Mollie Kaye

PROGRAMS IN EARTH LITERACIES’ mission is “to ignite our sense of connectedness with Earth and nurture a spirituality of Earth care through learning circles.” Program coordinator Gertie Jocksch says this is what inspired the 12-year-old nonprofit to bring environmentally-focused singer/songwriter Sara Thomsen into town to give a benefit concert and workshop for the Friends of Bowker Creek Society (FOBCS). Sara Thomsen “We’ve never done this before,” Jocksch says of the concert, a new venture for Earth Literacies that organizers thought would be “a perfect fundraiser” for FOBCS; “they’re taking out invasive species, keeping that area green, and it’s time for us to do something that supports an important project like this.” Historically ignored, buried, and sullied, Bowker Creek runs through the municipalities of Oak Bay, Saanich, and Victoria. The non-profit FOBCS formed to organize watershed cleanup and public education efforts. “They’re doing wonderful work,” Jocksch says. “There are lots of family activities; it’s time to give back… it fits so well with our mission.” Singer Sara Thomsen is on a mission as well. “At concerts, conferences, classrooms, workshops, retreats, jails, places of prayer, and lines of protest, to be with Sara is to want to sing… Sara’s ability to get people singing magically transforms gatherings into communities empowered with possibility,” her bio reads. Based in Duluth, Minnesota, Thomsen will also be holding a workshop, with proceeds from both events earmarked to benefit FOBCS. Sara Thomsen performs April 17 at 7:30pm, tickets $25. “Songs Like Seeds—Planting Love Note by Note, Singing Playshop” with Sara Thomsen, April 18, 10am-4pm, $75. Both events at Cadboro Bay Gordon Head United Church, 2625 Arbutus Road. Tickets at earthliteracies.org or 250-220-4601.—MK

IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR AN EXCUSE to rock your style, get a little fancy, drink some good wine, and enjoy the company of some of Victoria’s most exciting and respected visual artists, plan to attend the Victoria Visual Arts Legacy Society (VVALS)’s annual awards event. Mary-ellen Threadkell, vice president of VVALS, says it’s an annual celebration of both the legacy artists that make up Victoria’s past and present landscape, and those five hand-picked art students who are emerging as community-builders and exceptional artists at five local colleges. VVALS awards a $1000 bursary each year to one student of Camosun College, UVic Arts in Education, UVic Fine Arts, Victoria College of Art, and Vancouver Island School of Art. “In most cases, when a student receives a bursary, they get a cheque in the mail and a nice letter,” Threadkell says. “This event is pretty extraordinary, because the student is meeting the legacy artists, fêted at a very elegant affair hosted at the Legacy Art Gallery… with blow-your-socks-off, fabulous food.” In addition to the elegant buffet of hors d’ouvres and good wines, there’s also an open bar. This year’s gala event is on Tuesday, April 7 and begins at 6:30 pm. There’s only one way to be among the 85 lucky guests: support the legacy program by helping with the student awards. “People can get an invitation to the event by donating to VVALS at a level beginning at $100,” says Threadkell. The long-term goal is to raise the bursary funding up to a higher level, since $1000 doesn’t go quite as far as it used to—especially in Victoria. Local legacy artists are those “who have reached international stature,” and each bursary recipient is matched with a legacy artist in their medium, says Threadkell. These include both living artists like Carole Sabiston and Pat Martin Bates (current president of VVALS), and those who have passed, such as Richard Ciccimarra, Karl Spreitz, James Gordaneer, Elza Mayhew, and others. Sabiston is a fibre artist and a new addition to the list who will be present at the April event. “This year we are thrilled because Senator Patricia Bovey will be giving the keynote address,” Threadkell adds. “She’s written wonderful books on Carole Sabiston and Pat Martin Bates, and is writing another book about western Canadian women artists. She’s coming to talk to the audience about what she’s doing as a senator for the arts in Canada.” Tickets are available through VVALS fund at the Victoria Foundation, or online at canadahelps.org. VVALS is a certified not-for-profit organization; www.victoriavisualartslegacy.ca—MK

DR. JANET RAY is a physician who works exclusively in mental health and substance use at an acute medical detox unit in Victoria for VIHA. She doesn’t have an art background, and she’s stretching herself to take on the role of organizer for a unique and discussion-provoking Victoria art exhibit curated by Melissa Lem, physician and board member of Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE). Green Party MP Elizabeth May will be the keynote speaker at the opening of “Life in the Sacrifice Zone” on April 6; Lem will also speak about why CAPE physicians are alarmed about fracking, the process by which natural gas is being extracted from the “Sacrifice Zone” in northeastern BC. Fifth-generation farmer and artist Karl Mattson will be present, and his three functional Life Pod sculptures are the focal point of the exhibition. Fashioned of salvaged materials from oil-and-gas-industry scrapyards and farmyards, they are designed to serve as self-contained breathing apparatuses in the event of a lethal sour gas leak or rupture of the pipelines that surround his family farm in Rolla, BC. Large-scale colour photographs of subjects near fracking sites, and written essays about their stories will also be featured, along with film and video. "Life Pod–Executive" by Karl Mattson “This is a pretty overwhelming topic, to tell the truth,” Ray acknowledges. “It’s like an ambulance in the rearview mirror; you don’t really want to pull over—‘Maybe I don’t have to stop what I’m doing, it might turn the other way.’” The UN Intergovernmental Panel Report from 2018 was Ray’s ambulance. “As a physician…I should know what to do in an emergency. If something’s hemorrhaging, you gotta stop it.” She says the first thing CAPE wants to do is inform people. The second “is to create a venue where you can give and receive support for the climate crisis issue—a meeting spot where you can turn that awareness and support into action.” A list of MLAs and MPs, along with letter-writing paper and envelopes, will be on hand at the exhibit so people can “write to their representatives and let them know how they feel about fracking in Northeast BC.” “Life in the Sacrifice Zone,” Arts Centre at Cedar Hill Recreation Centre, 3220 Cedar Hill Rd, April 6–19 daily. Opening night April 6 at 7pm, tickets at eventbrite.ca.

MAKING CHORAL MUSIC relevant to people who might not be seeking it out has become job one for the leaders of many of our local choirs. While opera features costumes, sets, and plot lines to entice folks, choral music is not typically heavy on visuals. In a stroke of brilliance, Brian Wismath, artistic director for Victoria’s Vox Humana Chamber Choir (VHCC), is staging a wonderfully unique and visual choral music experience in late March: a screening of the celebrated 1928 silent film classic The Passion of Joan of Arc, accompanied live by the film score (“Voices of Light” by Richard Einhorn), performed by Wismath’s impeccable 28-voice choir, soloists, and members of the Victoria Symphony. Renee Falconetti as Joan Wismath says Einhorn’s score is “considered so seminal that it’s included with the film’s Criterion Collection release (there have been dozens of soundtracks created for the silent classic).” Directed by Carl Dreyer, the film is heralded as one of the most influential ever made, serving as inspiration for generations of film directors such as Bergman, Fellini and Hitchcock. The heart-rending close-ups of actress Renee Falconetti’s subtle, natural expressions humanize the complex range of emotions required in her role as Joan of Arc, who was burned at the stake in 1431. Yet, says Wismath, “The music has a playful character to it… it’s not all serious all the time.” It includes 15th century chant and even recordings of the bells from the actual church where Joan prayed. The challenge, of course, is technical. Wismath says there are “scenes in which a particular look happens, and the music has to synch up with that look perfectly.” His reverence for Dryer’s masterpiece is palpable. “I’ll be making sure that the music perfectly complements the film as much as possible; the music is secondary to the film,” he says, which “stands alone perfectly. It’s almost that you shouldn’t even notice the music; it should function in the background and complement what the audience sees on the stage.” Vox Humana Chamber Choir presents The Passion of Joan of Arc, March 29, 7:30pm, Farquhar Auditorium, University of Victoria, tickets $40, $25 (25 years old and under), available in person at Farquhar Auditorium or online at tickets.uvic.ca—Mollie Kaye

EVENTUALLY, I’d like to see a day where inclusion and respect are simply second nature to us all, and we cease sorting or labelling with prefixes like “gay” or “queer.” For now, though, these self-affixed identifiers seem a required part of an evolutionary process by which previously marginalized artists can claim their rightful place at the table. Hence, Intrepid Theatre is presenting its sixth-annual OUTstages, “a decidedly queer theatre festival,” founded by curator Sean Guist, who was recently appointed Intrepid’s co-artistic and marketing director. Guist notes that when OUTstages began, there was a void of professional queer art and professional queer theatre in Victoria. “We recognized that, and created this festival to fill that void in that community…because there’s a hunger for it.” Heather Lindsay, Intrepid’s artistic and executive director, says she is “so honoured to work alongside” Guist, and that OUTstages “is now recognized across Canada as a dedicated home for underrepresented and queer artists and community.” Intrepid’s website promises a festival “packed with theatre, music, drag, cabaret, soundscapes and a new local work in development!” Offerings will include: Where the Two-Spirit Lives: One part confessional, one part drag extravaganza, and all parts celebration that explores what it means to be Two-Spirit in contemporary society. eat your heART out Cabaret: Raucous cabaret numbers. Fabulous performance art. High camp. A queerly Valentines/Anti-Valentines Day featuring Salty Broad Productions. Like Orpheus: A candid dive into queer club culture and the trauma of sexual assault. Winner of Best Aspect of a Production for “Technical Presentation and Direction” at the Dublin International Gay Theatre Festival. Play Reading: How To Build a Home: A new solo show from local performer/creator Emilee Nimetz that explores how to create a life for yourself when you’ve come from a broken home, and how broken stories move within our bodies. Guist insists that exchewing the prefixes is an important translation for some. “Audiences who are looking at this and thinking: ‘The queer festival isn’t for me’—they are wrong. More than anything, it’s just really powerful, thrilling theatre.” For information, tickets for all shows, and festival passes, go to Ticket Rocket’s new location, 1050 Meares Street (Mon - Fri, 10am-5pm), or intrepidtheatre.com. —Mollie Kaye

The YCSO performing at Pagliacci’s The very darkest, shortest days of the year may be past, but it’s still cold and dark. Klezmer music is helpful at this time of year. It’s the soundtrack of hope mixed with angst, of bright darkness and dark brightness. It’s never all one thing; klezmer bakes life’s contradictions and oxymorons right into the music. So why not wallow joyfully with the Yiddish Columbia State Orchestra (YCSO), Victoria’s own klezmer combo, at their official 20th birthday party at Hermann’s Jazz Club on January 16? The YCSO ’s founder, vocalist and accordionist Marion Siegel, told Chek News in 2018, “I had a concept of playing klezmer music, and I’m a Jewish mother; I like to feed people. I called up the best musicians in the city and said, ‘You wanna have really good dinner [at Pagliacci ’s] and play some music a couple times a week? ’” The band’s weekly gig at the Downtown eatery every Sunday evening has been an institution for decades, with tourists and locals alike revelling in the high-spirited, swing-infused tunes. “[It’s] a Jewish band playing in an Italian restaurant in a Victoria town,” Siegel quipped. “How could you be more Canadian than that?” Guitartist Avram Devon McCagerty says most people encounter the YCSO at Pagliacci’s. They’ve only played Hermann’s once before in these 20 years. “We decided to put on a show to celebrate…We love Hermann’s, we want to support it. We love playing Pags, but [the audience is] eating. Sometimes they come for us, sometimes for the spaghetti—‘come for the noodle, stay for the noodling.’” I ask McCagerty whether his personal decision to embrace the Jewish faith came before or after his tenure with the YCSO. At one of their wedding gigs, he was chatting with “Rabbi Harry,” and “my mother had just told me that her mother’s mother was Jewish. During a very long band break, and many, many drinks, we were schmoozing,” McCagerty says. “He said, ‘We’ll go for coffee and see where you wanna go with this thing.’” The band is made up of Jews and gentiles. I love that trumpet player Michael Mazza is Italian, but his last name is pronounced “matza,” like the flatbread. Joining Mazza, McCagerty and Siegel are Nick La Riviere, Julian Vitek, Dave Klassen, Chandra Crowe, and cousin Rod McCrimmon. “Jewish means ‘family,’” McCagerty insists, “so you can marry in.” Doors at 5:30, show at 7:30, Hermann’s Jazz Club, 753 View St, $15. Reserve tickets at hermannsjazz.com. —Mollie Kaye

IT SEEMS TO BE A SPRING FULL OF MAJOR ANNIVERSARIES; several Victoria arts groups are celebrating the passion—and tenacity—that has kept them convening and creating together for decades. Fired Up! is one such enterprise; the ceramic artists’ annual spring collective show is now 35 years old and thriving. Samantha Dickie, one of eight “core members” exhibiting work at Fired Up! this year, says the theme, MONUMENTAL, is in reference to “the nature of the collective, the calibre over the years. The whole group is proud that it’s such a long-standing exhibition and show.” Dickie’s contemporary approach to ceramics, which includes “abstract expressionism and minimalist sculpture within an installation practice,” will be flanked by Vin Arora, Gordon Hutchens, Cathi Jefferson, Meira Mathison, Beth McMillan, Kinichi Shigeno, and Pat Webber. This year’s special guest artists are Elaine Brewer-White, Peter Flanagan, Bob Kingsmill, Alwyn O’Brien, and Clive Tucker. Untitled by Vin Arora, 20 x 6 inches When you google “Fired Up,” you could end up finding a paint-your-own pottery shop—not to be confused with this Fired Up! which convenes the region’s top-notch, professional ceramic artists. “Each member, individually, is teaching and exhibiting across North America,” Dickie explains. The collective, as an entity, is focused solely around the annual three-day, themed show in Metchosin; some years, the members take it on the road to Seattle, Vancouver, or Ontario. As new members replace or join original members, Fired Up! has morphed into a wonderful confluence of styles and approaches, Dickie observes. “It’s amazing to have this cross-generational camaraderie and influence; the diversity for exhibition; the different kinds of work people are doing. There’s a respect for tradition, mastery, and craft producers that is multigenerational; there’s also an approach to pushing new ways…through the younger generation and the guest artists.” And it’s definitely not all coffee mugs and salad bowls. “You’ll find practical items, and also things that are pushing the new frontiers of ceramics,” she says. You’ll learn a lot, too. “All artists are there to engage about their work and their craft…it’s a clearing house to find out what people are doing and where.” She says it’s not just a show to sell things, “but to be part of the conversation around ceramics and craft in Canada.” Fired Up! Ceramic Artists: Contemporary Works in Clay presents MONUMENTAL, Celebrating 35 Years, May 24-26, Metchosin Community Hall, 4401 William Head Road. Opening Gala May 24, 6-9pm; continues May 25 & 26, 10am-5pm. www.firedup.ca. —Mollie Kaye

“WE TELL OURSELVES STORIES in order to live.” Joan Didion said this, and it’s not hyperbole. Brain scientists, behavioural psychologists, and spiritual gurus all concur that storytelling is a fundamental aspect of our human experience. It’s the way we make meaning and sense of our experiences, how we learn and teach. There is both huge value and darkness inherent in the way we frame and tell our stories. Depression, at its root, is directly connected to stories we tell ourselves—as is every peak experience we celebrate. The fact that there’s a local organization dedicated to the conscious art of telling stories shouldn’t be a surprise, then, but perhaps you didn’t know about the Victoria Storyteller’s Guild (VSG), or that they are now celebrating 30 years. Victoria Cownden, a member for two decades, says the group holds a meeting at the Quaker Hall on Fern Street on the third Friday evening of each month. “People can come and try it,” she encourages, saying the group is welcoming and supportive. “A story is a story. You can make doing the laundry a story. Everybody has a story,” she says. “We serve a nice tea party during the break.” The group sponsors workshops and concerts where professional storytellers offer their craft and inspire others. This year’s VSG-sponsored concert, featuring award-winning Vancouver transgender author and storyteller Ivan Coyote, has particular cultural relevance. Ivan Coyote Coyote’s most famous book, Tomboy Survival Guide, got long-listed for Canada Reads. “Ivan is well known, and the press is quite positive,” says Cownden. “Ivan is a storyteller first, [with] the ability for their stories to transform the world and make it a better place. When you know a person’s story, it’s pretty hard to judge them.” 7:30pm, The Belfry Theatre, 1291 Gladstone Avenue. Call 250-385-6815 or see tickets.belfry.bc.ca —Mollie Kaye