by Candace Radcliffe and Rick Harmon, Aug. 9 to 14 (8 p.m. performances), plus a fun adaptation of Aesop’s Fables, directed by Courtney Shields geared to children and family audiences, Aug. 10 to 14 (11 a.m. performances).
The Foreigner stars Beach House regular James Walker, recently returned from studies at New York’s Circle in The Square Theatre, as Charlie Baker.
A shy British proofreader seeking respite from his troubles, Charlie comes to a fishing lodge resort in rural Georgia, adopting the persona of a ‘foreigner’ who doesn’t understand English.
Among familiar faces to local audiences will be Michelle Collier (Lady Bracknell in last year’s The Importance of Being Earnest) as Betty, Charlie’s friendly but naive landlady, Rebekah MacEwan as Catherine Simms, a young heiress, and Jacob Hildebrand as Ellard, Catherine’s inhibited and underestimated brother.
The Foreigner is presented with a warning of some coarse language and themes of intolerance.
For tickets and information, visit www.beachhousetheatre.org
Sunshine at night
There’s something special about open mic evenings – not only are you likely to hear a variety of music that most venue programmers can’t present, but you might just catch an early performance by a rising star, or a surprise appearance by an established performer trying some new material.
Semiahmoo Peninsula open mic king Dennis Peterson – a man with a good eye for White Rock and South Surrey’s growing pool of experienced and developing talents – is offering a regular show, 6-9 p.m. most Saturdays at The Good Day Sunshine Cafe, #100-2950 King George Hwy.
With dinner, drinks and dessert also on the menu, it’s a good venue to settle in for an evening of unexpected musical treats.
Morrison Music Nights
Morrison Cafe’s Morrison Music Nights is a regular monthly dinner/concert series in Ocean Park, offering a three-course fine-dining-with-music experience in the licensed venue.
On music nights, dinner is served from 5 p.m., followed by the concert, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Tickets for the monthly presentations ($40) are available at the cafe, at 12855-16th Ave.
The series is being coordinated by well-known musician Randy Schultz, who said it fits in with his long-standing objective of developing local venues capable of providing viable showcases for chronically under-valued professional musicians, rather than simply offering the more usual ‘open mic’ opportunities.
For more information, call 604-531-3636 or 604-721-0872.
Young actors sought
There’s still a chance for young actors to audition for a highly-regarded theatre company.
Susan Pendleton’s Young People’s Theatre Company of Surrey (SYTCO) has opened up a few spots for boys and girls in grades 7-10.
Contact sytco@shaw.ca for audition information.
Orchestral recruits
The White Rock Community Orchestra has openings for double bass players and string players – especially violinists and violists. New woodwind and brass players are also welcome. For details, call Don Miller at 604-807-0560 or email papadon1812@hotmail.com, or visit http://whiterockcommunityorchestra.org
Symphonists sought
Now celebrating its 30th concert season, the Fraser Valley Symphony is seeking new members in the violin, viola and percussion sections, but also welcomes inquiries from other interested professional-calibre musicians.
Performing alongside world class instrumental and vocal soloists, the orchestra provides an opportunity for auditioned musicians to present a variety of music to audiences throughout the region.
Rehearsals are held on Monday evenings, in Abbotsford.
Contact info@fraservalleysymphony.org or call 604-859-3877.
