When Jason Rose-Spurrell was a kid, he would watch his grandfather stand on the stage of Glace Bay’s Savoy Theatre with The Men of the Deeps. Years later, Rose-Spurrell will stand on that same stage in six-inch heels as Rouge Fatale, one of Halifax’s most well known drag queens. Rose-Spurrell and a crew of nearly […]
Arts News
Posted inArts + Music
Power of music
Juanita Peters didn’t set out to write or direct a play. She’s a well-known filmmaker, after all, at home behind the camera. But she had the germ of an idea for a feature film about racial segregation set in a Nova Scotia sanatorium in the early 1940s. It was an idea she began to explore […]
Posted inArts + Music
Patch works
Building have feelings too. Stephen Kelly’s Patch is a technological and artistic milestone, combining computer science and art to create a unique experience. The work is based on computational art, where code or algorithms help run the artwork. Kelly is an expert in mixing technology with art as an artist and a Ph.D computer science […]
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Warp Speed ahead!
So, your sea doesn’t seem to have all that many fish swimming in it and Cupid hasn’t exactly been Hawkeye lately. What’s a love lorn, comic reading, sci-fi and fantasy loving person to do? Get off the internet and into a chair at The Hideaway Pub & Grille, of course. This Sunday, Halifax’s favourite geek […]
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Re-interpreting the past
Artist Stacey Tyrell, who grew up in Toronto, wanted to know more about the life of her mother, who was born on the island of Nevis in the Caribbean. Tyrell’s mother immigrated to England in the 1970s to work as a nanny before coming to Canada. “I had first just tried interviewing my mother thinking […]
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Rockin’ the felt
At first glance you might assume Sanna Rahola works in pastel or paint—a testament to the detail and movement she is able to evoke with layers of fibrous texture in merino, silk, linen and hemp. Her new work in hand-dyed and felted wool images is preoccupied with water scenes—like a close up of river rocks […]
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Illegal monkey business
If there’s one thing Darwin, the escaped pet monkey in a shearling coat at the Toronto IKEA, taught us this week—besides, dang, I need to up my style game—it’s that some stuff just doesn’t belong up here in the great north. The owner was fined and Darwin is headed for a primate sanctuary, but the […]
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Say yes to ConsentFest
From Todd Akin’s ridiculous but wildly publicized “legitimate rape” theory to the ongoing global war on women’s rights, there has never been a better time for a conference like ConsentFest to grab hold of Haligonian hearts. With a range of activities that include sex-positive workshops, zine-making, critical thinking and discussion panels (featuring Katie Aubrecht, above), […]
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TAMMACHAT’s fair trade secrets
If you’re in the spirit for giving—what with the holidays creeping up and all—there’s nothing better than finding something beautiful that can give you the socially-minded warm fuzzies, too. Enter TAMMACHAT Natural Textiles: Since 2007 owners Alleson Kase and Ellen Agger have been travelling to Thailand and Laos to help empower local craftswomen by working […]
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Learn outside the box
Sure, Halifax may be home to at least seven institutions of higher learning, but if you’re looking for some info about ants farming aphids, menopause or Initiative 2045 (look it up, it will BLOW YOUR MIND), look no further than the Roberts Street Social Centre. The Roberts Street Social Centre has long been a hub […]
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Heave-ho, Halifax
Blame it on the beer. It was over a pint or two on the waterfront that the Awesome Foundation’s Mike Kennedy and Dave Finlayson got creative and started dreaming up ideas for seemingly ridiculous tug of war bouts. When Dartmouth versus Halifax was ruled impossible they moved on to something bigger, and weirder. A tug […]
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North pole
Until you’ve tried to propel yourself on a pole you couldn’t possibly understand how difficult it actually is. It takes a set of pipes. And to do it gracefully is an art. There’s a new spin on pole fitness: it’s a serious thing. It’s where art and sport meet, and that deadly combination is why […]