SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL: Stephen Harper the Julius Caesar of his time?
Et tu, Ignatieff? Well, they don’t stab kings anymore. They just assassinate their character. But politics has changed little since politics was invented. Actor Kevin Sutley – who plays the titular character in William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar at the Freewill Shakespeare Festival – puts it like this, “This play is incredibly political, and it’s about […]
COMEDY: Sterling Scott to hit the next level with DVD taping
The allure of the professional stand-up comedy trade is powerful when you’ve become hooked on making people laugh. It can happen as early as childhood. Some call it a sickness, others an addiction, and there is no known cure, no comedic “methadone.” There is often nothing for it but to … become a professional stand-up […]
Painter Arlene Wasylynchuk wins new $10,000 arts prize
Edmonton’s newest arts award went to painter Arlene Wasylynchuk as she won the first $10,000 Eldon & Anne Foote Edmonton Visual Arts Prize, presented by the Visual Arts Alberta Association (VAAA) on June 20. “I’m really honoured,” said Wasylynchuk. “It was a great group to get short-listed with and it’s great for the city to […]
REVIEW: Bryan Adams takes fans back to ’80s
Escapism comes in many forms: rom-coms, daydreaming…. And Bryan Adams. With the Canadian icon’s endless list of sticky-sweet, hook-laden hits, listening to him is just like reading a good novel or eating half a pumpkin pie in one sitting. It just feels good. Adams passed down that comfort-zone spirit to the crowd at Rexall Place […]
Apocalyptic Pagan rock opera to premiere at North Country Fair
Here’s a devilish scenario: What if – of all religions – Paganism turns out to be the correct one? Like, hey, didn’t see that coming. Imagine: The Mother Earth Goddess, aka Gaia, has been beaten and raped by humanity. Her husband, meanwhile, doesn’t know because he’s been asleep for several hundred years following an epic […]
BRYAN’S SONGS: Now or never, all or nothing
Bryan Adams doesn’t do anything by half. It’s either now or never. There is no stalling for some indeterminate point in the near future. Everywhere you go, the kids wanna rock, not just certain places you go. The lack of direct empirical evidence doesn’t seem to matter. Has Bryan actually played everywhere just to make […]
ART: Voyer vistas explode with colour
Mind the stairs as you make your way into the new Sylvain Voyer landscape exhibit opening Saturday at the Douglas Udell Gallery. A huge poplar tree blazes yellow against a deep blue fall Alberta sky, pretty much spanning the big feature wall ― and here’s betting more than one visitor stumbles up the steps as […]
CYCLEROTIC TALES: Nice wheels, and the bike ain’t bad either
The following is from a news release by the Winnipeg Police that was issued on June 1 – the first day of Bike Month: A 21-year-old female was walking in the area of the St. James Cemetery when she noticed a man on a bike pass her a number of times. The female continued walking […]
City crime novelist wins $10,000 prize at Alberta Book Awards
Wayne Arthurson’s tale of life and death on the mean streets of Edmonton turns out to be a big hit with Alberta readers. The local author has won the top prize at the Alberta Book Awards – a $10,000 Alberta Reader’s Choice Award honouring his first novel, Fall From Grace, dealing with a gambling-addicted newspaper […]
Colin James to play the Jubilee Auditorium Nov. 15
He just came back to say … I’m back! Man, that Colin James joke never gets old, and yes, the multi-stylistic Vancouver veteran will return to perform at the Jubilee Auditorium on Thursday, Nov. 15. Tickets go on sale Friday. A man who never wears out his welcome in this town, James is touring with […]
Folk fest sells out in record time, Justin Bieber, too
Stop whatever has replaced presses: The Edmonton Folk Music Festival has sold out. Again. Like anybody didn’t see that coming. “It was crazy,” says producer Terry Wickham, who reports that 1,200 people showed up at the folk fest office to buy tickets in person at 9 p.m. Friday morning, where it’s usually around 400. Online […]
CONCERTS: Gotye to play Shaw Conference Centre Aug. 28
Wasn’t that just a song we used to know? Not yet – not until we can see it performed live. And of course Gotye is still going strong. With “Somebody That I Used To Know” hitting No. 1 in just about every country in the world, the Australian singer and his band are set to […]
