Vancouver Events & Related News

As arduous filmmaking goes, the physical trials that Steve Carell faced in Dinner for Schmucks were a mite devilish.

Bruce Sweeney tackled a taboo subject of male sexual dysfunction for his fifth feature film because it was uncharted territory.

The NFB short documentary, directed by Elizabeth St. Philip, exposes the systemic disadvantages faced by minority models like Jamaican Canadian Renee Thompson.

MY GRANNY THE GOLDFISH April 15–May 15, 2010 | New Revue Stage Because Blood Is Thicker than Whiskey Hypochondria, claustrophobia, germaphobia—oh, my! When Nico, a young Indian student in Vancouver, is hospitalized, his grandmother, armed with nothing more than a whiskey bottle, arrives from Bombay. Despite Nico’s protests, her visit may be just the cure-all he needs. Irreverently funny, My Granny the Goldfish is a tale of finding truth and love in the midst of morphine and bedpans. By Anosh Irani Starring Balinder Johal, Shaker Paleja, David Adams, Veena Sood Directed by Lois Anderson Set Designer Amir Ofek Costume Designer Carmen Alatorre Lighting Designer Ted Roberts Stage Manager Angela Beaulieu Assistant Stage Manager Sarah Pearson

Buy Tickets and find great prices on sold-out tickets to Vancouver Canucks vs. Los Angeles Kings in Vancouver at General Motors Place. Buy your Vancouver Vancouver Canucks vs. Los Angeles Kings tickets at UQ Events before they sell out completely.

'Awakening the Virgin Archetype' is the first workshop since the launch of Kim Hudson's new book, The Virgin's Promise. This new story structure describes stories of bringing your dream to life. The Virgin archetype sets out on a path of self-fulfillment despite the wishes of her community. She must explore her creative, spiritual, or sexual awakening or suffer sever psychological damage. Equally used for male and female protagonists, it is the structure in films such as Fight Club, Precious, Pretty Woman, Ever After, Brokeback Mountain, and Rocky.

BRIDGE MIX: ITSAZOO Productions and Enlightenment Theatre present Bridge Mix: a collection of 9 ten-minute original theatre pieces by local emerging theatre companies, which takes place on three levels of the parkade at Pender and Thurlow. The companies include: ITSAZOO Productions, Enlightenment Theatre, Tiger Milk Collective, Upintheair Theatre, Genus Theatre, Spectral Theatre, Slam Ink, SNAFU, and the Peter and Chris Show. May 5-8 and 11-15, 8 pm. Metro Parkade, 1070 W Pender St. TIx: $14-18. Info/tix: http://www.itsazoo.org/home , or for cash only at the door.

SOLITUDE TRILOGY Schubert, Fauré, Brahms, O’Regan 8 pm Friday, November 5 Chan Centre for the Performing Arts Vancouver Chamber Choir Pacifica Singers Focus! Choir of College/University Singers Heidi Krutzen, harp Vancouver Chamber Orchestra Jon Washburn, conductor The beautiful acoustic of the Chan Centre will resonate with music for choir and orchestra, starting with Jon Washburn’s own orchestration of Gabriel Fauré’s luminous Messe basse. The men’s voices, divided into eight parts, are featured in Schubert’s haunting Song of the Spirits over the Waters. Then the women take centre stage for Brahms’ Four Songs for women’s voices, horns and harp, a unique and delightful combination. To conclude, we will present the world premiere performance of Solitude Trilogy for choir, strings and harp by the brilliant young British composer Tarik O’Regan - the fourth of our six 40th anniversary commissions. There will be a pre-concert talk by John William Trotter. Gabriel Fauré - Messe basse Franz Schubert - Gesang der Geister über dem Wassern Johannes Brahms - Vier Gesänge, Op.17 Tarik O’Regan - Solitude Trilogy world premiere For more information about the choir or for full details on our upcoming 2010-2011 concert season please visit www.vancouverchamberchoir.com or contact info@vancouverchamberchoir.com.

Buy Tickets and find great prices on sold-out tickets to She and Him in Vancouver at Orpheum Theatre - BC. Buy your Vancouver She and Him tickets at UQ Events before they sell out completely.

Come grab a bargain and a bite! There will be great deals, as well as a vegetarian BBQ and raffle draw! If you have any gently used items you would like to donate please contact 604 709 4652 The BC SPCA is a not-for-profit reliant on support from the community. Proceeds will support the BC SPCA’s care and protection of animals.

City of Bhangra - Vancouver International Bhangra Celebration (VIBC) is preparing its 6th annual City of Bhangra festival, April 29 – May 8, featuring the International Bhangra Competition. rePercussion (folk drumming from a variety of cultures) May 1 at the Vogue, DISorienting Bhangra forums May 5-8, Downtown Bhangra May 7 outdoor stage on the Vancouver Art Gallery Georgia St Plaza, and the International Bhangra Competition May 8 at Queen E Theatre. www.vibc.org

Vancouver-raised filmmaker Reginald Harkema reduces the Sharon Tate murder and subsequent trial to a stylized theatre piece, implicating the surrounding society for a climate that encouraged crazy excess in all directions.

Maury Chaykin, one of Canada's greatest gifts to the craft of acting, died today on his 61st birthday.

With an eclectic career spanning more than 35 years and over 150 roles in movies and TV shows, Maury was a workhorse of an actor who was rarely absent from our screens. Although he appeared in a number of big-budget American movies and TV shows such as Dances With Wolves and Boston Legal, he was largely a character actor whose face was more recognizable than his name. That is, among the general population.

Within the Canadian film and television-making community, however, he was arguably one of the best-known and most respected actors of his generation.

A rare homegrown performer who maintained a successful career without leaving Canada, Maury Chaykin has been a staple performer and a fixture of the Canadian film and television industry since his first role in King of Kensington in 1978. In fact, you'd be hard-pressed to find a filmmaker or actor in Canada who hasn't worked with Maury at some point, and I would wager that every one of them would have good things to say about him. I am no exception.

Maury was like a father to me. At least, that was the case during the winter of 1988, when I played daughter Dolores to Maury's creepy-dad Floyd in the Vic Sarin-directed film Cold Comfort.

In a nutshell, the movie, based on James Garrard's play of the same name, tells the tale of a father and daughter whose disturbing relationship is pushed to equally disturbing limits by the introduction of a stranger into their isolated, insulated lives. Played by Paul Gross, the stranger is a travelling salesman who is pulled from a car crash by a tow truck driver and brought to the man's home to recuperate. The salesman's relief at being rescued quickly dissipates and then blossoms into terror as he realizes that he is being offered up as a sort of birthday present to the truck driver's housebound 16-year-old daughter, and so is not free to leave.

Creepy, like I said.

Maury did creepy exceptionally well. He also did funny exceptionally well, but his greatest talent lay in his ability to blend the two to wonderful, unnerving effect. This was an actor who could flip from lovable to sinister with a twitch of an eyebrow; the moist-eyed teddy bear with the icy heart of a homicidal madman. As Cold Comfort's Floyd; as reclusive rock star Desmond Howl in the 1994 film Whale Music; and as a tormented Major in Dances With Wolves, Maury did his best work in roles that allowed him to reach deep into the dark pockets of vulnerability and madness, and to pull out a crystallized insight into the human condition as unsettling as it is familiar.

With its scenes of violence and psychological torment and its undertones of incest, Cold Comfort could have been a very upsetting film to make, especially for a 17-year-old actress far away from home. But it wasn't, and I largely credit Maury for that. When the cameras stopped rolling, gone was the menacing character Floyd, and there was Maury, a warm and open-hearted friend, a mentor who led me wisely and responsibly through our most diffucult scenes, and a clown who brought much-needed light into our dark, heavy set.

My favourite lines in the film come not from the script-writer but from Maury, who slipped it into the scene. It's a poem that Floyd reads to Dolores over her brightly-burning birthday candles:

"My daughter, my daughter / Part of me, part of your mother / But mostly, part of me." It was pure Chaykin.

Whether he was working the script with me to find the beats in a challenging scene, or trying to throw me off-guard during my close-ups, Maury was both a rock-solid professional and a delightful rogue. I relied on him for his respectful reassurance, but also for his infectious, disarming irreverance that somehow lifted me up and let me know I was not alone.

Canada's arts community has lost a great treasure with Maury's passing, which came far too soon. I know I am not alone when I say: Thank you, my friend, for your talent, for your generosity as a performer, for your sense of humour, and for your warm heart. Thank you for your legacy of wonderful performances and the pleasure that they have brought to so many people. On set you have inspired us to be better actors and better directors. In life you have inspired us to be better friends.

You will be missed.

Come aboard and join us for an evening to remember on the Queen of Diamonds watching the fireworks explode on Canada Day! Boarding begins at 7:30, and we will cruise the harbour until 11:30pm. Included in your ticket, you receive: -3 hour cruise along the beautiful Vancouver coastline -Gourmet appetizer buffet -One FREE drink -1 Raffle ticket -Chances to WIN awesome prizes -Memorable performances by Tonye Aganaba and special guests -And of course the fabulous firework display in English Bay! *All profits benefit the Heart and Stroke Foundation* Pre-sale: $95.00 Door: $105.00 This event is 19+ Tickets available NOW through: www.VancouverCruises.com www.Clubzone.com http://www.clubzone.com/events/Vancouver/196817/Hearts-on-the-Harbour-Canada-day-Cruise-for-a-Cause For more information or to buy tickets in person please call: Bianca 604.537.1539 Katrina 778.866.7353 We look forward to seeing you there!

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