Nocturne for the kids

For full location details, see the Nocturne guide pull-out in this issue.

Provided bedtime doesn’t get in the way, Nocturne is a perfect time to rally the fam and hit the town. There are plenty of people to watch, lots of exciting projects waiting around every corner and, of course, the frisson of excitement that comes with wandering the city after dark. Almost all of Nocturne’s exhibits, performances and installations are family friendly but here are six projects that are guaranteed to produce gap-toothed grins.

Nick Iwasko’s Chroma promises to be a visual delight, combining projection mapping, augmented reality, music and circus performance. Aerial talent provided by Halifax Circus and fantastical projections of “celestial explosions, sacred geometry, and cascading plant-life” transform St. Matthew’s Church.

Kids will laugh in gleeful recognition, parents will immediately develop an eye twitch: Emily Falencki’s Mommy is a sound piece about the “demands of motherhood.” Played a constant loop on speakers outside of the administration building at the Halifax Port Authority, experience children repeatedly calling for their mother in various ways. If you miss this piece, you can just come over to my house literally any time.

On a more peaceful note, the Halifax City Hoopers perform Sticks & Circles at Victoria Park. LED lights, electroluminescent wire, reflective tape, hula-hoops and some cool moves come together for a fun show in the park. Notez bien, The Hoopers say: “There will be music that we will do our best to keep clean from profanity.”

The Graphics and Experiential Media Lab of Dalhousie takes over the Waterfront Warehouse parking lot with Spacehopper. Blast asteroids, fulfill NASA dreams, set yourself up for a night full of laser gun noises—you get the picture.

Blanket fort bonanza! The Dalhousie Architecture Student Association transforms the Medjuck School of Architecture Exhibition Room and surrounding exterior space with Fortitecture. A “maze of shadows and frames” changes perspective as you move. It’s interactive, but don’t lose your kid(s) inside the fort, though.

As you know, nothing is more enthralling to a kid than to see themselves on video. Create a GIF of your wild child dancing like a goof with Norex’s GIF Dance Party. Users choose the background and music so it’s also a good time to practice decisiveness.