Moonlight and Magnolias
There’s one more chance to see the most recent White Rock Players Club production, Moonlight and Magnolias by Ron Hutchinson, directed by Ryan Mooney.
The fly-on-the-wall Hollywood comedy, about the real life last-minute rewrite of the script during production of the 1939 classic Gone With The Wind, will be featured this Friday (May 9) at 8 p.m. at Vancouver’s Metro Theatre (1370 SW Marine Dr.) as part of the current Theatre B.C. Vancouver Zone Festival.
The festival wraps up Saturday night with an awards gala, in which the White Rock production will be in contention to travel to the Theatre B.C. provincial finals in Kamloops in July.
Moonlight and Magnolias – featuring Fred Partridge as producer David O. Selznick, Ryan Johnston as director Victor Fleming, Laine Henderson as secretary Miss Poppenghul and Paul Ferancik in a scene-stealing performance as writer and script doctor Ben Hecht – is competing with four other area groups (including New Westminster’s Vagabond Players) for a shot at the finals, and also for a series of awards recognizing individual and group accomplishments at the festival.
Tickets (from $20) are available at theatrebc.org/tickets or at the door.
HMS Pinafore
Fraser Valley Gilbert and Sullivan Society’s latest production of the famed librettist-composer team’s satirical HMS Pinafore occupies its berth at Coast Capital Playhouse (1532 Johnston Rd.) until May 10, with performances at 8 p.m.
Directed by Jaquollyne Keath, with musical direction by Kerry O’Donovan and choreography by Carol Seitz, the production features James Walker as Sir Joseph Porter, First Lord of the Admiralty, Dodi Barillec as captain’s daughter Josephine, Mike Friesen as her beloved, lowly sailor Ralph Rackstraw, and Paul Beckett as the Captain.
Also featured in the cast will be Breanna Branson as Buttercup, Kevin F. Hrankowski as the Boatswain, Clive Ramroop as Dick Deadeye and Elaine Francis as Hebe.
For tickets ($27, $24) call 604-536-7535 or visit www.whiterockplayers.ca
Bella Mamma
Mother’s Day is the theme of a pair of operatic recitals, ‘Bella Mamma’, in the intimate environs of Blue Frog Studios (1328 Johnston Rd.) this weekend (May 9 and May 11) featuring White Rock soprano Shadan Saul, tenor Sunny Shams and collaborative pianist David Boothroyd.
Saul and Shams, who met as opera students at UBC, have sung leading roles in Puccini’s La Boheme, Lehar’s The Merry Widow and Bizet’s Carmen and have been featured in concerts with the Victoria and Vancouver symphonies and the Palm Court Light Orchestra.
They returned to B.C. late last year after a two month sojourn in Spain in which they had the opportunity to study with legendary soprano Montserrat Caballe.
The Bella Mamma program highlights timeless classics, including excerpts from La Boheme and Dvorak’s Rusalka, and also the operettas of Lehar, Johann Strauss Jr. and Sigmund Romberg .
This Friday (May 9) at 7 p.m. the Blue Frog space will be configured cabaret-fashion with dining tables for an extravagant treat featuring hors d’oeuvres by Jan’s on the Beach and selection of wines available through a cash bar.
The same recital will be presented in more simple concert style at the venue on Mother’s Day (Sunday, May 11) at 2 p.m. with a coffee and tea reception to follow.
Tickets are $40 for Friday (beverages extra) and $25 for Sunday, available (cash only) from Century 21 Seaside Realty, Asberry and Logan – The Art of Flowers and Tapestry Music.
Arts Centre opening
Grand opening of the South Surrey Recreation and Arts Centre – a new base for Semiahmoo Arts, the South Surrey and White Rock Arts Society and the Semiahmoo Potters Club – will be Saturday, May 10 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
It’ll be an opportunity for the public to get a first-hand view of the newly expanded facility, at 14601 20 Ave.
Live music and entertainment, a public art unveiling, community demonstrations and family activities – including face painting – will be part of the celebration.
The expansion includes 5,300 sq. ft. of dedicated arts space, including a multi-purpose arts room, visual arts studio, pottery studio, cafe and expanded lobby, as well as recreational features such as a spin studio, a fitness studio, a weight room and a child-minding room.
Development of the facility represents a partnership between the City of Surrey, Semiahmoo Arts, the South Surrey and White Rock Art Society, the Semiahmoo Potters Club, Arts Umbrella and the Surrey YMCA.
For more information on the South Surrey Recreation and Arts Centre, call 604-592-6970, or visit http://www.surrey.ca/southsurrey
Photography show
A retrospective of the work of South Surrey photographer Don Hudson from 1978 to the present is being featured for the month of May at Good Day Sunshine Cafe, 100 – 2950 King George Blvd., with an artist’s reception Saturday (May 10), 3 – 5 p.m. at the cafe.
Hudson, who began photographing in the early `60s with his family’s Kodak Brownie, progressed to Nikkormat and Nikon 35 mm cameras. Today his choice of equipment includes Nikon digital cameras, a Hasselblad 500CM, a Sinar 4×5 format view camera and a Cambo 8×10 view camera.
Among his influences he counts the work of Ansel Adams, Edward Weston, Alfred Stieglitz, Dorothea Lange, Henri Cartier-Bresson and Frederick Evans.
The arts-friendly cafe also features a live music open mic hosted by Dennis Peterson the first and third Saturday of each month (sometimes even the fifth), occasional solo-to-trio concerts on other Saturdays, a monthly ‘art journal jam’ with Violette Clark, and painting workshops with Ellen Bradley-Cheung once or twice a month. For more information on all events, call 778-989-0369.
Flamenco spring show
South Surrey-based Flamenco del Mar Spanish Dance Studio’s annual spring show returns with two performances at Ocean Park Community Hall this week – an evening show Saturday (May 10) at 7 p.m. and a Mother’s Day matinee at 3 p.m. on Sunday (May 11).
As always, the show’s aim is to celebrate and capture the essence of the dance and music form that has transcended its Spanish roots to become truly international – a passion for Flamenco del Mar founder Jill Tunbridge almost from the time she first started dancing at the age of three in her hometown in Cape Town, South Africa.
Over the past decade she has developed a local company that includes a wide cross-section of ages and cultural backgrounds, but is marked by both technical mastery and an authentic passion for the form.
Company members in the current show include Kawal Varpaul, Rhona Segarra, Zahra Magel, Alessia Haney, Maria Reeves, Julia Rieberger, Onadee McKenna, Anahi Palomec and Emma Lee.
Reflecting Tunbridge’s belief that all dance – and art – forms are fundamentally interrelated, this weekend’s program also has a distinctly Canadian multi-cultural flavour: Palomec’s brother and McKenna’s half-brother Zack Palomec will perform his First Nations Pow-Wow dance – a studio tradition as an opening invocation for the past several years – while Varpaul and a dance partner will also introduce a traditional belly dance number.
Ocean Park Community Hall is located at 1577 128 St.
Tickets are available by calling 604-542-2096, at Christopher’s Gifts in Ocean Park, or at the door.
Chamber Music
White Rock Chamber Music’s next concert takes place Saturday (May 10) at 7:30 p.m. at Crescent Gardens Retirement Residence, 1222 King George Blvd. featuring Evan and Aiden Chaw, piano; the Soul of the World Multicultural Choir, the Hummingbird vocal trio, and the Sandpiper Recorder Ensemble.
The Soul of the World Multicultural Choir is a no-audition, all ages, community choir directed by Heidi McCurdy that aims to bring people together through the rhythms and poetic language of the world, featuring international music and inspirational collaborative songs.
Admission is a suggested $5.00 donation with proceeds going to Peninsula Arts Foundation towards music scholarships for youth of the Semiahmoo Peninsula.
Mamma Mia
Latest in husband-wife, soprano-tenor team Christopher Simmons and Debra Da Vaughn’s ongoing series of ‘St. Mark’s Concerts’ will take place on Mother’s Day (Sunday, May 11) at 3 p.m. at St. Mark’s Anglican Church, 12953 20 Ave.
Mamma Mia! will bring the together with some favourite fellow music-makers: mezzo soprano Tamara Croft, baritone Andrew Greenwood, pianist Karen Lee-Morlang and guitarist Francis van Roode for a celebration of classical and pop melodies dedicated to mothers and all aspects of motherhood.
Included will be a special section acknowledging those who have lost children, including beautiful selections on the theme from composers as varied as Gustav Mahler and Eric Clapton.
The joys of motherhood won’t be neglected, or course, with a wide selection of music ranging from Elvis Presley’s The Wonder Of You to Cesare Andrea Bixio’s Mamma, Richard Strauss’ Fruhlingsleid, Johannes Brahms’ Weigenlied and Reba McIntyre’s When You Have A Child.
Other songs focus on everything from becoming a mom (Celine Dion’s Miracle), to the challenges of being a mom (The Mom Song) – and even include the 1950s ditty Mother-In-Law.
Tickets ($15, supporting St. Mark’s music programs) are available from 800-838-3006 or online at http://mammamia.brownpapertickets.com
Traditional jazz
The sounds of Dixieland and retro jazz continue through the spring with White Rock Traditional Jazz Society’s regular sessions from 3 to 6 p.m. most Sundays at the Royal Canadian Legion Crescent Branch 240 (2643 128 St.).
Admission is $10 ($8 for members).
Coming up are The Square Pegs Jazzy Band (May 11), the WRTJS Youth Camp Faculty Band (May 18, ticket price $15 to benefit the society’s Youth Program), Uptown Lowdown Lite (May 25), The Holly Arntzen Jazz Band (June 1), and The Crescent City Shakers (June 8).
The society’s popular tea dance event (with music by the Scott Robertson Trio) continues on May 22, 2-4 p.m., with proceeds to the Youth Program.
Red Beans & Rice , including leader Rice Honeywell Sr. (or pinch-hitter Leigh Smith) on cornet and vocals, Gerry Green (reeds), Ray Batten (trombone, vocals), and Casey Tolhurst (bass), can also be caught at Porter’s Bistro, 21611 48 Ave., in Langley’s historic Murrayville, most Friday nights from 7 p.m. (call ahead to confirm and for reservations at 604-530-5297).
Youth artists
A group exhibition of work by young artists is being presented by the City of White Rock and Semiahmoo Arts until June 13 at White Rock Community Centre, 15154 Russell Ave.
Youth Artists from the Semiahmoo Peninsula features work by students from Earl Marriott Secondary, Semiahmoo Secondary, White Rock Christian Academy and Southridge Secondary.
The juried show features awards ($55 first prize, $30 second and $10 third) plus a peopl’s choice award to be presented at the conclusion of the exhibition.
The exhibition is part of White Rock and Semiahmoo Arts’ ongoing Art on Display program, which presents between five and eight themed and juried shows each year.
The centre is open Monday through Thursday 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Mind and Matter
Currently featured at the Arnold Mikelson Mind and Matter Gallery (13743 16 Ave.) are works by painter Georgina Johnstone, country folk artist Ilona Fekete, and fused-glass artist Valerie Eibner.
English born and raised, Johnstone studied printed textile design and the history of costume, but began exploring other art media after she moved to Canada in 1973. Her landscapes, seascapes, still-lifes and floral studies, available as originals, or in giclee prints, are mainly in acrylics.
Hungarian-born, Fekete grew up surrounded by traditional crafts such as crochet and fine-needle embroidery, but has latterly concentrated on naive paintings inspired by everyday life in a rural setting, featuring bold colours and whimsical simplicity.
Canadian artist Eibner has followed a long journey of artistic development, including work in sculpture and pottery, before focusing on fused and stained glass as her preferred medium.
The gallery is open daily from noon to 6 p.m.; for more information, call 604-536-6460.
Barefoot in the Park
White Rock Players Club’s next production, Neil Simon’s Barefoot In The Park, directed by Marko Hohlbein, runs June 4-21 at Coast Capital Playhouse, 1532 Johnston Rd.
Performances are at 8 p.m., with a June 15 matinee at 2:30 p.m.
The comedy about the stresses of newlywed life features Becca Strom and Players Club artistic director Ryan Mooney as young couple Corrie and Paul, with Cindy Peterson as Mrs. Banks and Raymond Hatton as Victor.
Tickets are $18, $16 (students, seniors and Coast Capital members) including taxes and fees, and are available from 604-=536-7535 or online at www.whiterockplayers.ca
Singers wanted
Pacific Showtime Men’s Chorus, based in Ocean Park, rehearses Monday nights at 7:30 p.m. at St. Mark’s Church, 12953 20 Ave.
The small community chorus of experienced singers is currently seeking new members for all vocal ranges: lead, tenor, baritone and bass.
Offering a big sound in a variety of musical styles, Pacific Showtime has been featured at a many different Lower Mainland events, including show productions, concerts and private functions.
The repertoire is designed to include songs and a singing style that appeal to a wide variety of music preferences, with emphasis on entertainment value, and chance to develop singing skills while having fun and enjoying camaraderie.
Male singers are invited to attend rehearsals to check out the group and, hopefully, join in.
For more information, call 604-536-5292 or email leighand@shaw.ca
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.
