Nominees for the 32nd annual Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards (“The Jessies”) have just been announced and winners will be awarded at a ceremony on Monday, June 23, 2014 at the Commodore Ballroom. The list of nominees reflects a full year of excellence in local theatre, showing appreciation for everything from costume and lighting design to performances on stages large, small, and for young audiences.
Jessie Awards 2014: Nominees
The awards are divided into three categories: Large Theatre, Small Theatre, and Theatre for Young Audiences. Also included are the Significant Achievement Award and other special awards that comprise the Jessies. Here’s the rundown courtesy of the Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards:
In the Large Theatre category there were a total of nine theatre companies whose productions were nominated; from that group four companies garnered the highest number of nominations. Leading the group is Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival with a total of 15 nominations from their 4 productions. Hamlet received the most with a total of 5 nominations that includes actor Jonathon Young receiving two nominations – one for Outstanding Lead Actor in Hamlet and the other for Supporting Actor in Twelfth Night.
Pacific Theatre garnered an impressive total of 14 nominations with The Seafarer receiving a total of 8 that includes Ron Reed and John Emmet Tracy both nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor and their production of The Foreigner receiving a total of 6 nominations. Arts Club Theatre Company received a total of 13 nominations with Armstrong’s War leading with a total of 5 including Outstanding Original Script. The musical, Floyd Collins produced by Patrick Street Productions, received 5 nominations along with one for Out of a Dream.
In the Small Theatre Category a total of 19 theatre companies are nominated with a total of 22 productions. ITSAZOO Productions presentation of Killer Joe took the lead with a total of 7 nominations that include Outstanding Direction, Production, Set Design, and Supporting Actor categories. Realwheels Theatre received a total of 6 nominations for Whose Life Is It Anyway including Outstanding Production, with Bob Frazer nominated for Outstanding Actor in a Lead Role and John Cooper for Outstanding Direction. Hardline Productions also received recognition with a total of 7 nominations for their productions of Of Mice and Men and Bug.
Drew Facey received an impressive 7 nominations, the most by a single individual. He received four out of the five nominations in Outstanding Set Design in the Large Theatre category and in the Small Theatre Category he earned one for Set Design and two for Costume Design.
Under the Theatre for Young Audiences category, Carousel Theatre for Young People garnered a total of 10 nominations with six going to Busytown and three to Wondrous Tales of Old Japan. Théâtre La Seizième’s production of Extra Celeste and Presentation House Theatre’s Jack and the Bean both garnered four nominations.
Some of the most touching moments of the Jessie Awards ceremony come with the special awards. These not only honour very deserving, distinguished, and up-and-coming members of the industry, but I have personally learned so much about the history of theatre in Vancouver thanks to the namesakes of these awards and their recipients. The special awards include: The Georgia Straight Patron of the Arts Award, the Mary Phillips Award for Behind the Scenes Achievement, the Ray Michal Prize for Emerging Director, the Sam Payne Award for the Most Promising Newcomer, the John Moffat & Larry Lillo Award, the Colin Campbell Award for Excellence in Technical Theatre, the Critics Choice Innovation Award, and the GVPTA Career Achievement Award.
Tickets for the Jessies are now on sale for $29.50 (plus service charges) through Ticketmaster online or by phone 1-855-985-5000. Doors are at 5:30pm on Monday, June 23rd with the ceremony beginning at 6:30pm. Even if you aren’t a member of the industry, it’s a thoroughly entertaining evening and one of my favourite theatre-related events of the year thanks to the Vancouver TheatreSports who puts on the show.
The Fair at the PNE has announced their concert lineup for the season, bringing in big names and legends for over a dozen performances on top of their regular (and new) entertainment and attractions.
Running from Saturday, August 16, 2014 to Monday, September 1, 2014 you’ll be able to enjoy everything from mini donuts to those famous Superdogs shows along with the new Games of Thrones exhibition and a multi-million dollar lineup of concerts, all in included with admission.
PNE Concerts 2014
The Concerts will run every evening from August 16th to September 1st (except Mondays August 18th and August 25th) at 8:00pm at the PNE Amphitheatre. Summer Night Concert Schedule:
Saturday, August 16th: Phillip Phillips
Sunday, August 17th: Joan Jett & The Blackhearts
Tuesday, August 19th: Chilliwack
Wednesday, August 20th: Air Supply
Thursday, August 21st: LeAnn Rimes
Friday, August 22nd: Trooper
Saturday, August 23rd: Gipsy Kings – 25th Anniversary Tour
Sunday, August 24th: Zendaya
Tuesday, August 26th: Gavin DeGraw
Wednesday, August 27th: Three Days Grace
Thursday, August 28th: Boyz II Men
Friday, August 29th: Plain White T’s
Saturday, August 30th: Dallas Smith
Sunday, August 31st: The Pointer Sisters
Monday, September 1st: Glass Tiger
All concerts are FREE with gate admission but super fans looking for reserved seating will have the opportunity to purchase a limited number of reserved seats in the WestJet Fan Zone starting May 24th at 10:00am.
New This Year
To compliment the host of returning live shows and activities, such as the PNE Prize Home Lottery Tour, Dueling Pianos, Let’s Go Crazy – Retro Dance Party, Superdogs, Canfor’s Playhouse Challenge, Kidz Discovery Farm, Safeway Farm Country, Colouring Mural, and the 4th Annual Vancouver Rib Festival Competition, there is a great offering of new attractions:
Saturday, August 16, 2014 to Monday, September 1, 2014. The PNE will be closed Monday, August 18th and Monday, August 25th. Open 11:00am until late each night.
Adult admission is $16.00 at the gate including tax or only $13.00 at Safeway, 7-Eleven, Save-On-Foods, PriceSmart Foods, Cooper’s Foods, Urban Fare and online. Kids 13 years and under are FREE. On site parking is $16.00 including tax.
You can also purchase a Pinwheel Deals Coupon Book, which contains over $300 in Fair-wide savings. Guests that purchase Fair tickets online before July 31 will receive a voucher for The Fair’s coupon book for free. The Coupon Book can also be purchased onsite for $2.00.
Tickets go on sale on Saturday, May 24th at 10:00am and can be purchased online. For more information about entertainment, attractions, activities, and passes follow The Fair at the PNE on Facebook and Twitter.
Mark your calendars for Burnaby Heights’ Hats Off Day 2014 happening Saturday, June 7th. This epic street party along Hastings is when Heights merchants “take their hats off” to their community and their customers, and the entire Heights community celebrates together. It’s a huge, one-day extravaganza featuring a colourful main-street style parade with real local flavour, followed by a big street party.
When: Saturday, June 7, 2014 from 9:00am to 4:00pm Where: Hastings Street in Burnaby from Boundary to Gamma
The theme this year is “The Totally Awesome 80s”, in Celebration of 30 Years of Hats Off Day. I am very proud to once again sponsor this community event that includes a parade, show & shine, food from Heights restaurants and bakeries, activities for kids, activities for dogs, displays, live music, dancing, and more.
Photo credit: John Bollwitt on Flickr
Photo credit: John Bollwitt on Flickr
Hats Off Day will also see the return of the Family Fun Dash, a 2.5-block family run with a staggered start based on age. Family teams will walk, jog, run, or dash in celebration of Hats Off Day and in support of the Burnaby Fire Fighter’s Charitable Society. The $5 entry fee per family team will go towards the Fire Fighter’s Society. Register in advance online.
Follow the Burnaby Heights Merchants Association on Facebook and Twitter for more information.
Two of my favourite things — Okanagan wine and Salt Spring Island — are coming together on June 16th as Hastings Country House Hotel launches its Chefs Across the Water series for the season.
Chefs Across the Water 2014
The 5th Annual guest chef program brings distinguished chefs to the Hastings House kitchen for a series of gastronomic island adventures and it all begins with Mission Hill’s Chef Chris Stewart who will bring wine country cooking to Hastings House Country House Hotel on Monday, June 16, 2014 at Hastings House.
Mission Hill’s Executive Winery Chef, Chris Stewart, takes the reins to highlight wine country cooking with the freshest, locally grown, in-season ingredients. Originally from the Maritimes, Chef Stewart is looking forward to working with world-class calibre wines and west coast seafood.
Ask Chef Chris Stewart what he most looks forward to in his guest chef debut and he’ll tell you it’s getting back to the ocean, “My mind is set on seafood. Once the primary protein has been decided, I will tailor dishes that work to build a memorable menu incorporating our award winning wines and locally caught seafood.” He’s also looking forward to working alongside Hastings House Executive Chef Marcel Kauer, “Chef Kauer and the team at Hastings House carry a reputation for amazingly fresh, creative, and sustainable food. The name is well known across the country.
Hastings House’s extensive garden on its 22 acre estate will provide a wide variety of greens, vegetables, edible flowers, fruits and herbs to compliment Chef Stewart’s meal.
The aim of the Chefs Across the Water program is to raise awareness of the pleasure, as well as health and economic benefits, of using local, organic and sustainable ingredients, despite the broader availability of ingredients from around the world.
Proceeds from Chefs Across the Water events go towards Salt Spring Agricultural Alliance‘s effort to establish a cold storage produce and production facility. So far $3,000 has gone towards the now operational Salt Spring Island Abattoir. Hastings House Country House Hotel is proud to contribute to these and other worthwhile projects to support island farmers and livestock producers who in turn provide the dining room with the freshest, highest quality ingredients our loyal patrons deserve.
Chef Chris Stewart will be at Hastings House Country House Hotel on Monday, June 16, 2014 and on Monday, September 15, 2014 join Chef Angun An of Maenam Restaurant in Vancouver at Hastings House. These dinners usually fill up so be sure to make your reservations as soon as possible (call 1-800-661-9255) and plan your dinner getaway to Salt Spring Island.
Yesterday was the International Day Against Homophobia and last year, Vancouver Whitecaps FC participated by changing their online profile images to rainbow logos. This year, they took it up another notch and released a rainbow scarf for everyone to show their support along with the team.
Whitecaps FC Pride Scarf, in partnership with Gameday Merchandising.
You can purchase the Pride Scarf online for a limited time and also at the next home match on May 24th at BC Place. $10 from each scarf sold will be donated to You Can Play, which promotes respect for all athletes:
You Can Play is dedicated to ensuring equality, respect and safety for all athletes, without regard to sexual orientation. The organization works to guarantee that athletes are given a fair opportunity to compete, judged by other athletes and fans alike, only by what they contribute to the sport or their team’s success.
You Can Play seeks to challenge the culture of locker rooms and spectator areas by focusing only on an athlete’s skills, work ethic and competitive spirit.
In addition to Pride Scarf sales, Vancouver Whitecaps FC will celebrate Pride Night at the July 27th match against FC Dallas at BC Place.
The atmosphere at matches is always great, John and I are season ticket holders in the Southsiders supporter section, and when there’s a fantastic cause to support it just gets amped up.
Thanks to Whitecaps FC, I have a pair of tickets to give away for the July 27th Pride Night match along with a pair of Pride Scarves. Here’s how you can enter to win:
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Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
RT to enter to win @WhitecapsFC Pride Night match tickets + Pride Scarves from @Miss604 http://ow.ly/wYxwF
I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 5:00pm on Friday, May 23, 2014. Follow Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for news and updates from the club.
