The Owl & The Pussycat

Comments 23 by Rebecca Bollwitt

Tomorrow night The Owl & The Pussycat opens at the PAL Studio Theatre in Coal Harbour.

owl & the pussycatSet in San Francisco, it was written by Bill Manhoff and originally starred Alan Alda and Diana Sands when it opened on Broadway in 1964. It was also made into a film and starred George Segal with Barbra Streisand.

Involving two characters, a bookish Felix and a saucy Doris, the comedy is described as a classic drama and some say it has parallels to ‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf’. Two alumni of Vancouver’s Actor’s Foundry, Steven Roberts and Panthea Vatandoost take on these opposing roles.

Presented by Checkpoint Theatre, formed by Richard Duke, Panthea Vatandoost, and Stephen Roberts, the play will take place at the PAL Theatre. It’s a very unique venue within a condo tower downtown.

Tickets are available online for $20 and the show runs nightly at 8:00pm until September 3, 2011. There’s nothing like a night of theatre in Vancouver (whatever the venue might be) and the city is ripe with creative and talented people. If you would like to check out this show, I have two pairs of tickets to give away.

Here’s how you can enter to win:

  • Leave a comment on this post with the name of the last play you saw at the theatre in Vancouver (1 entry)
  • Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
  • I entered to win tickets to @CheckPointT’s ‘Owl & The Pussycat’ from @Miss604 http://ow.ly/6cNDm

    Tomorrow morning, Friday August 26, 2011 at 9:00am I will draw two winners (who will each get a pair of tickets) for Saturday night’s performance. Please note, the suggested audience age is 18+ for mature content.

    Update The winners are Brenda & @DaveyBean!

    Pink Salmon Festival 2011

    Add a Comment by Rebecca Bollwitt

    Photo courtesy of the PSF

    The Pacific Salmon Foundation will be showing off pink salmon this Sunday in Kitsilano with free samples all afternoon.

    It will be cooked up by a team led by Chef Robert Clark of C Restaurant and barbecued by Rockin’ Ronnie Shewchuk.

    The event will also include live music, activities for the kids, and kiosks from BC Hydro, Port Metro Vancouver, Stream of Dreams Society, Organic Ocean, and more.

    The Pink Salmon Festival aims to promote pink salmon as a more sustainable seafood choice — more sustainable because of its abundance.

    “The idea behind the festival is simple,” says Brian Riddell, president and CEO of the Pacific Salmon Foundation. “We want to show how wonderful it is to eat. We want to raise public awareness and had our first festival two years ago. We have definitely seen an increase in interest and commercial companies trying to market the pinks in different ways and we see them in restaurants.” [Vancouver Sun]

    You can check out the free festival Sunday, August 28, 2011 from 12:00pm to 5:00pm at Hadden Park on Kits Point (1905 Ogden Avenue at Cypress) near the Maritime Museum.

    Rosewood Hotel Georgia: Win a Night’s Stay

    Comments 525 by Rebecca Bollwitt

    The Rosewood Hotel Georgia re-opened this summer, combining dazzling modern luxury with decadent decor from throughout its 84-year history. I was able to visit the hotel recently, for the first time since my hard-hat tour in May to see the final results.

    Rosewood Hotel Georgia

    Rosewood Hotel Georgia Rosewood Hotel Georgia

    Boasting one of the largest collections of Canadian artwork in the country, the hotel has paintings and works from Alan Wood, Derek Root, Douglas Coupland, Takao Tanabe, Sonny Assu, and more. The Patrick Hughes in the lobby will blow your mind. The pieces are canvas, wax, metal, paper, and a variety of other textures that are also reflected around the hotel in complex fabrics, embossed wallpapers, and furnishing.

    Spanish Ballroom Hawksworth Restaurant

    Public are welcome to stroll through the lobby, enjoy the 1927 bar, Hawksworth Restaurant, and the soon-to-be opened Reflections outdoor lounge (update now open) that sits below the residential tower.

    Rosewood Hotel Georgia

    Rosewood Hotel Georgia Rosewood Hotel Georgia

    Rosewood Hotel Georgia

    Dark wood lines the hallways that are splashed with art (vases, paintings, sculptures) as you walk from guest rooms to the fitness facility, pool, or the Sense spa.

    Rosewood Hotel Georgia

    This rich mix of classic touches combined with digital features (heated floors, WIFI, etc.) are part of the signature Rosewood style.

    Rosewood Hotel Georgia

    The stone floor in the lobby is original to the hotel along with the inlaid tiles, the elevator floor counters, the lobby clock, the bronze post office box, and a few other features.

    Rosewood Hotel Georgia Rosewood Hotel Georgia

    The guest rooms look out onto either Georgia (the Vancouver Art Gallery), Howe, or Reflections on the non-street side of the hotel. Each has a flat screen television, full-sized amenities in the washrooms, and bathtubs that make you want to drift away in a soak after a long day.

    Rosewood Hotel Georgia

    Rosewood Hotel Georgia Rosewood Hotel Georgia

    I highly recommend that locals take a walk through this modern classic to enjoy a slice of Vancouver history that has been beautifully updated. For an even closer look, the Rosewood Hotel Georgia has offered up a special prize so one of my readers can have a bit of a staycation experience in style. Here’s how you can enter to win a 1-night stay in a deluxe guest room (value $375):

  • Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
  • Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
  • I entered to win a stay @RosewoodHG_YVR from @Miss604 http://ow.ly/6b3xa

    I will draw one winner at random from all entries next Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 11:00am. Follow the hotel on Facebook or Twitter for special offers, event information, and updates.

    Update The winner is Craig!

    PNE Vancity Member Day 2011

    Comments 32 by Rebecca Bollwitt

    On Wednesday August 24th, members of Vancity Savings Credit Union will be able to purchase deeply discounted $5 PNA fair admission from 11:00am until closing.

    Vancity HQ
    Photo credit: Derek K Miller on Flickr

    You can get your fair gate pass at any PNE ticket booth on Vancity Member Day only by showing a Vancity member debit card or Vancity Enviro Visa card. Drop by the main gate, ocated on Hastings and Renfrew. Vancity employees will be there to greet our members from 59 communities throughout BC. All children 13 years old and younger can get in with free admission, regardless of whether they are a member or not, and the PNE concert series that day presents Serena Ryder.

    Playland
    Photo credit: .stv on Flickr

    Vancity is Canada’s largest credit union and a Living Wage employer with $15 billion in assets, more than 417,000 members and 59 branches throughout Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, Victoria and Squamish.

    If you’re a Vancity Savings Credit Union member just let me know in the comments. I have 2 Playland ride passes to give away (valid only tomorrow) for a lucky member who can attend the fair Wednesday, August 24, 2011.

    If you would prefer to keep your name private, please feel free to use an alias for this contest entry only but be sure to provide a valid email address so I can contact you should you win. I’ll draw a winner this evening from all entries.

    Update The winner is Racheal!

    Vancouver History: Wooden Coaster

    Comments 3 by Rebecca Bollwitt

    It’s where you can ride the Crazy Beach Party, visit Hell’s Gate, or take a spin on the Enterprise without leaving Vancouver. The Fair at the PNE has returned for the 101st year and with it children young and old will enjoy carnival games, marketplace shopping, livestock exhibits, rides, cotton candy, and more sticky-gooey tasty delights. Over the years the rides have changed, we’ve added a few and lost many, but there’s one that has been a mainstay and that’s the wooden coaster.


    Roller coaster at the PNE in 1923. VPL Accession Number: 12261.

    The ride portion at the fair has held many names including “Happyland” before becoming “Playland” a few decades ago. From what I can find, there have been at least three iterations of a wooden coaster at the PNE including the Giant Dipper. According to Chuck Davis’ records, in 1927: “The Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII) and his brother Prince George (later the Duke of Kent, and still later King George VI) visited Vancouver.” While here, “Edward tried out the Dipper one afternoon and liked it so well he returned in the evening.”


    Giant Dipper roller coaster at the PNE in 1932. VPL Accession Number: 12276.

    Located on the West side of the grounds, the Giant Dipper was demolished in 1948 to make room for an expanding Hastings Racecourse track. The Dipper was a crowd favourite and there was much opposition when this was announced.

    “THEY’RE TEARING DOWN the Giant Dipper at Vancouver’s Hastings Park today to make room for the extension of the racetrack. This may be good news to adult followers of the galloping bangtails, but it’s something close to a major tragedy for thousands of youngsters. Shown viewing the crumbling skeleton with nostalgia and sorrow is 14-year-old Bob. Said Bob, ‘If they want to rip things apart in this town, why don’t they start in on a few schools?’ The Giant Dipper has been a top attraction at the midway since 1925. It cost $65,000. It was almost a mile long, and the cars reached 40 miles an hour. The longest sheer drop was 60 feet—a thrill credited with having hastened the ripening of many a beautiful friendship.” [Source via The Province Newspaper]

    When the new coaster went up in 1958 (at the location you find it today) it was the largest in Canada.


    Wooden coaster 1950s. VPL Accession Numbers: 44439A & 43219.

    The coaster was built board by board 53 years ago and reaches speeds of 45mph/72kmh and a height of 23m/75ft. It was designed by Carl E. Phare and was built by Walker LeRoy as a part of the vision for Playland.

    Lomo LC-Wide
    Photo credit: John Biehler on Flickr

    It’s ride that you either love, hate, or love to hate. I’m not sure it’s scary because of the dips and turns, or because it feels like it could fall apart at any minute. Regardless, it’s always a thrill that leaves me with an unwipable smile after each go.

    coaster
    Photo credit: concrete_jungler on Flickr
    2006_08_20_PNE 008
    Photo credit: DennisSylvesterHurd on Flickr

    Today, it’s the oldest operating coaster in the country. It’s frequently been named to “Top Ten” lists for wooden roller coasters around the world and has received an official “Coaster Landmark Award” from the ACE.

    playland
    Photo credit: tiffa130 on Flickr

    The PNE will run until September 5, 2011 and after that time Playland will still be open on weekends until the end of September. If they bring back Fright Nights this year, you can even ride the coaster in the dark this fall.