Jennifer Lines and Todd Talbot
Photo by David Cooper
I’m really beginning to cherish my nights out on the town, catching the best in live local theatre and last night was no exception. John and I headed to Granville Island to see It’s a Wonderful Life at the Arts Club and we both really enjoyed the show.
Artistic Director Bill Millerd came out first to welcome the audience and we were touched that he gave Ballet BC a shout out and encouraged us all to support them in seeing The Nutcracker (Ballet BC having announced earlier this week that they 17 performers and most of their staff [CBC]).
I’m always impressed with the unique sets and audio/visual effects at Arts Club productions and using clips from the film, It’s a Wonderful Life, helped to add context while not take away from the dialog or flow of the play – it only enhanced it.
One thing that caught my eye during this production was the costume design as well as the great retro hairstyles. In the last scene I would totally want Mary’s dress and hairdo for my next Christmas Eve party.
Miss604’s guide to the ultimate holiday evening in Vancouver:
Catch an aquabus from downtown to Granville Island
Meander through the market (consider buying some wild board sausage from Oyama Sausage), check out the works of local artisans, perhaps pick up a few Christmas gifts.
Head to the Backstage Lounge (right underneath the Arts Club) and have a tasty dinner. There’s quite the selection of entrees, burgers and sandwiches and their appies come in very large portions (ie. we had a small mountain of zucchini sticks last night – perfect for sharing).
I also just discovered today that if you have a ticket to a performance that day, you can get 15% off your bill (food only) at the Backstage Lounge.
Since you’ll already be in the building, you can stay for a drink before showtime or head in to the Upstage Lounge for a glass of wine or a quick beer before taking your seats. You can also pre-order your intermission drinks, which is recommended.
Sit back, enjoy the show, and get in the holiday spirit.
After last night’s enjoyable performance, I would also suggest you head back to the box office and purchase tickets for Beauty and the Beast at The Stanley and repeat all of these instructions but replace “Granville Island” with South Granville.
It’s a Wonderful Life is showing from now until January 3, 2009. The Arts Club is also a sponsor of the Best of 604 so the winner of the “Best Events Site” category will be receiving a nice prize from them as well. (Note: Best Events Site can be a site, a directory, or a blog that lists events, reviews, coverage, or recaps.)
Last year I was waking up in a cozy room with frosted windows that looked out onto snow-covered streets while the warm aroma of a roasted turkey dinner embraced me and my Hawkeyes sweatshirt.
We were lucky enough to celebrate Thanksgiving with family in Iowa last year and unfortunately due to so many big events happening around town today, John wasn’t able to take time off to have a mini Thanksgiving at home with me – let alone a dinner at home since he’ll be working into the wee hours of the morning.
As a result, I’ve been following Tweetsgiving. How it works: Tweet “Thanks” to @4thanks, then make a donation in honor of anything you’re thankful for. Spread the gratitude by following @Tweetsgiving on Twitter and pass along information about the cause. $10,000 has been raised for charity over the last 48 hours by people all over the world coming together (virtually) in this way.
We’re hoping to get back to John’s hometown later this holiday season but for now, I’ll do my best to whip up a nice home-cooked meal (and some margaritas to boot) as John and I will have our own Bollwitt Thanksgiving tomorrow.
I’d like to wish all of our friends and family south of the border a very happy Thanksgiving. Please know that although we cannot be with you, we’re thinking of you and will do everything we can to get back and see you very soon.
A group of local radio stations are teaming up over at Canuck Place Children’s Hospice for a day of live broadcasts from 6:00am until 11:00pm.
Canuck Place offers specialized pediatric palliative care to over 350 children with life threatening illnesses and their families across BC. The demand continues to rise. Internal estimates suggest that only approximately 20% of the children and families that need the program currently have access. Your help is needed to reach those children.
Canuck Place relies on the generosity of individuals, corporations and organizations to provide its program at no cost to BC families.
Families, volunteers, and those who have been involved with or touched by Canuck Place will be sharing their stories on air with the following stations throughout the day: QMFM (103.5), The Beat (94.5), The Team 1040am, and Talk 1410am.
You can donate online to the Canuck Place Children’s Hospice in many creative ways; by purchasing an e-card greeting, branded merchandise or other Precious Gifts.
Canuck Place is also making it easy to give this holiday season with their Precious Pages that you can setup and customize (upload a photo, a personal message) and send the link around to friends and family. They can donate to the cause in your honor this season in lieu of a gift under the tree.
Each year around the time of my blogiversary I write a reflective post or hold a contest. For 2008 I’m going to invite everyone celebrate the online efforts of others from across the region with the Best of 604, since being ‘hyper-local’ is what I do.
As often as I can, I try to highlight and promote local business, organizations, bloggers, and online triumphs. In 2007 I started the Best of 604 wherein I listed some of my favourite things around the region.
This year, I wanted to leave the nomination and voting to the public (that way no one can wonder what my mystery formula was for calculating winners). The nominees do NOT have to be blogs – they can be any website that fits into any of the 14 categories.
Who do you turn to for information? What site do you check first thing in the morning (or ten times a day)? Who do you love to read? This is all about the best of our region, and we should all be proud of the many accomplishments of our friends, neighbours, and peers. It’s the people’s choice awards for Metro Vancouver online.
How it works:
Head to the Best of 604 website and enter your nomination in the variety of categories – from Best News Site to Best Personal Blog – by leaving a comment. After one week (on December 4th) I will flip the switch and have official voting ballots available until December 11th.
Come on back and see if your pick has made the cut and together at a private awards reception on December 11th at The Cellar, we will congratulate the Best of the online 604 with recognition and prizes.
More info:
Rules, Nominate and Vote, Contact, and Sponsors.
Tickets for the awards reception are available through EventBrite and admission on the 11th is by (monetary) donation to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society (official donation envelopes will be available). Anyone who attends and donates to the Food Bank will receive one of their Community Angel pins.
Everyone is invited to attend the reception, although please make sure to RSVP through EventBrite.
Although Katkam‘s Western view has been the webcam of choice for years, during last year’s blogathon I found a site that listed over a dozen webcams from around the Vancouver area.
A few weeks ago on my Talk1410am segment I highlighted a few more area views and I discovered the many sides of the Vancouver.com webcam.
There are North, South-East, and North-East shots that give some amazing views on mornings like this.
I’m also a fan of the Numinous webcam as well as the Jericho Beach webcam. I’m curious to know if there are any more out there worth checking out.
