The Surrey Children’s Festival returns to Bear Creek Park Thursday May 24, 2012 to Saturday, May 26, 2012. Packed with arts activities, food, and entertaining performances, it’s a fun way for kids to round out the school year.
The Arts Centre Main Stage & Studio Theatre will be indoors and the Leap Frog Stage and Community Spirit Stage are outside in the park.
There will be roving performers, activity tents, and a line-up of acts like À la belle étoile, Objects in Motion, Mini-Masterpieces, Li Liu, Chinese Acrobat, A Flock of Flyers, and more.
Hours are Thursday and Friday from 9:00am to 2:30pm, and Saturday from 10:30am to 7:30pm. Site entrance is free every day with upgrade ticket options for shows and activities.
School groups can get show tickets for $8 per child (includes arts activity wristband), while parents with children (outside of school) can get show tickets for $10 (includes arts activity wristband). For just the arts activities, wristbands are $4 (and free for supervising adults). Children 3 years and younger are free every day and family packs of tickets are available. Tickets are available in person at the Surrey Arts Centre box office, by phone (604) 501-5566, or online.
Miss604.com is a proud sponsor of the Surrey Children’s Festival and other major City of Surrey events throughout the year.
The BC Water & Waste Association presents Drinking Water Week from May 13th to May 19th across BC. It’s a province-wide initiative to raise awareness about how we get our drinking water in BC.
Photo credit:
Matzuda on Flickr – Submitted to the Miss604 Flickr Pool
From the organizers: “We want British Columbians to learn more about their water and what they can do to protect it, and to celebrate the people and processes that bring clean water to our taps.”
Throughout the week there will be plant and watershed tours, community events, open houses, and more. Here are just a few of the events:
City of Vancouver Drinking Water Week Proclamation
When: Tuesday, May 15, 2012 from 1:30pm to 3:30pm
Where: City of Vancouver Council Chambers, 453 West 12th, Vancouver
What: The City of Vancouver will have an official proclamation of Drinking Water Week. The public is invited to attend and learn more about Drinking Water Week and how they can get involved.
City of Chilliwack Water Presentation
When: Wednesday, May 16 2012 from 10:30am to 11:30am
Where: City Hall, 8550 Young Road, Chilliwack
What: The City of Chilliwack is celebrating Drinking Water Week with a free educational presentation. Learn about the city’s high-quality drinking water, the water cycle, where it comes from and how to protect and conserve it.
City of Kamloops Water Taste Tests
When: Wednesday, May 16 2012 from 1:00pm to 3:00pm
Where: Tournament Capital Centre
What: The City of Kamloops will hold water taste tests along with giveaways to help residents save water in and around their homes.
All residents of BC and the Yukon can take the Community Water Challenge and pledge actions online. When you complete the steps, you will be entered to win a getaway with Helijet and the Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver.
Find Drinking Water Week on Facebook and Twitter for more water conservation tips, information, and event listings.
I began the Vancouver Icons series over a year ago to occasionally showcase photos of statues, buildings, and landmarks that we see everyday. They’re spotted in locally-filmed television shows and movies, and there are countless photos shared online. A perfect example is today’s feature subject, the Vancouver Public Library’s Central Branch.
Located at 350 West Georgia, the Central Branch is a meeting place, courtyard coffee spot, and hub of community and library activities. The current building opened in 1995 and the library moved over from its previous location at Burrard and Robson, where it had been since 1957. Prior to that, it was at the Carnegie library building on Main and Hastings, since 1903.
Other Vancouver Icons posts include: 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.
Vancouver Farmers Markets are returning for the summer with some only taking a short break from their winter market season. The first to open will be Trout Lake Farmer Market this weekend but here is a complete listing, thanks to EatLocal:
“Shopping at farmers markets is never a chore. Talking to farmers, tasting their wares & enjoying the beautiful setting makes it a joy.” – Roberta Laquaglia, @VanMarkets
Trout Lake Farmers Market
Location: North Parking Lot of John Hendry Park at Trout Lake
Dates: Saturdays, May 12, 2012 to October 20, 2012
Hours: 9:00am to 2:00pm each week
Notes: There is no parking in the North lot (that’s where the market is) nor is there parking on 13th Avenue. Organizers encourage walking, cycling, or transit options.
Kitsilano Farmers Market
Location: Parking Lot of Kitsilano Community Centre (2690 Larch at 10th)
Dates: Sundays, May 20, 2012 to October 21, 2012
Hours: 10:00am to 2:00pm each week
West End Farmers Market
Location: 1100 Block of Comox across from Nelson Park at Mole Hill
Dates: Saturdays, June 2, 2012 to October 20, 2012
Hours: 9:00am to 2:00pm each week
Main Street Market
Location: Main Street Station at Thornton Park (across from the train station)
Dates: Wednesdays, June 6, 2012 to October 3, 2012
Hours: 3:00pm to 7:00pm each week
Kerrisdale Village Farmers Market
Location: East Boulevard between 37th and 41st (near Kerrisdale Arena)
Dates: Saturdays, July 7, 2012 to October 6, 2012
Hours: 10:00am to 2:00pm each week
The Bicycle Valet offers bike parking at many of these markets, check out their community calendar to confirm.
The official Vancouver Farmers Market site (EatLocal) also has interactive maps of market layouts and information about bike valets. For all your farmers market information, follow @VanMarkets on Twitter and @ParkBoard.
Tonight marks the opening performance of BC Ballet’s season closer, Bliss, created by the company’s Resident choreographer José Navas.
Donald Sales and Alexis Fletcher. Photo credit: Chris Randle.
This has been my first year seeing virtually every performance by the company and I must say that it’s been an absolutely transcendent experience. I admire BC Ballet’s ability to break down old categories and assumptions of what ballet is and risking to deliver fresh, relevant dance to contemporary audiences.
Bliss is the first full-evening work by Navas for BC Ballet, who has very little experience with choreographing en pointe. In fact, in 2010, when BC Ballet first signed on the Montreal-based contemporary dancer and artistic director of Compagnie Flak as resident choreographer, he had never created a piece en pointe at all. His first short work, the bliss that from their limbs all movement takes, was spectacular, innovative and received a lot of accolade from both audiences as critics.
I’m looking forward to Bliss, an extended re-working of the short piece, and seeing what new ways Navas has the dancers move and what old traditions and categories he shatters with those pointe shoes.
Bliss runs today until Saturday, May 12, 2012. Ballet BC will return in November for the 2012-2013 season. Follow them on Twitter for updates and information over the summer.
