Team Canada will be playing a double header tomorrow in the Scotiabank Canadian Open Fastpitch International Championships in Surrey. Facing off against Australia and Team USA, Canada currently sits in third behind the USA and Japan.

Jill Russell #14 3rd Base Team Canada.
Photo courtesy of VisionQuest

There are plenty of local women on our national team including Paige Collins (Delta), Kelsey Haberl (North Delta), Jennifer Yee (North Delta), Melanie Matthews (Surrey), and Jocelyn Cater (Delta).

California A’s, Renegades Elite, China Nanjing University, Team Venezuela, Team Japan, White Rock Renegades, Team Canada, USA, and Australia are all competing.

The Scotiabank Canadian Open Fastpitch Futures Gold (U19) & Showcase Gold (16U) International Championship is on now until July 17th.

Wear your ‘Canadian colours’ and you could win a freestyle BMX bike courtesy of Canadian Tire.

Catch both Team Canada games at Softball City in Surrey at 6:30pm and 8:30pm tomorrow. Day passes are $7-$16 and are available at the gate.

The Vancouver Folk Music Festival will take over Jericho Beach this weekend with 3 days of performances on seven different stages.

Photo credit: Canadian Veggie on Flickr

Daily shows and workshops start around 10:00am and flow well into the evening with three stages of entertainment going strong through 10:00pm. Artists include Jim Bryson and the Weakerthans, Dustin Bentall & Kendel Carson, Buck 65, Josh Ritter & The Royal City, and many more.

Aside from dancers, singers, bands, and performers of all kinds the festival also hosts a Folk Bazaar, vendor and food tents, and a Little Folks Village for the kids.

Individual tickets start at $40 and full 3-day passes (for July 15-17) are available for $150 in advance. Follow @VanFolkFest on Twitter for information leading up to and throughout the festival.

As he was about to venture up the Grouse Grind with family visiting from out of town, I had a chat with Vancouver’s own Kyprios this morning. The Juno-nominated artist, who inadvertently wrote what became an anthem for Canucks fans this season, will be hitting the stage at Live at Squamish this August.

“It has been a big year but there’s still work to do,” said Kyprios who was the 2010 Peak Performance Project winner. “I have to finish my album and I’m still working on a musical that I’ve been working on for two years.”

His single “How the West Was Won” was released during the Canucks playoff run in April and quickly found momentum getting local radio and television airplay. “The highest expectations we had was for it to be played on the local sports station…. …for it to have been as anthemic as it was and for us getting to play Game One of the Stanley Cup Finals was nothing that we’d ever expected.”

The talented MC, who has paid his dues from coast to coast, has also been touring most of the spring through to June and is finally taking some time off during which he’ll be getting married. His schedule will ramp up again toward the end of summer, with an album to prepare for release, and he’ll head to the second annual Live at Squamish. “Being able to have access to that many people and that diverse a crowd is really great,” he said with regards to the festival format. “People know that they’re there for a couple days or an entire day so beyond getting their money’s worth they want to get the experience.”

Kyprios will be joined by a 10-piece band, The Chaperones. “I’ve never claimed to be the best musician in the city but I do make claims of playing with them.” Fans and festival goers can expect a high-energy set from this impressive collaboration. “We work our asses off when we play,” Kyprios added. “You can physically tell that something’s happened from the time we begin a show to the time it’s ended.”

On top of all of the amazing local and international acts, Live at Squamish will also have vendors, food, beer gardens, camping (sold out), a silent disco (where you dance with one of 200 wireless headsets), Rich Hope’s Barber Shop, and the Virgin Mobile Cafe.

Tickets are still available for one day or full weekend access. If you didn’t get the chance to book a campsite, hotel packages can be found and there will once again be a shuttle from downtown Squamish to the festival.

Catch Kyprios August 20th (day one) on the Stawamus Stage with the stunning Stawamus Chief in the background. Stars, John Butler Trio, Girl Talk, Hey Ocean, and Metric will also perform August 20th with Weezer, The Dudes, Major Lazer (ft Diplo), Bend Sinister and more performing August 21st. Follow @Kyprios12 and @LiveAtSquamish on Twitter for updates and info.

Miss604.com is proud to sponsor Live at Squamish 2011.

Theatre Under the Stars (“TUTS”) first premiered at the Malkin Bowl in Stanley Park in 1940 and it’s still going strong. On stage for July and August 2011 TUTS presents Bye Bye Birdie and Anything Goes.

Bye Bye Birdie “Rock and roll returns to Malkin Bowl as Bye Bye Birdie, written by Michael Stewart with music by Charles Strouse and Lyrics by Lee Adams, kicks off the 65th season. Set in 1960 as teenagers all across North America are going crazy for rock star, Conrad Birdie.”

Photo courtesy of TUTS

Bye Bye Birdie will be presented even days in July and odd days in August, and Anything Goes will be odd days in July and even days in August. All shows start at 8pm except if it’s a fireworks night (July 30, August 3, August 6) then they’ll begin at 7:00pm. Tickets are currently on sale starting at $29 with group rates available. Children 5 and under are free.

I have a ticket giveaway for each performance starting today with Bye Bye Birdie. If you would like a pair of tickets for this season’s Theatre Under the Stars in Stanley Park, here’s how you can enter to win:

I will draw one winner at random from all entries this Friday, July 15, 2011 at 10:30am. The next TUTS contest will begin in August and new contest entry text will be provided at that time.

Update July 2011 The first winner is Leah! We had 83 Twitter entries and 126 comment entries. I’m going to reset this count for the next contest that is coming up shortly.

Update August 2011 I have one more giveaway for Anything Goes that will be playing on even days this month (except fireworks nights). Here’s how you can enter to win two vouchers for this performance on the night of your choice.

I will draw one winner at random from all entries on Sunday, August 7, 2011 at 6:00pm.

Update August 2011 My second winner is Holly!

Vancouver 125 presented Summer Live this weekend in Stanley Park that saw dozens of local acts take to two stages in our city’s most beautiful setting. Hoola hoops, mini donuts, Frisbees, dancing, and more took place on the lawn with a backdrop of evergreens, surrounded by water.

Since we were away most of the weekend we only caught the very last part of Summer Live last night but here are a few of John‘s photos (view the full set on Flickr):

Arriving on the grounds, I immediately wondered (and I’m sure I’m not alone) if we can bring a festival like this back to the park each year. You could barely hear the stage noise from downtown (across Coal Harbour), everyone was well-behaved and happy, families enjoyed themselves, and all of the entertainment was free. Aside from logistical issues (which are to be expected given that it’s on a peninsula in the park) I heard few complaints.

Shore 104’s Jody Vance & Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson

We enjoyed our 15 minute walk to the festivities from our home in the West End and would love to have this event in our backyard again next year. Kudos to Vancouver 125 and their team of volunteers and sponsors.

If you have photos from Summer Live that you would like to share, consider adding them to the Miss604 Group on Flickr for possible feature.