Wendy
I was at a little sidewalk goodbye soiree last night when Wendy pulled up on her bicycle. Not many things put me over the edge—but a chocolate brown velour riding helmet with a ribbon tie will do it. Wendy is from the States and is working here restoring a house on North Street. Cool, right?…
Ryan
I saw this tall, well-dressed glass of water walking my way on the commons yesterday. Ryan, a Newfoundland native, was on his way home from working a long day chez Halifax Film. The hat, nose piercing, Raybans (duh) and overall awesomeness of his get-up was what caught my eye. Ryan likes to shop wherever the…
go easy on me at Eyelevel Gallery
It’s tough being an artist. All that criticism, all that intense staring. Eyelevel Gallery’s first installment in their five week series of members’ shows gently reminds the viewer to be nice. Called go easy on me, the inaugural Eyelevel Members’ Weekly show includes “art about diaries, self-portraiture and feelings” and runs until July 23. The…
Maples Gallery offers hand-painted glass
At Maples Gallery (Bishop’s Landing, 1475 Lower Water Street, 405-7050), the place is stuffed with work by Canadian artisans, pieces limited in production and availability. For example, Pamela Kinsman from Windsor NS, has made one- of-a-kind wineglasses and coffee cups handpainted in jewelled tones of blue, purple, fuchsia and white with gold or silver hues.…
Adam Gunn one of 15 finalists in Canadian painting competition
Haligonian painter Adam Gunn has been named one of 15 semi-finalists in the 2011 RCB Canadian Painting competition and is currently staring down the barrel of a purchase prize of $25,000 (or one of two honourable mention prizes of $15,000). The winner is announced on September 27, so send all your good reiki vibes his…
Vince
I was TOTALLY pumped when I bumped into Vince today in Biscuit General Store! Take one guess why? Bowtie? Check. Pocket square? Check. Vince is a Halifax-based consultant who likes to shop the classics. Club Monaco, Banana Republic and Winners are all regulars on his shopping list. He describes his style as “Italian Prepster” (which…
Bedroom Intruder
Once again, another woman wakes up to find a man watching her sleep in Halifax, and once again it’s because she left a door unlocked! How stupid does a person have to be? We’ve all been warned to keep our doors and windows locked. If they ever catch this Sleep Watcher (or his copycat), they…
You are a Dork
Dear loser, please for everyone’s sake stop calling yourself a “nerd”. Your intelligence is not above average. Just because you like odd, loser activities like WOW, living with your parents, lego and video games does not make you a NERD. Nerds are smart. You on the other hand… well you are not. You are a…
The 90s Called, Get Out of the Bike Lane
Biking around the city is a challenge at the best of times, recently I’ve seen a few folks on roller blades doin their thing. That’s cool, we’ve all got our thing, but please use the sidewalks and not the bike lanes, because they are just that… bike lanes, meant for bikes. When you are in…
Terrible Drivers in HRM
I love how some drive in HRM. First there is the one who pulled out in front of me from a stop sign and I had to pass her in order to avoid hitting her so she tail gates me. Then on the bridge there are the lane hoppers who cannot stick to one lane.…
Fish in Shallow Water
To all the above average looking fish out there on that certain dating site, maybe put a headline in your profile stating “I’m a shallow bitch and will only reply to messages from guys that resemble Brad Pitt”. News flash! You’re on a god damn dating site, a free one at that. Obviously you’re not…
Lessons Not Lines
I am sick and tired of all the nonsense surrounding bike lanes in this city/province/country. The fact is that those who need to be confined by them won’t respect them and those who respect the lanes don’t need them. Cyclists who jump the curb, ride through stop signs, don’t signal, ignore most of the rules…
Office Bitch
I know you read these every day so I am looking forward to hearing you bitch and seeing that ugly look on your face. You think you are so freakin fantastic… you dress “nice” you think everyone loves you and yet if only you knew what people really think. The way you have to be…
Super Stud
To the barista guy on Spring Garden, I was having a crap day and was absolutely exhausted. You not only suggested an amazing drink to pick me up, you gave me an extra glass of it for free. I made it home without falling asleep thanks to you! —Caffeine Chick
Taking a SPIN through history
All you would-be film makers need to see SPIN, for it contains the fascinating, dying-for-a-cinematic-treatment story of Annie Londonderry, the first woman to bike around the world. (Start working on a script!) Oh, and everyone else should go to this show, too, just because it’s an interesting, entertaining and ultimately enlightening ninety minutes. Evalyn Parry…
Hey Cutie
You make my heart flutter – that is all. —Love You
Dawson City Makes You Pretty
chartattack.com The teeny Yukon hamlet of Dawson City seems like one of those places that is basically perfect in every way if you can handle a bit of chilliness and can somehow get your ass out there. The Dawson City Music Festival in particular has made a name for itself by hosting consistently strong and…
Dressing up Naked doesn’t add much
When I first wrote about the 2010 Fringe production of Naked, I described the 20-minute vignette about a self-absorbed young girl and a hard working maid as “light as a soap bubble” and “a short, snappy theatre confection”. Since then, playwright Lisa Rose Snow (who also stars in the production along with Stephanie MacDonald) has…
El Camino or the Field of Stars
Sometimes theatre is a thing that plays out in front of you on a stage, and sometimes, if you’re very lucky, it’s a thing that involves you and draws you in to its world. This one-man show, directed by Christian Barry and written and performed by Stewart Legere, is definitely, irrefutably the latter. From the…
Big in Germany is so-so in Halifax
I wanted to like Big in Germany, but I found myself poking holes in the plot from the get-go. How come Alex (played by the show’s writer/director Rob Salerno) supposedly doesn’t realize is best friend Bruce (Eric Miinch) is gay, when it’s spelled out in the first scene? Why, when we never see any indication…
Sorry About Nature
I’m sorry, dear neighbour, that my cats catch, eat, go about their natural ways and kill birds and/or squirrels in your/my neighbourhood. No, actually, I’m not sorry. You used to have a cat that possibly did the same thing, but unfortunately it expired. If you had been a neighbour that did not/never had a kitty…
Shall We Buy Compost?
Grocery store managers who throw their going-bad produce in big bins at big discount hoping that suckers who buy it [me] will not bother to take it back for a refund [not me]. —Yes I Compost, But Not Just-Bought Produce!
Why Does Sex Make Some People So Uncomfortable?
Just because you, for some reason, hate the mere implication of sex and masturbation, doesn’t mean you can take it out on others. Normally I would be all for a general reduction in advertising, but this has nothing to do with that at all. This is about repression and, ultimately, oppression. You see, sex and…
Bum Supper
To the lady at the downtown restaurant patio Sunday night: Thanks for changing your two year old at your table. Nothing says “yum” like a dirty diaper. Thank you for putting the full diaper on the table. My stomach did not need to stay in its regular place and retching always makes a meal better.…
Snowy Misses Stanford
Jeopardy wasn’t the same without you tonight, I barely knew any of the answers. I hope you have a wonderful time at home for the remainder of the summer. I can’t wait to reunite in the fall in the big city where we can do lots of fun things – even though I thoroughly enjoyed…
Thanks for the Diapers
To the woman in the red car at South and Robie who took advantage of the red light and me pushing a stroller to offer me the diapers she was getting rid of. It was a welcome gift… our diaper days are on the wane in this household but it sure was nice to not…
Thomas
I am convinced that the most stylish, polished looking people are coming from Nigeria! I stopped Thomas on South Park Street. I’ve always been a sucker for a striped shirt. Always. In high school, my favorite shirt was just like this—same colors, stripes, so I obviously felt it was my duty to stop him for…
Venus Envy Pride sale this weekend
It’s a fabulous week with fabulous sales, even if you might not know about them cuz certain publications in this town won’t run ads featuring dilderific, dildertastic dildos. Well, that’s too bad for them and their easily-offended readers. However, we are happy to report on those accessories for the hot and horny. And at Venus…
You’re Selling a Couch not a Coach!
I’m sure everyone will shit on me for being a spelling Natzi, but the amount of people saying they have a “COACH” for sale, when they really mean “COUCH” is driving me absolutely CRAZY! How hard is it to spell the word couch? I’ve seen this mistake on signs in my building, and all over…
Do you know of any business that you can hire to “do” a bar at a wedding?
We are getting married at the St. Mary’s Boat Club and are looking to hire a bar. They do not provide one. I know of Certainly Cinnamon but is there anywhere else? —Kate
Searching for Movie Manners
Why, oh why do people that walk into movie theatres simply leave their brain and manners at the door!? Yes, I am talking to you, the person who walks up to the concession counter and asks me if this is where you get your popcorn. Are you fucking serious? Popcorn is popping right behind me!…
Who am I to You?
To the guy who stole my heart, and continues to break it into a million pieces – I know you are married, but then why do you continue to lead me on? You made me fall in love with you, and I really wish I didn’t. —The Other Woman
Labour Board
I cannot believe that the Labour Standards Board of Halifax is as slack as they are. You’re absolutely no help to anyone. By the time you cut through all of the red tape and get close to a resolution, you people take a month off, or switch workers on me. Thanks for letting a big…
Crappy Cafe Catastrophe
To the “lovely” server at a certain cafe downtown who had the gall to give us attitude when we asked (after an hour of waiting) how much longer the food would take, and then kept the tip and $3.00 for the cold coffee: You suck, your cafe sucks, and it’s crazy that we had to…
Yes, It’s Retail
Okay I understand I have been part of the management team for only a year but when you go on vacation for more than a week and leave me to run the store for the first time for that length, a little appreciation would be great. I have had to be at our store for…
Digable Planets, Alex Pangman
Halifax made some noise with 90s throwback Digable Planets’ closing show. Hip hop infused with samples of Art Blakey and Freddie Hubbard, Digable Planets are a little bit of this, a little bit of that. Whether their rapping about Jean-Paul Sartre or sunshine, Digable Planets are cool like dat. They had the entire place off…
Bikeless and Angry Again
What the hell is wrong with you?! Why did you have to steal my bike, AGAIN? And not from downtown like last year, but from where I live! Fool me twice, yeah, and I feel like shit for thinking I was somehow safer here near DAL. Thanks for that lesson too, bike thief, I still…
To My Other Guy
Every moment we spend together is so amazing. I wish our lives weren’t so complicated. It’s really too bad we didn’t meet 10 years ago. Things could have been so different. You make me so happy, and feel so special. I hope this doesn’t ever end! I love you! —Your Other Woman
Good Food reopens
Though it was delayed by issues with propane delivery, ovens and chimneys, you’ll now find former Gottingen Street eatery The Good Food Emporium (2186 Windsor Street, 422-3150) open at the corner of Windsor and Duncan, right next to the Bluenose Laundromat. Burritos, salads and those delish chocolate chip cookies, here we come. Related Stories
Bran Muffins and Grumpy Old Trolls
Those three weeks were the happiest and most exciting days I’ve ever experienced. Even the “boring” everyday living stuff was fun when I was with you! Hiding under your bed and changing my name… clever! I miss you. I miss being with you. I just don’t know where to go from here. How do I…
Bâton Rouge now open
The Feed reported back in January that the Canadian chain Bâton Rouge (1877 Hollis Street) had a franchise opening at a downtown location soon. Well, it’s happened, right in the old Morse Tea building, now sporting a big deck off its side, between Upper Water and Morris Streets. Bâton Rouge features a selection of upscale…
Dog Killer on Almon St
To the poison shitting bastard who hit the little pup on Almon street on July 15th & proceeded to drive off (grey/silverish car), where the fuck is your rotten heart hiding? Fuck you! —Ryleyhfx
No Points for Smarm Joints
Maybe it’s me, but there’s a certain ‘Je ne sais quoi’ about people that work at various businesses in Halifax. I think the best way to describe them is smarmy, especially some cafes in downtown Halifax. It’s either the “thanks sweetie” extreme of coffee chains or the “smarmy” of other places. Maybe I’m just not…
Just Awesomeness
I love my best and longest friend because even when I don’t see her for months and months, I still know if I called needing her help, she’d be there in an instant. Ditto to my other friends who tell me I’m hot and awesome when I’m sick in my pooh bear nightie all stuffy,…
Keeping it Clean
To the guy on Parks Street by the commons with the white bag and the sunglasses between your teeth. Seeing you just stop to pick up the garbage by the side of the sidewalk made me smile. I wish I could have stopped to help you. —A Little Less Litter is Always a Good Thing
You Made My Day Better
Thanks to the man who stopped me in the mall Friday afternoon to ask me if I was single. You told me that you think I’m gorgeous and it made my day. I’m sorry if I was rude – it’s never happened to me before so I was taken aback! Thanks again. —24
North End Teenage Girls
To the girls who brought my mother’s dog to the vet after she was hit by a car: thank you, you are true samaritans. I understand you were trying to get her out of traffic and when the inevitable happened, you brought her to the vet. It must have been horrific to witness and my…
Night Magic celebrates 21 years
There are always plenty of special things in Night Magic Fashions (5268 Sackville Street, 420-9309), and right now there are special prices too, as the lingerie and sex accessories store is celebrating 21 years in business. The timing with Pride couldn’t be any better. Night Magic deserves a visit to best appreciate the variety, here…
Heavy Metal Dreams
James Hetfield, thank you for screaming creeping death in my face and pointing at me. I can now die in peace. —Just Met His Boyhood Idol
You Fix My Life
It was sunny, I lied. I just lost track of time at the beach. I know, I know. And I called you. And you were so nice. You just extended my reservation. And life just seemed to proceed effortlessly from there. I rave about you. —Share My Car
Replacement Beer
At the concert Thursday night, you and your friends bumped the tables in the beer tent spilling about half of my 2 free beers. I got a little defensive, and suggested you replace 1 beer. You made some comment about how you didn’t ask me to put my beer there, and I let it go,…
Infatuation
Yes, I do believe that I am infatuated with a certain bus driver. I am also married with two kids. When you see a man that has it all (and I mean that has it all) what are you supposed to do? Oh well, I guess you can turn out the lights and in your…
METALLICA
Thank you so much for the show! You rocked everything, Citadel will never be the same again —\m/
Sheena
Sweet Sheena. I scared this poor, well-dressed gal when I stopped her walking up South Street. How was I to know she had headphones on? Walking up South Street together (Sheena on her way to school, myself on my way to work), I learned that she likes to go for anything different. Her shoes, for…
Fantasia Film Festival welcomes Atlantic filmmakers
It started July 14 and runs until August 7, more than three weeks of fantasy movies screened in cinemas in Montreal. It’s called Fantasia International Film Festival, and with a recent surge of genre films being made here in Atlantic Canada, we’re being well represented in Montreal at the fest. Director Evan Kelly and screenwriter…
Charles Spearin’s Happiness Project
Charles Spearin and the Happiness Project band The last night of the jazz festival featured the final of drummer Jerry Granelli’s four 70th-birthday shows and Toronto musician Charles Spearin’s The Happiness Project at St. Matthew’s. I caught the last few songs of the Jerry Granelli Trio’s (Granelli, Dani Oore, Simon Fisk), which were accompanied by…
MODA offers gourmet lunch options
MODA Urban Dining (1518 Dresden Row, 405-3480) has a whole bunch of take-out lunch options for the busy downtown dweller/worker who wants to try something new. The idea being you can now take out the most packable items from the MODA lunch menu and eat them up on Citadel Hill or any sunny spot that…
Keren Ann at the Lord Nelson ballroom
Keren Ann and the haunted chandelier I first heard French/Israeli/Dutch/New Yorker/globetrotter singer and guitarist Keren Ann in my little sister’s bedroom while home from university one time, so it felt odd seeing her live for the first time in such a comparatively refined atmosphere as the Lord Nelson ballroom Thursday night. I walked in a…
Xtreme Pizza now on Spring Garden
Once down at 1360 Birmingham Street, Xtreme Pizza has moved into the space on Spring Garden that recently housed Authentic K, 5970 Spring Garden Road, though the number remains the same, 404-1600.
Friday Night Lives at Gus’
I write this to you from wedding central in Toronto, wearing last night’s dress and drinking a lot of water. If I was in Halifax tonight I would be cleaning myself up in preparedness for a rather ripping show tonight at Gus’ featuring Scribbler and friends Mess Folk, Omma Cobba and the always-perfect Quaker Parents…
Gracious Indian opens second location
Windsor Street Indian food eatery Gracious Indian ( 2156 Windsor Street, 407-0707) has opened a second location in Clayton Park, at 480 Parkland Drive, though the phone number is the same, 407-0707. The new spot has a large dine-in area along with delivery and take-out services.
Blatant Litterers
To the lady at Chocolate Lake who threw trash from her car into the middle of the street, was smoking while VERY pregnant, and who left two dirty diapers on the sand when you left. All I have to say is SERIOUSLY?! Same to you, man who threw a smoothie cup onto the sidewalk by…
There’s a Reason I Live in Halifax
To the idiot at the Alderney Ferry terminal who walked in front of me on purpose to try and start something and then accused me of not saying excuse me. This is precisely why I choose to live in Halifax even though I work in Dartmouth. Because you are, sadly, the most polite person I’ve…
Dear Mom
I know you won’t ever read this, but I need to vent. I am sick to fucking death of having you push your extreme paranoia on me! Your apocalyptic views on serial killers, rapists, kidnappers, pesticides, carbon monoxide, bed bugs, flea and head lice infestations are driving me fucking mad. You have ZERO boundaries with…
My Ray of Sun
I know I can be a storm cloud sometimes, but you still make my heart flutter. Always know I am proud of you. —Baby Girl
Take Pride
I just want to wish everyone a Happy Pride Week. I may be straight but I am not narrow. —Rattale
North end business improvement district gets started
The newly created north end business improvement district had its first meeting yesterday, and elected officers. Michelle Strum of Alteregos Coffee Shop was named chair and Fred Connors of FRED is vice-chair. Allison Moz of Eye Candy Signs is secretary/treasurer. Bernard Smith was officially hired as executive director, and a budget of $111,742 was approved.
Kate
I almost died when I saw Kate perusing the racks of American Apparel. Y’all KNOW I’ve been going through this weird afro obsession lately. Anyway, a student in Toronto (home in Hali for the summah), 20 year-old Kate likes to shop at Value Village and Elsie’s. She also has the luxury of raiding her parents’…
Elisapie Isaac’s makeshift cabaret
Elisapie Isaac Performing to a sold-out Company House, Montreal-based singer Elisapie Isaac seemed even more soft-spoken onstage than in our interview, but no less charming and engaging. Speaking in mostly Franglais to the audience, with the occasional Inuktitut term thrown in, she played two sets with a break in between (I hear this is how…
Citadel Cleaner-Upper
Thank you to the green-jacketed middle-aged man with the brown and white dog who picks up litter while dog walking on Citadel Hill in the morning. He picks up other people’s litter, folks! What a great citizen who is making an effort. I admire you immensely, wanted to say I’ve noticed you do this, and…
To the One that Got Away
When I met you I didn’t think much of it. I saw you walk out of the doors to the event we were at and the only thing that came through my mind was ‘wow’. Later that evening you and I had our first conversation started over a lighter. At the time I wouldn’t have…
Bus Lovin’ Blues
I still think about all of those times I saw you on the 80 before I ever had the pleasure of meeting you. You are one of the most vibrant and beautiful people on this planet, and I miss seeing you smile. I’m sorry that I was so lost in my own shit that I…
Jab, Jab, Cross!
Love to all the folks grinding themselves into fighters down at a certain north end boxing club. The harder you go, the harder we all go. Bloody beacons of brilliance! —Mitt Muncher
Dear Buttons
I am not positive you are aware how special you are to me. You are definitely the most fantastic, amazing human I have ever met. I am thankful that I have this amazing opportunity to be your “lovely”, it makes me so very happy! —Your Pretty
My Superhero
Once upon a time we could only see each other once every few months. My heart still pounds as I remember you walking toward me in the train station. Now here we are living together, getting married and planning babies. I still cry a little when you leave for work in the morning because I…
I Love You Mom
Ode to the world’s greatest mom: Thank you for always being here whenever we need you and always being wonderful loving amazing awesome you! Thank you for being the world’s greatest nanny also, and helping me raise my baby when I was all alone. I know all of her greatness and happiness is thanks to…
Baby Killer
You didn’t have the money to buy your birth control pills. But you couldn’t resist not hooking up with your boyfriend (who is 10 years your senior). “Haha like no pills will stop me!” was what came out of your mouth as you left the pharmacy. Now you’re pregnant. You’ve decided that you will be…
Lies That Tell the Truth: Reenactment as Artistic Strategy
When artist Alison S. M. Kobayashi found some discarded answering machine tapes in a secondhand store, she saw not only a voyeur’s delight, a but a ready-made script waiting to be acted out. Her impersonations of the characters on the tapes, including a divorce lawyer and a fiancée, give a second life to the collection…
Elisapie Isaac
Some singers sing, others take listeners out of this world into spiritual beyond. Montreal-based Inuk songstress Elisapie Isaac stole this year’s Halifax Jazz Festival. Anyone who was lucky enough to be at last night’s sold out show could attest to this. Both darling and daring, Isaac is one of the most understated voices in this…
Wait Your Damn Turn
To the lady (and I use the term as in ‘of the evening’) who stepped in front of me while I waited in line at a convenience store on Granville St on Thursday at 11am: What? Raised in a field? By gorillas? By gorillas in a field? I know it’s all about you but look…
Shauntay Grant
Curating a Jazz Festival can be an incredible opportunity to showcase a plethora of artists from an array of genres. The melding of music is inherent to jazz. Presented by Word On The Street, local poet and performer Shauntay Grant’s Wordrhythm fuses spoken word, melody and heart. Her collection of guest performers at last night’s…
Get Outta My Way
To you and your two other teenage friends that got on the bus today, I just thought I would educate you before you totally screw your life over. The way you were talking and acting will get you no where in life. Talking about how the girl was lucky the cops were on their way…
Why Would I Lie?
Last night it was Motown night at a certain pub. I went outside for some air and sat on the curb on the north side of the pub. You came up and asked me if I was alright. For that, thank you, I do appreciate your concern. What I didn’t appreciate was your rudeness which…
You Tell Me
Why the hell is it legal to drive a big fucking SUV while you are wearing a full body fucking burqa? I saw this one broad today on my way to the hospital, she had a maroon SUV, not sure of the make, but it was a biggie. My question is this, how can you…
Shove This Stroller Up Your Exhaust Pipe
Nice to see how in this day and age being a parent and riding the bus has become a crime. The scene on Joseph Howe yesterday of over a half a dozen mothers trying to board a bus was unbelievable. Maybe Metro Transit needs to post their anti-stroller policy on the door as parents try…
New Tunes: The Graboids – Aftershocks
Those delightful curmudgeons The Graboids are releasing a 5-song EP today titled Aftershocks. The band’s first EP and the new one can be bought as a single CD called The First One Years a la Black Flag. If you enjoyed their first EP (and who didn’t really) the second features a similar blend of hijinks,…
The Pigeon Project pops up
If you’re not looking for them, you might miss most pigeon roosting spots, and likewise, you might miss the Pigeon Project —an installation devoted to the humble pigeon, in a Granville Square-facing window at NSCAD’s main campus. Morag Schonken, an interdisciplinary student focusing on installation art, put together the project out of her long-time interest…
Molly Thomason
On a second album before finishing high school, this precocious Nova Scotian holds little back. Her vocal style is free-range, in the manner of a young Van Morrison. Following a couple of exuberant opening numbers, “Amsterdam” is soothed by Ruth Minnikin’s accordion. Thomason’s lovely voice is allowed to soar, warble and moan in a nurturing…
Spooky Campers say so long
When James Gaudet of Spooky Campers says things like, “I know that this is a long shot, but we’re doing what we can” and “We’re just taking it all one step at a time,” it conjures images of a Family Circus clan trying to make the most out of a bad camping trip ruined by…
Limbo
Limbo is a beautiful gem of a game and anyone with a 360 should buy some points and download it right now. Its creepy aesthetic and philosophical undertones are too much to pass up. At its core Limbo is a side-scrolling platformer— a genre that has really taken off in the downloadasphere, but Limbo is…
The Kamalas’ sweet summer
The Kamalas, Hockey Fight, Tongan Death Grip, Outtacontroller The Kamalas work so well together because they aren’t just bandmates, they’re also old friends, roommates, co-workers and neighbours. Elle Shapiro, T-Ray, Jessup and Salty see a lot of each other, and they’re OK with that. The summer’s been a busy one for the Moncton pop-punk quartet…
The Other Woman
After two years on the shelf, Love and Other Impossible Pursuits was renamed The Other Woman and fobbed into theatres (elsewhere) to capitalize on Natalie Portman’s Oscar win. Though more emotionally complex than Portman’s other spring releases, Your Highness and Thor, The Other Woman has no more reason to exist than either of those. A…
Driving Miss Daisy‘s smooth ride
Congratulations are in order to the Valley Summer Theater. Bruce Klinger and Co. have a knack for choosing plays that have a broad appeal, casting them with wonderful actors and staging them with attention to detail. Driving Miss Daisy is a wonderful example of just how true this is. Alfred Uhry’s Pulitzer- Prize-winning play is subtler…
The O’Briens
Following in the footsteps of Governor General’s Award-winning The Law of Dreams comes Behrens’s sequel, The O’Briens. Picking up the branches of the same family tree 40 years later, we trail Joe O’Brien as he makes his way from the back woods of Quebec to seek his fortune in the west. There, he finds love…
PJ Harvey
Polly Jean Harvey is nothing if not experimental in her recorded output. From songs as aggressive, raw sketches (Uh Huh Her) to the more dirge-like (White Chalk), she’s never been afraid to indulge different sides of her musical muse. Inspired by —and railing against—Europe’s history of war, this time she adds autoharp and horns to…
Neil before the king of comedy
Neil Hamburger is a trooper. Despite his claims of being “in the midst of total financial and personal ruin” the “anti- comedian” asserts that he will still play “wherever a laugh is needed.” Like Hamburger’s almost Sysiphean sticktoitiveness, Halifax similarly trudges through adversity (distance from other major Canadian cities, comedy club closures and lack of…
The Case Against Owen Williams
Murder? Check. Murder suspect? Check. Small town with more than a few secrets? Check. Donaldson’s The Case Against Owen Williams has all the pieces to make an interesting murder mystery courtroom drama combination, but falls flat. In 1944, Sarah Coile, from small-town New Brunswick is murdered and the only suspect is the last person to…
The Way Back
The possibly apocryphal story goes that three men arrived in early 1940s India, having walked from Siberia, a distance of 4,000 miles. Peter Weir (Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World)—who in almost four decades of filmmaking has yet to make a bad movie—offers a simple tale of survival on a grand visual…
Spinning Envision
After 13 years Envision has gone vinyl. The Changing Times, a seven-inch remastering of a 2010 demo, has come to life Despite a glitch with a small US label that was originally slated to release the record. Luckily, Envision’s commander in chief Ian Hart soldiered on and took matters into his own hands, deciding to…
Outcasts
The premiere episode starts well, with Jamie Bamber (Battlestar Galactica’s Lee Adama) walking out of the wilderness of the planet Carpathia to the enclave Fort Haven. It’s a village of earth refugees, with lots of rules about meat-eating and weapons, waiting desperately for more humans to arrive from the devastated homeworld. Turns out Bamber is…
Mike Mills talks Beginners
In 1955, Mike Mills’ parents were married in a church in San Francisco, blocks away from where Allen Ginsberg was writing Howl. They were married for 44 years until his mother passed away. Following her death, Mills’ father came out as a gay man. If you’ve seen the trailer for his new film, Beginners, you’ll…
SPIN sister
Halifax may be hilly, but Evalyn Parry definitely plans to explore the city on a bicycle when she brings her show SPIN from Toronto to The Queer Acts Festival next week. The actor and singer is passionate about two-wheeling, and her multimedia show is a kind of ode to the history and culture of the…
Beginners universal and inclusive
Beginners is Mike Mills’s semi-autobiographical tale, following the life of a 30-something designer named Oliver (Ewan McGregor) who begins dating someone new (Mélanie Laurent) following his father (Christopher Plummer) coming out as a gay man. We regularly flash back to Oliver’s childhood and memories of his mother, and so get three separate timelines punctuated by…
Laurie
Soaking up some jazz fest. Love the bow in her hair, it was the dealmaker. Danna Storey writes and curates the Youlookfiiine street style blog (youlookfiiine.wordpress.com)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 “an appropriately grand finale”
Director David Yates and screenwriter Steve Kloves very nearly meet the impossible demands of wrapping up the past decade’s most successful film series, resolving character and story arcs while serving up the requisite action. Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) continue to search out and destroy the pieces of Voldemort’s (Ralph…
Get the porn pics out of the house
Q I’m a straight male, but this isn’t really about me. I was recently back home for a family event while my younger brother, age 14, was away on a mission trip with his church. My iPad died while I was home and my mother told me to look in the kitchen drawers for a…
Guerilla dining
When I received this issue’s assignment, it generated an uneasiness that lasted throughout the week. I was slightly nervous about going to an open BBQ, listed on Facebook and hosted by people I didn’t even know. But when Friday evening rolled around, while getting ready to head out, I gave myself a serious reality check:…
Go Local: Agricola
Halifax’s coolest strip is a thriving mix of independent shops and boutiques (the only chains are bands and the province’s booze store), making Agricola the unofficial Main Street of the local Shop Local movement. Finer Things Antiques 2797 Agricola Street, 456-1412 Proprietor Jack Craft “urges you to peruse your attic, basement, outbuildings cubby holes and…
Free Will Astrology
Happy Birthday! Cancer (June 21-July22) The great-grandson of a slave, Cancerian Thurgood Marshall (1908-1993) was America’s first African-American Supreme Court Justice. According to Thurgood, a play about his life that appeared on HBO, his unruly behaviour as a school kid played a role in launching him toward his vocation. As punishment for his bad behaviour,…
Gang Gang Dance
With each release, these Manhattan experimentalists become more confident and continue to crystallize their disparate influences; Eye Contact, their fifth album, is no exception. The album opens with a voice saying “I can hear everything, it’s everything time” which is the perfect descriptor for the blissful psychedelia that follows. From its beginnings as an edgy,…
Iconic Annie
When planning its fifth annual tribute show and fundraiser, Angels & Heroes Theatre Company decided that honouring a heavy-hitting female performer was way past due. But to be on par with their last four shows—which featured Rufus Wainwright, Queen, Elton and Bowie—she had to be a lady of the fiercest kind; someone who had not…
Manchester Orchestra
Manchester Orchestra’s latest album Simple Math is not one that is instantly accessible. This is an album that requires a few spins to truly appreciate the nuances. Upon wading into the disc, tracks such as “Pensacola” and lead-single “April Fools” will appear to be the sore thumbs of the disc (which they are). The first half of…
Sloan
When I think of my relationship with Sloan over the last two decades, I can honestly say I never expected the band to give me musical epiphanies or change the world. But I did expect consistency— in creating catchy, clever rock and roll, giving up hit after hit with no surprises. That is exactly what…
Winnie The Pooh sweet like “hunny”
With a heavy dose of “hunny,” hand-drawn animation and John Cleese’s narration, Winnie the Pooh is a tongue-in-cheek rendition of AA Milne’s lovable “bear of very little brain.” What starts as a search for Eeyore’s tail (aka “A Very Important Thing To Do”) turns into a quest for Christopher Robin, whom Pooh and his cronies—Kanga,…
Aqua Creations Tropical Fish store to close
Heads up to lovers of tropical fish and their accessories: Aqua Creations Tropical Fish (6290 Quinpool Road, 422-1288) is closing and offering deals on all the stock remaining. The latest the store will be open is the end of July, but that depends on how the sale goes. According to staff, the current owners feel…
