The Arts Club Theatre Company presents Dreamgirls from May 9th to July 7th, 2013 at the Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage.
Karen Holness, Aurianna Angelique, and Starr Domingue. Photo by David Cooper.
Full of onstage joy and backstage drama, the musical Dreamgirls tells the rags-to-riches tale of a 1960s girl group, loosely based on The Supremes. Young, black, and with talent to burn, the hopeful divas Effie, Deena, and Lorrell fantasize about playing the Apollo Theater. After getting their big break, The Dreamettes seem unstoppable—until rivalry and betrayal enter the group. Share their elation and tribulations on the road to stardom, told through the unforgettable sounds of Motown.
Dreamgirls will run Tuesdays at 7:30 pm, Wednesdays through Saturdays at 8:00pm, and Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays at 2:00pm. Tickets are $29 to $70, inclusive of taxes and fees. Special events for this production include Sunday Coffee Talks (May 19th at 1:00pm); Wednesday High Teas (May 22nd at 1:00pm); Talk Back Tuesdays (May 28th); and VocalEye live audio description (June 2nd at 2:00pm).
Directed by Bill Millerd, eight shows are already sold out for this Motown Musical but I have a pair of tickets to give away this month. Here’s how you can win your way into this show:
- Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
- Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
Follow the Arts Club (now in their 49th season) on Facebook, Twitter, and the Arts Club Blog.
I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Wednesday, May 8, 2013. The winner will be able to choose their show date between May 16th and May 29th excluding Saturday nights.
Update The winner is @NewGrad_RN!
The sound of 140 participants pouring out buckets of LEGO bricks simultaneously filled the room as children laughed and parents snapped photos feverishly at the sold-out Vancouver LEGO Games yesterday.
The Firefighter’s Club in Burnaby was packed with about 200 people in attendance from all corners of Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley. Split into age groups (ranging from 5 years old to teens and adults) and colour-coded tables, children and adults alike competed for LEGO building glory in this friendly competition that saw proceeds benefit Canuck Place.
Members of the Vancouver LEGO Club brought in impressive pre-built pieces, including one of Poseidon that had moving parts. Children could also bring in pre-built pieces for the competition using the theme “What Vancouver Means to Me” as inspiration.
When the live build competition got underway participants were given a theme as well: “Play”. Hands and fingers moved quickly to assemble LEGO creations using only the bricks provided.
Refreshments were served at the back of the room and there was a general play area for younger children or those not competing. Kids got VIP badges worn on lanyards and LEGO gift bags, touches that would make anyone feel like a rockstar. A VIP in the LEGO world, Robin Sather, was also on hand for the day. Robin is Canada’s only LEGO Certified Professional.
T-Shirts for Canuck Place
If you missed out on the Vancouver LEGO Games you can still support the cause by purchasing an official Vancouver LEGO Games t-shirt online and $10 from every sale will go to Canuck Place.
Organizer Darian Kovacs told me that there was such a response on Facebook when they posted the design for their volunteer t-shirts that they decided to make more and sell them. “We had such a huge uproar of people wanted to buy them but we didn’t want to become t-shirt producers so we found that there was an organization called CauseShirts. They sponsor a new charity every week with a new t-shirt design. Because we already had a shirt design they adopted us right away.”
CauseShirts has graciously extended the Vancouver LEGO Games shirts/Canuck Place donations for a few more days so you can still make your purchase until Wednesday, May 1st.
Follow the Vancouver LEGO Games on Twitter and Facebook to find out about future events.
Discovery’s web series Refined: A Cross-Canada Search for the Finer Things in Life recently came out to BC to film a few episodes with host Patrick McMurray. Patrick is a Canadian restauranteur, a World Oyster Opening Champion, and the current Guinness World Record Oyster Shucker. In Refined, he finds people who are the masters of their own crafts and walks in their shoes for a day to explore their passions.
I was invited out to Chilliwack for their episode with April Vokey of Fly Gal Ventures as Patrick joined her on the Chilliwack River to learn about fly fishing.
Fly Gal Ventures is a unique fly-fishing company that specializes in guided/hosted trips, workshops and ladies apparel. Men, women and children, we cater to everyone in hopes that we can share our passion for the sport.
April is a Federation of Fly Fishers (FFF) certified casting instructor, dedicated conservationist, and is definitely an authority when it comes to fly fishing in these parts. Together with her trusty four-legged sidekick, Colby, the production team and I followed April into the river for this episode.
“One of the things that I do this for is to be able to truly live the way that we’re supposed to,” April explains in the episode. “A lot of us get caught up in the indoor life, with the computer scene and the fluorescent lights, and fishing is one of the last final ways that human beings can really get outside and just do exactly as we were meant to do. Even though we don’t always kill our catch, we’re still able to go outside and relive what our ancestors did.”
Previous episodes of Refined include Nasser Shoes (shoemaking), Garrison Bespoke (tailors), Camellia Sinensis (specialty teas), maple syrup, cheese, and guitar making. While in the Vancouver area Patrick also filmed with Milano Coffee, which will be the next episode to be posted in this twelve-part series.
On Saturday, April 27, 2013 the City of Surrey hosted Party for the Planet, BC’s largest Earth Day celebration, at Central City with a free family festival and live concerts. Activities included recycling stations, collecting free saplings, story times with the Surrey Library, learning with the Surrey Nature Centre, face painting, and meet and greets with Max and Ruby, kept revelers busy.
Under a cloudy canopy, thousands gathered for free concerts with acts like Shane Philip, The Matinee, Fighting for Ithaca, Hey Ocean and Lights who closed out the event.
The Matinee
Having just returned from JunoFest in Regina, The Matinee had fans jumping up and down as they kicked things off with L’Absinthe and played tunes from their latest release, We Swore We’d See the Sunrise like Who Stoned The Roses and their first single Young & Lazy.
Hey Ocean
Also returning from JunoFest, where they were nominees for Breakthrough Group of the Year, Hey Ocean had thousands of festival-goers, young and old, dancing their feet off to favourite singles like Jolene, and Big Blue Wave as well as a cover of Arcade Fire’s Sprawl II and Make a New Dance Up which slides into a cover of Whitney Houston’s I Wanna Dance with Somebody.
Lights
Lights brought her electro pop to Surrey sporting a new blond hairstyle and smiling at adoring (screaming) fans every chance she got.
The talented young Canadian (who won New Artist of the Year at the 2009 Juno Awards) played songs from The Listening (2009) and her latest release Siberia (2011) as the audience sang along.
That’s a wrap on another successful festival for the City of Surrey. Follow Surrey Events on Twitter for more information about the city’s events. Coming up soon we have the Surrey Children’s Festival in May followed by the annual Canada Day celebration in Cloverdale.
The Mining Association of BC is hosting BC Mining Week from April 28th to May 4th, celebrating the history and future one of the province’s largest industries through community events from Britannia Beach to Fort St. James.
BC Mining Week Events
Vancouver
Event: BC Mining Week Opening Reception & Mining Person of the Year 2012 Award
Date: Monday, April 29, 2013 from 5:30pm to 8:30pm
Location: Five Sails Restaurant, 999 Canada Place
Tickets can be purchased in advance online.
Event: Vancouver Board of Trade Luncheon
Date: Tuesday, April 30, 2013 from 11:45am to 2:00pm
Location: Fairmont Waterfront — Waterfront Ballroom, 900 Canada Place Way
The keynote speaker is Karina Briño, President & CEO, Mining Association of BC. Tickets can be purchased in advance online via the Vancouver Board of Trade.
Event: BC Mining Week Community Fair
Date: Wednesday, May 1, 2013 from 10:00am to 3:00pm
Location: Creekside Community Centre, 1 Athletes Way
FREE family-friendly event open to everyone. The community fair will feature displays, demonstrations and hands-on learning activities showcasing mineral exploration and mining the the role minerals play in our everyday lives. School children and the general public are invited to participate in this lively and entertaining day. The BC Mining Week Community Fair, organized and co-hosted by the Association for Mineral Exploration and MineralsEd (Mineral Resources Education Program of BC) with the support of the BC Mining Week Committee.
Event: Women in Mining Gala Reception
Date: Wednesday, May 1, 2013 from 4:30pm to 7:30pm
Location: Pan Pacific Hotel, Oceanview Suite, 999 Canada Place Way
This event is already sold out.
Event: Teck’s Annual Celebrity Pie Throw
Date: Thursday, May 2, 2013 from 11:30am to 1:30pm
Location: Vancouver Art Gallery (front lawn)
The Teck Celebrity Pie throw is part of the Mining for Miracles campaign in support of BC Children’s Hospital, BC’s mining industry Charity of Choice for 25 years. Hosted by Global TV’s Wayne Cox and attended by celebrated and notable individuals from BC’s mining industry, the pie throw has become a campaign favorite. This popular event throws the world’s most expensive cream pies in the faces of mining industry leaders, all in support of BC’s sick and injured kids.
Event: Career Day in Mining
Date: Friday, May 3, 2013 from 9:00am to 12:30pm
Location: SFU Segal Graduate School of Business (Room 4400) 500 Granville St
If you are an undergraduate student or graduate student looking for job ideas or simply more information about the BC mining industry – reserve this career fair in your calendars. You will enjoy a number of presentations showcasing how diverse the industry is. Come discover what jobs are available in the fields of geoscience, exploration, development of projects, operating mines, educational institutions and local and international projects.
Elk Valley
Event: Elk Valley Mine Tours
Date: Monday, April 29, 2013 to Friday, May 3, 2013
Location: You are invited to join Teck Coal for a free mine tour of one of their five operations in the Elk Valley. To book on one of the tours please contact the Sparwood Chamber: 1-877-922-2423. This will be an opportunity to see where steelmaking coal comes from and to learn about mining–from exploration to production to reclamation.
Fort St. James
Event: Mining Week in Fort St. James
Date: Wednesday, May 1, 2013 from 10:00am to 2:00pm
Location: The College Of New Caledonia, 179 Douglas Ave
FREE event where you can include meet with local Mining companies in the area, find out who and when they want to hire, try the heavy haul truck simulators, attend a MINE 101 seminar with our Regional Geologist at 11:00am, tour our campus for hands on displays, chat with local mining companies.
Smithers
2nd Annual Exploration & Mining Community Expo
Date: Thursday, May 2, 2013 from 9:00am to 2:00pm
Location: Northwest Community College, Smithers Campus
Take advantage of this great opportunity to discover and celebrate the exploration and mining industries, career and training opportunities at this FREE regional event. General public welcome.
Event: Smithers Exploration Group Annual Business Luncheon
Date: Friday, May 3, 2013 from 11:30am to 1:30pm
Location: Hudson Bay Lodge, Ferguson Room
Celebrate Mining with us: Looking Back, Building Ahead! This year for BC Mining Week 2013, Smithers Exploration Group and Smithers District Chamber of Commerce are partners in presenting the annual Mining Week 2013 luncheon in Smithers BC. To purchase tickets, please contact the Smithers Chamber of Commerce at 250-847-5072 or e-mail info[at]smitherschamber.com
Prince George
Prince George Seminar and Business Luncheon
Date: Thursday, May 2, 2013 from 9:00am to 2:00pm
Location: Ramada Hotel, 444 George St
Tickets can be purchases in advance online.
Britannia Beach (Sea to Sky)
Event: Family Fun Day at the Britannia Mine Museum
Date: Saturday, May 4, 2013 from 9:00am to 5:00pm
Location: Britannia Mine Museum, Sea to Sky Highway (Highway 99)
Britannia Mine Museum Family Fun Day will be filled with great activities including chocolate chip cookie exploration and gold panning races with prizes. A blacksmith will be on site demonstrating his craft swinging hammers and making lots of sparks. All of the Museum’s attractions will be open as well, including the famous guided underground experience. Check out the Britannia Mine Museum website for your admission coupon.
Princeton
Bonus Event: Mining Day in Princeton – Copper Mountain Sponsored Family Day
Date: Wednesday, May 8, 2013 from 3:30pm to 6:00pm
Location: Veteran’s Square
Copper Mountain Mining, the Mining Association of British Columbia,and the District of Princeton are pleased to invite you to a unique opportunity to celebrate BC Mining Week in Princeton. Join them for FREE face-painting, live entertainment, hot dogs & hamburgers, a magician, gold panning, and more.
Kamloops
Bonus Event: KEG / CIM Community Fair
Date: Saturday, May 11th, 2013 from 11:00am to 4:00pm
Location: Big Little Science Center, 985 Holt St
FREE admission. The Paddlewheelers Lions Club will be on site cooking hamburgers and hot dogs for sale, come try New Gold‘s Heavy Equipment Simulator, try the hands-on activities and visit the displays, have a close-up look at some heavy equipment, bring in your rocks to be identified, learn to gold pan with Yukon Dan.
BC Mining Week Contest
In 2011 and 2012 I partnered with BC Mining Week by hosting giveaways and we’re doing it again this year thanks to Rio Tinto Alcan. Enter to win an iPad Mini exclusively from BC Mining Week and Miss604! Here’s how:
- Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
- Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
I will draw one winner at 12:00pm on Tuesday, May 7, 2013. Follow the Mining Association of BC on Twitter for more information about BC Mining Week and surrounding events. Double your chances of winning a great prize by also entering to win an iPad directly from BC Mining Week by entering their contest online.
This contest is open to residents of BC only. The prize has been furnished by the Mining Association of BC/Rio Tinto Alcan and is no way connected to Apple Computers. Mining Association of BC employees and their relatives are not eligible to win.
Update The winner is Tracy Mack!
