The Command Sisters on front line in war against bullying
Who better than teenagers to make an anti-bullying video? Sarah Command of the local folk duo the Command Sisters is 15 years old and has just started high school – on the front lines in what has become a hot button issue. “I definitely have had my fair share of bullying,” she says, referring to […]
DANCE: From Metallica to Brian Webb and Beethoven
You don’t often see “metal chicks” in the world of contemporary dance – or vice versa – at least not until the very real possibility that bands like Metallica will get a house gig in Las Vegas. Oh, it’s going to happen, you wait. And they need dancers for these things. Nancy Sandercock, who appears […]
Those who would be mayor face the public
If would be fun to pull out some of the best lines from Monday’s Mayor Candidate Forum held at the Shaw Conference Centre – they’re only slightly funnier out of context – so let’s do it: “We have to fish where the fish are.” – Kerry Diotte on inspiring the youth vote and social media’s […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: Austra extraordinary
Perhaps most interesting of an eclectic batch of artists coming through town over the next few days is Austra – the middle name of its extraordinary singer Katie Stelmanis, whose classical training shows through at each step and turn. Playing Tuesday, Oct. 8 at the Avenue Theatre, the Toronto synthpop act hit a chord with […]
EIFF REVIEW: Spinning Plates feeds heart and soul
Towards the very end of Joseph Levy’s acclaimed documentary Spinning Plates, airing Oct. 3 as part of the Edmonton International Film Festival, there is a defining moment. World-renowned chef Grant Achatz compares his ultra-expensive, ultra-exclusive Chicago restaurant to those hometown spots run by his parents when he was a kid. He says, “It’s the same […]
COMMENT: Mayor’s race a gong show
Edmonton has become embroiled in cheap mayoral politics – which is ironic as hell. The idea that three incumbents from this council could do anything cheaply must’ve been a shock to all of us. The latest is a shot at Don Iveson for having written a joking “Workers of the World Unite”-style satire piece in […]
EIFF REVIEW: Furry friends forever in Furever
The only thing missing in Furever is a visit to another country whose citizens aren’t so privileged, maybe one that doesn’t spend $52 billion a year on cats and dogs. In some places, people think we’re crazy for pampering what’s for dinner. It’s strangely ironic that the only place in the world you can get […]
EIFF REVIEW: Thanks for Sharing a sober look at sex ‘addiction’
If God allowed us to pick our addiction, who wouldn’t pick sex? No matter how many times you do it, you’re probably not going to get cirrhosis of the liver, bad skin, rotten teeth or lung cancer, provided you take the appropriate precautions. All you get out of it is a nice happy little rush […]
EIFF REVIEW: The Auctioneer like an Alberta landscape painting
Farm equipment doesn’t fetch much money at auctions these days. As Hans Olson’s languid but visually beautiful documentary The Auctioneer suggests, the family farm is dying out on the Prairies, and with the surging popularity of the Internet as a buying and selling source, so is auctioneering. Thus we see Vegreville auctioneer Dale Menzak also […]
THROUGH THE NEVER: Win Metallica schwag!
If the Apocalypse had a house band, Metallica would do nicely. Fans will get a chance to see just such a scenario in the metal superstars’ latest foray to the silver screen – “Metallica: Through the Never,” opening in IMAX 3D Sept. 27. Unlike Some Kind of Monster, this one is not a documentary. It […]
