Outstanding in the Field UBC Farm & Pemberton

Comments 1 by Rebecca Bollwitt

Outstanding in the Field is returning to BC this year with events at UBC Farm and in Pemberton. This international dining series hosts a long table dinner in the middle of land that is used to supply ingredients for the meal, making for a truly farm-to-fork experience.

Araxi Long Table Dinner in Pemberton, B.C.
Photo credit: John Bollwitt on Flickr

Outstanding in the Field is a roving culinary adventure – literally a restaurant without walls. Since 1999 we have set the long table at farms or gardens, on mountain tops or in sea caves, on islands or at ranches. Occasionally the table is set indoors: a beautiful refurbished barn, a cool greenhouse or a stately museum. Wherever the location, the consistent theme of each dinner is to honor the people whose good work brings nourishment to the table.

Ingredients used for the meals will always vary, depending on the location of the event, and the dinners are prepared by local chefs at each destination. Farmers, producers, culinary artisans, and diners all share the long table for a magical evening of food appreciation.

The Outstanding in the Field tour will make it to everywhere from Queens to Houston, Catalina Island to Chicago from May to November. Here’s what will be happening when they get to BC:

Outstanding in the Field UBC

Where: Saturday July 13, 2013 at 4:00pm
When: UBC Farm
Host Farmers: Amy Frye & Tim Carter, Centre for Sustainable Food Systems at UBC Farm
Guest Chefs: Lucais Syme & Adam Pegg of La Quercia in Vancouver
Feature Wine: LaStella
Tickets: On sale now and include a farm tour, wine pairings, and the meal.

Outstanding in the Field Pemberton

Where: Sunday July 14, 2013 at 3:00pm
When: North Arm Farm
Host Farmers: Jordan & Trish Sturdy, North Arm Farm
Guest Chefs: Andrea Carlson, Burdock & Co and Harvest Community Foods
Guest Oyster Shucker: Richard Boucher, Curious Oyster
Feature Wine: Nichol Vineyard
Tickets: On sale now and include a farm tour, wine pairings, and the meal.

Follow Facebook and Twitter for more information about their events in BC and around North America.

Join Latincouver for Noche Latina at a Vancouver Whitecaps Match

Comments 69 by Rebecca Bollwitt

Latincouver, who brought you the fantastic Carnaval del Sol this past weekend on Granville Street downtown, is hosting Noche Latina with the Vancouver Whitecaps this coming Sunday, July 14, 2013.

NocheLatina

Noche Latina is a celebration of Vancouver’s Latin American culture that will bring music and even more excitement to the Whitecaps’ match against Chicago. Enjoy Mariachi del Sol before the game and a ticket discount when you book through Latincouver at this link (or by contacting Emilio Ekuba at (778)330-1379 or eekuba[at]whitecapsfc.com).

John and I have been season ticket holders for the last two years and Whitecaps matches have become our staple “date night”. They’re affordable, packed with action, lively, and it feels pretty amazing to get behind your local club and its roster of international talent.

For Noche Latina all soccer lovers and fans are encouraged to wear the colours of their favourite team and bring flags of their home country to the match to brighten up the stands. You could even fly some Latin American colours in honour of Camilo Sanvezzo (Brazil) and Johnny Leveron (Honduras) of Whitecaps FC.

If you would like to attend this match, I have a pair of tickets to give away. Here’s how you can enter to win:

  • Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
  • Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
RT to enter to win tickets to @WhitecapsFC Noche Latina from @latincouver + @Miss604 http://ow.ly/mM21i

I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 9:00am on Friday, July 12, 2013. While Carnaval del Sol is over for another year, follow Latincouver on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to learn more about their activities and initiatives throughout the year.

Update The winner is Denise!

Klahowya Village at Stanley Park 2013

Add a Comment by Rebecca Bollwitt

This summer a section of Stanley Park has once again been transformed into Klahowya Village featuring the Spirit Catcher Train along the miniature railway. An initiative of the Aboriginal Tourism Association of BC, Klahowya Village is open to visitors to share authentic aboriginal experiences, traditions, and culture.

Klahowya Village in Stanley Park Klahowya Village in Stanley Park Klahowya Village in Stanley Park

Klahowya Village opened on National Aboriginal Day in June and will be open every day until September 2, 2013 from 11:00am to 4:00pm (Monday to Thursday) and 11:00am to 5:00pm (Friday to Sunday, and holiday Mondays).

The theme this year is the Legend of the Spirit Bear which you can hear daily at the Story Telling Circle. There are also artisans on site, craft workshops, walking tours, live performances, and information about Musqueam, Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh, and Métis First Nations. Enjoy regional days at Klahowya this year with performances representing cultures from Vancouver Coast & Mountains, Vancouver Island, Thompson Okanagan, Northern BC, Kootenay Rockies and the Cariboo Chilcotin Coast.

Klahowya Village in Stanley Park Klahowya Village in Stanley Park

General admission to the village is free and you can purchase tickets for the Spirit Catcher Train in person or in advance online. Train tickets are just $5 per person and children under 2 are free. Craft workshops are $7 and a season bundle is available for $20 (including workshops, walking tours, unlimited summer train rides, and more).

Klahowya Village - Farewell
Photo credit: Larissa on Flickr

Follow Klahowya Village on Twitter and Facebook for daily updates and information about activities, stories, demos, and performances.

Vancouver Icons: Malkin Bowl

Add a Comment by Rebecca Bollwitt

On this day in 1934, Malkin Bowl hosted its first performance of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra making it my choice for today’s Vancouver Icons photo feature:


1940s – Photographer: Jack Lindsay, Item #: CVA 1184-1963.

The Marion Malkin Memorial Bowl was a named in honor of Mayor W.H. Malkin‘s wife (who passed away in 1933), and was a gift to the city replacing a circular bandstand with a Hollywood Bowl style structure. [VancouverHistory]


1942: TUTS performers behind Malkin Bowl. Archives# CVA 1184-410.


1942: Crowd watching Theatre Under the Stars. Archives #CVA 1184-409 & 1944: Theatre Under the Stars Rehearsal. Archives #CVA 586-2927.


1936: Memorial service for King George V at Malkin Bowl. Archives #CVA 371-45. Leicaphoto by W.B. Shelly.


1942: Crowd gathered at a military service at Malkin Bowl. Archives #CVA 1184-1044 & 1951: Dal Richards conducting Sunday concert at Malkin Bowl. VPL# 81632. Photographer: Art Jones.

The venue has been home to Theatre Under the Stars (“TUTS”) since 1940 (although there was a brief hiatus in the 1960’s) and it burnt down in 1982 but was quickly rebuilt. “The fire destroyed, among other things, the signatures of hundreds of performers and the names and dates of shows, all pencilled on the old wooden walls.” [Vancouver History]


1949: Fire at Malkin Bowl. VPL# 84886 & 84886A. Photographer: Art Jones.

According to a Vancouver Sun article, TUTS Vice President Cliff Cox said the fire was a mystery because it was in the winter, all the electrical was turned off, and the stage was damp from rain and snow seepage.

VancouverSun-MalkinBowlFire
1982: Vancouver Sun

Today, Malkin Bowl is still home to TUTS and it a major venue for Live Nation’s new “Concerts in the Park” series this summer.

DSC08241 The Raconteurs at Malkin Bowl July 26, 2006
Photo credit: velkr0 & jane1000 on Flickr

Phantogram | Malkin Bowl, Stanley Park
Photo credit: RickChung.com on Flickr

Previous Vancouver Icons posts: Search, Vancouver Rowing Club, Echoes, Point Atkinson Lighthouse, English Bay Inukshuk, Hollow Tree, Hotel Europe, Lions Gate Bridge Lions, LightShed, Granville Bridge, 217.5 Arc x 13′, Canoe Bridge, Vancouver Block, Bloedel Conservatory, Centennial Rocket, Canada Place, Old Courthouse/Vancouver Art Gallery, Dominion Building, Science World, Gastown Steam Clock, SFU Burnaby, Commodore Lanes, Siwash Rock, Kitsilano Pool, White Rock Pier, Main Post Office, Planetarium Building, Lord Stanley Statue, Vancouver Library Central Branch, Victory Square, Digital Orca, The Crab Sculpture, Girl in Wetsuit, The Sun Tower, The Hotel Vancouver, The Gassy Jack Statue, The Marine Building, and The Angel of Victory. Should you have a suggestion for the Vancouver Icons series please feel free to leave a note in the comments. It should be a thing, statue, or place that is very visible and recognizable to the public.

Win Tickets to Bard on the Beach: Hamlet

Comments 158 by Rebecca Bollwitt

Vancouver’s annual Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival is on now until September 13th, 2013 with Hamlet and Twelfth Night in the 742-seat BMO Mainstage tent, and Elizabeth Rex and Measure For Measure on the studio stage at Vanier Park.

Bard on the Beach

Hamlet is one of my favourite Shakespearean works so John and I made a date night out of our trip to event one sunny evening. Walking around the Seawall from the West End, we hopped a False Creek Ferry across English Bay to the Maritime Museum, passing stand-up paddle boarders, sailboats, kayakers and other traffic in this busy waterway. The sun started its descent as we walked from the ferry dock across the grass at Vanier Park and over to the main entrance of Bard on the Beach.

Bard’s version of Hamlet this year, directed by Kim Collier, is set in 2013 with everything from iPads to Bluetooth document sharing — and a good sword-fight.

Hamlet is the source of some of pop culture’s most famous Shakespeare references and phrases such as “To be, or not to be”; “This above all: to thine own self be true”; “The lady doth protest too much, methinks”; “In my mind’s eye”; “A little more than kin, and less than kind”; “Do you think I am easier to be played on than a pipe?”; and many more.

Despite some ambient noise from the bay, floatplanes overhead reminding you that you were indeed still outdoors, I was sucked into the story thanks to the convincing portrayal of Jonathon Young as Hamlet. The character is tough to master and one must avoid going too over-the-top crazy, which I think Young pulled off splendidly and catapulted him to the top of my list of favourite Hamlets.

Hamlet Bard on the Beach
Jonathon Young as Hamlet. Photo: Davie Blue.

The rest of the cast was tight, with Barbara Pollard as Hamlet’s mother Gertrude, Bill Dow as his murdering uncle Claudius, and Jennifer Lines as his old friend Horatio (I like that Horatio was played by a woman).

Rachel Cairns plays Hamlet’s sweetheart Ophelia with Richard Newman as her interfering old father Polonius, and Todd Thomson as her brother Laertes.

Duncan Fraser is Hamlet’s father’s Ghost, The Player and the First Gravedigger, while Daniel Doheny, Andrew McNee, Robert Olguin and Allan Zinyk play numerous characters including other Players of the court. Naomi Wright (another role traditionally played by a man) and Craig Erickson are Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.

The set is posh and sleek, and the technical timing is spot on. To top it off, the BMO Mainstage tent has comfortable seats, with cup holders, and the refreshments are reasonably priced (compared to sporting events in town).

Bard on the Beach is Western Canada’s largest professional Shakespeare company. Performances run Tuesdays through Sundays with evening curtain at 8:00pm, except Sunday evenings and from September 4th onward, when curtain time is an hour earlier at 7pm. Matinees are presented on selected weekends and weekdays.

Ticket prices include all fees & taxes and are $43 (evenings) and $25 to $30 (previews, matinees and long weekend evenings) with a $25 Youth Rate (6-25 years, all performances). Prices for special events, groups and multi-play ticket package discounts can be found on the Bard website. Early booking is recommended for best seat selection (all seats are reserved) and because many performances sell out in advance.

Contest

Catching a show at award-winning Bard on the Beach is a truly Vancouver experience and I’d love to share it so we’re giving away a pair of tickets this summer. Here’s how you can enter to win:

  • Leave a comment on this post with a Shakespearean quote (1 entry)
  • Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
RT to enter to win tickets to see Hamlet at @BardontheBeach from @Miss604 http://ow.ly/mIjIB

I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Thursday, July 11, 2013. The winner will be able to select the Hamlet performance date of their choice until September 12th (based on availability, excludes Bard-B-Q fireworks nights).

Follow Bard on the Beach Facebook and Twitter for season updates and to learn about their special events.

Update The winner is @QuipsAndTips!