alex.browne@peacearchnews.com
Outside The Box
Supported in its sixth year by a grant from the City of White Rock, the Outside The Box festival – originally a showcase of the potential fibre arts – has expanded its horizons to include all forms of artistic expression in what OTB artistic director Alicia Ballard terms “a celebration of fibre – plus.”
Highlighting that expanded outlook, the festival has not one, but three separate opening events this week.
On Thursday (Sept. 1) at 1:30 pm. White Rock Library (15342 Buena Vista Ave.) – which will feature related displays and events throughout the month – a launch of the festival will include opening remarks by Mayor Wayne Baldwin, the display A Touch of Green by the Cutting Edge Mixed Media Art Group and dancing by Shyama-Priya.
On Saturday (Sept. 3) at 1:30 p.m. the White Rock Community Centre (15154 Russell Ave.) will host an opening featuring a fusion dance piece by Kat Siemens together with Jill Tunbridge of Flamenco del Mar. Showcased at that location will be the exhibit Wood Diamonds and Other Eccentricities (“from the mischievous to the audacious, a mixed-media experience for everyone,” Ballard said).
And on Sunday (Sept. 4) 1-5 p.m., an open house at the Arnold Mikelson Mind and Matter Gallery (13743 16 Ave.) will launch Outside The Box Month with a display of works by Elizabeth Carefoot, Thelma Newbury, Mary Mikelson, Arnold Mikelson, Ashley Jackson, Valerie Grimmel, Eileen Fong, Bob Gonzales, Anita Lindblom, Robert McMurray, Millie Meerheim, Shirley Thomas, Elmer Gunderson and David Kilpatrick.
The gallery is open daily from noon to 6 p.m. (for more information, call 604-536-6460 or visit mindandmatterart.com).
For more information about the festival, visit https://www.facebook.com/
OutsideTheBoxWhiteRock/
Pop Up-Town
Arts For Everyone, a celebration of Semiahmoo Arts members and partner groups (including the Semiahmoo Potters and the South Surrey White Rock Art Society) is the attraction for September in the City of White Rock’s Pop-Up Town space, 1459B Johnston Rd.
From Sept. 2-29 the gallery will showcase artwork by members for sale or rent, and there will be a series of workshops and other events throughout the month.
The Postcard Short Story project (Sept. 1-25) invites public participants to write an ultra-short story on one of the supplied postcards (or one they provide), which will become part of a month-long display (writers may even be invited to read their stories at the closing reception).
Workshops topics will include ekphrastic (inspired by visual arts) writing (with poet Heidi Greco, Sept. 2); fundamentals of coloured pencil art (Sept. 4); an introduction to silk painting (Sept. 7); ‘Dream Worlds’ – collage for children (with Saskia Schanz, Sept. 11); stamp carving and mark making (with Nicci Battilana, Sept. 13); painting with plant pigments (with Bobbi Hammersley, Sept. 14); ‘Big Eye’ art in watercolour (with Battilana, Sept. 16).
Other events at Pop-Up Town will include the Zero to 360 literary open mic (Sept. 8); and Surrey Youth Theatre Company’s Bedtime and Naptime Theatre for children two to seven years old (Sept. 16-17).
The gallery is open Wednesdays, Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Thursday and Friday from noon to 8 p.m.
For times and details of events and workshops, visit www.semiahmooarts.com
Blue Frog
One of the most requested acts at White Rock’s Blue Frog Studios – blues guitar master and singer Kal David – is returning Friday, Sept. 9 (at 7 p.m.) and Saturday, Sept. 10 (7 and 9:30 p.m. shows).
Named as a go-to guitar player by such luminaries as Johnny Rivers and John Mayall, David will be joined by dynamic vocalist Lauri Bono for an evening of “fiery blues and R&B.”
Among the duo’s impeccable credentials: David replaced Mick Taylor as lead guitarist and featured vocalist with Mayall’s Bluesbreakers and toured extensively with blues great Etta James before launching his own solo career; Bono followed a stint as a Bette Midler ‘Harlette’ before joining James – which is how she met David.
Also coming up at Blue Frog, on Sunday, Sept. 11, 7 p.m. is an evening with Vancouver-based jazz trumpeter/composer Vince Mai and the fellow members of his Quintet (Miles Black, piano; Dave Robbins, drums; Daryl Jahnke, guitar and Miles Hill, bass).
Featured on literally hundreds of recordings, including film, television and commercial soundtracks, Mai will be showcasing music he wrote for the 2015 Canadian film Rehearsal, a score redolent of the bop and post-bop era and such jazzmen as Miles Davis, Nat Adderley, Bill Evans, Wes Montgomery and Freddie Hubbard.
The venue is located at 1328 Johnston Rd.; tickets are available at 604-542-3055 or to book seats online – or find information on other Blue Frog concerts – visit www.bluefrogstudios.ca
Pinocchio auditions
The Fraser Valley Gilbert and Sullivan Society is auditioning actors singers and dancers for its upcoming Christmas season show, Pinocchio the Panto.
Auditions will take place Thursday, Sept. 1 at St. Cuthbert’s Anglican Church (11601 82 Ave.) and Tuesday, Sept. 6 in the Arbour Room at Valley View Funeral Home (14644 72 Ave.)
Those auditioning should come prepared with a solo with an audio track or sheet music, and a joke.
Callbacks will be on Thursday, Sept. 8.
To book an audition, email fvgssproducer@gmail.com
Rehearsals for Pinocchio the Panto will be on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday evenings.
The show will be performed from Nov. 24 to Dec. 4 at the Surrey Arts Centre.
Sculptor talk
Master clay artist Keith Rice-Jones will give an illustrated talk on his 40-year creative evolution – from wood working to ceramics – and the cultural and artistic influences that helped shape his work, on Sept. 8, as part of the Surrey Art Gallery Association’s (SAGA) Thursday Artist Talk series.
The talk, From Cabinet Maker to Ceramic Sculptor, will take place 7:30-9 p.m. at the Surrey Art Gallery (13750 88 Ave.).
The influences and sources for Rice-Jones’s ceramics are broad – from Neolithic Cycladic figurines and historical African masks to Easter Island statues and modernist sculptures.
Originally trained in England as a woodworker, he discovered clay in the early 1970s and says it has been both “a compulsion and ongoing journey of discovery” ever since.
While the majority of his earlier work consisted of stylized functional vessels, his current focus is on monumental sculptural work, examples of which – pieces from his Organic and Geometric Series, large-scale assembled sculptures made from molded and sculpted forms – can be seen in the Surrey Arts Centre’s reflecting pool.
Sun Dogs and Yellowcake
South Surrey author Patricia Sandberg will launch her book Sun Dogs and Yellowcake on Wednesday, Sept. 14 at 7 p.m. at the Turnbull Gallery, South Surrey Recreation and Arts Centre, 14601 – 20 Ave.
Based on interviews with some 150 former residents of Gunnar, North Saskatchewan, it traces the story of a short-lived but close-knit community (1954-1964) built to house miners, families and support workers at the Gunnar uranium mine on the shores of Lake Athabasca.
In her book Sandberg – who lived there as a child – has filled in a missing page in the history of Canada at the dawn of the nuclear age, paid tribute to the enterprise and values of the people of Gunnar and also described the Saskatchewan government’s latter-day work to remedy environmental issues left over from an earlier, more innocent era.
Lovingly Arrogant
Peninsula writer and Peace Arch News columnist April Lewis’ first book, Lovingly Arrogant – From Chaos to Contentment, will have its official launch Saturday, Sept. 17 from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Arthur Murray Dance Studio, 15151 Russell Ave.
Described by the author as “a compilation of newspaper columns, blogs and musings,” the book is part memoir, part philosophy, as she shares her personal journey through a “roller-coaster ride of midlife reinvention” tackling issues and challenges such as loss, family, aging, well-being, grief, love, gratitude dating and sex.
Trad jazz
The White Rock Traditional Jazz Society’s season of regular Sunday afternoon dances will be back at Club 240 (the Royal Canadian Legion Crescent Branch) 2 to 5 p.m., Sept. 25.
Season opener will feature Lloyd Arntzen’s Three Generations Jazz Band and the Holly Arntzen Jazz Band.
Admission is $10 for WRTJS members, $15 for everybody else; tickets are available from 604-591-7275.
The venue is located at 2643 128 St.
WRTJS’ house band, Red Beans and Rice, led by Ocean Park’s Rice Honeywell, 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).
Vaudevillians
A non-profit seniors’ entertainment troupe is looking for new members in a variety of roles and positions within the organization.
The Vaudevillians have been performing throughout the Lower Mainland since 2002.
The group is currently restructuring and looking for personnel, including a new artistic director to oversee the 2016 show and rehearsals – and to write and cast the show for 2017.
The Vaudevillians are also looking for an M.C. – someone who’s comfortable on stage, able to relate to and connect with the audience, introduce numbers and tell some jokes.
New members are also needed to fill the following positions: sound tech, backstage manager, and as performers (singers, dancers, comedians).
Except for the position of artistic director, who is eligible for an annual honorarium, these are all volunteer positions.
For further information, visit thevaudevillians.com or contact entertainment@thevaudevillians.com.
Proposals sought
The City of White Rock has issued a request for proposals for creation and installation of a $90,000 public art piece at Marine Drive and Oxford Street.
The art work will be situated in a new public plaza being created as part of the development on the former site of the White Rock Muffler Shop.
The invitation for proposals asks that artists incorporate two themes: the former muffler shop, which had a 39-year history in the city; and the 37 year-old Tour de White Rock cycling race event, which passes the site each year.
Artists or artist teams have until Sept. 20 to submit proposals. A committee will select five finalists to develop concepts – each being paid an honorarium of $2,000 – before one is awarded a contract in October.
Installation is scheduled for fall 2017.
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, and there’s no restriction on taking pictures of the performers (although Peterson asks that anyone wanting to video record a performance seek advance permission of the artist).
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 (Swamp City), 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.
Orchestral recruits
The more than four decades–old White Rock Community Orchestra, now led by newly-appointed conductor Paula DeWit, welcomes new musicians of all experience levels, and is currently seeking violin, viola, oboe, bassoon and saxophone players.
For details, call president Don Miller at 604-807-0560 or email papadon1812@hotmail.com, or visit http://whiterockcommunityorchestra.org
Call for symphonists
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.
