Springtime is here and so are the blossoms! Our lovely city is turning pink and green with all the lovely colours of the season and the event list is growing by the day. When it comes to April events in Metro Vancouver, there’s of course the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival, Easter festivities, and a giant lineup of sporting events, theatre, music, dance, opera, and outdoor fun.
SUM gallery and the Flavourcel Animation Collective invite you to crawl down into the dark depths of the Sun Wah Centre basement for Centipede: a three-day pop-up exhibition of queerly macabre experimental animation.
SUM gallery and Flavourcel Present Centipede in Chinatown
When: Thursday, April 7 to Saturday, 9, 2022 from 12:00pm to 6:00pm daily
Where: Sun Wah Centre (268 Keefer St, Vancouver)
Admission: Drop-in. Advanced registration only required for closing reception, Saturday, April 9 from 3:00pm to 5:00pm
Flavourcel’s Centipede exhibition will enchant and spook audiences as it blends multimedia installation, 3D projection and sound experimentation to present a sensory crawl through a haunting landscape of ghouls, guts, creepies and crawlies.
This exhibit is curated by Queer Arts Festival’s Assistant Curator Benjamin Siegl.
About the exhibition: Animation as an industry is not without its binaries: join the prosperous but strenuous industry grind, or resign yourself to outsider status making animations “alone in your basement.” The Flavourcel Collective subverts this binary by choosing the latter, with one significant exception—they’re not alone in the basement. Combining the talents of 10 artists, Flavourcel embraces an alternative approach to animation through collectivist collaboration and resource sharing.
In Centipede, movement is recognized as a principal component of fear. From the sudden movement of jump scares in thrillers and haunted houses inspiring our fight-or-flight instincts, to the agonizing dread of movement’s absence all together. The Centipede, a multi-sectioned organism, moves in unison towards an undiscovered future, encapsulating both the animated image and the bold, collective journey Queer folks undertake when creating space in this world—foot over foot, frame by frame.
For decades, queer movement was restricted to the darkness—in the corners of dark bars and margins of our minds. As queerness moves further and further into the light, there is a ripple both backwards and forwards; towards the future, but not without the intrinsic hauntings of all that’s been shouldered.
Planted Expo Vancouver, Canada’s largest plant-based expo, returns to the Vancouver Convention Centre June 4-5, 2022 with over 200 plant-based companies and speakers for a weekend of inspiration, education, and innovation.
Planted Life – Planted Expo (2021)
Planted Expo Vancouver 2022
When: Saturday, June 4 & Sunday, June 5 from 10:00am to 5:00pm
Where: Vancouver Convention Centre West (1055 Canada Place)
“Public awareness continues to grow as to how plant-based choices can positively impact lives,” says Stevan Mirkovich, PlantedLlife.com Co-Owner and Chief Relational Officer. “A plant-based lifestyle is more than just what you eat, it’s about lifestyle choices too. At Planted Expo, attendees can hear from speakers about ways to enhance their own lives and learn how these lifestyle changes can affect the world around them.”
Planted Expo has gathered leading voices in the culinary, scientific and fitness world to speak on the importance of plant-based choices. These insightful, informative, and inspirational speakers will be at Planted Expo alongside 200 plant-based edible and lifestyle businesses.
Planted Expo Vancouver attendees will have an opportunity to discover the many ways they are able to incorporate plant-based choices into their daily lives. Two speakers of note coming to Vancouver in June are Filmmaker/Director Ali Tabrizi and Vegan Women Summit Founder Jennifer Stojkovic.
Ali Tabrizi is a Filmmaker and Director best known for his Netflix Original documentary Seaspiracy. Growing up on the Southeast coast of England, he spent much of his early childhood exploring the world with his camera, daydreaming about the ocean and the hidden world beneath the waves. His teen years were spent learning about global issues and studying Art & Design and Arts History at Canterbury College followed by his own interest in teaching himself filmmaking. That interest, combined with his desire to expose the truth about environmental issues led him to create the Netflix Original documentary, Seaspiracy. He continues to share these truths through speaking engagements.
Planted Life – Planted Expo (2021)
Jennifer Stojkovic has built her career as an internationally-recognized community relations leader for the world’s largest tech companies in the capital of innovation, San Francisco. During her career in tech, Jennifer became increasingly interested in blending her passion for change in the food system with her experience and network in Silicon Valley. In early 2018, Jennifer launched a “Future of Food” series of partnerships bringing together CEOs and founders from leading tech brands, including WeWork and Airbnb, with emerging CEOs from the burgeoning food tech industry to establish food as the “Tech 2.0”. In early 2020, she launched the Vegan Women Summit, the world’s first events and media organization dedicated to empowering, educating, and inspiring women to bring compassion to their careers.
Other speakers and featured guests include Carleigh Bodrug, Scott Jurek, Nimai Delgado, Nicholas Carter, Vesanto Melina, Chanthy Yen, Joel Haywood, Pamela Fergusson, and Laura Simonson. View the lineup of speakers, vendors, workshops and more online and follow Planted Life on Facebook for the latest information.
The Firehall Arts Centre and Savage Society present the world premiere of White Noise, written by Taran Kootenhayoo, from Saturday, April 16 to Sunday, May 1st, 2022.
A comedy about two families who have dinner together for the first time during Truth and Reconciliation week, White Noiseexplores what it means to live in Canada from two different paradigms and asks us to consider: How do we deal with internalized racism? Do we keep pushing it away and pretend to live safely in our day-to-day?
Taran Kootenhayoo’s White Noise at Firehall Arts Centre
When: Saturday, April 16 to Sunday, May 1st, 2022
Tuesday-Saturday 7:30pm, Saturday & Sunday 3:00pm, Wednesday, 1:00pm Pay What You Will
Where: Firehall Arts Centre (280 E. Cordova, Vancouver)
“When I first saw the workshop production of White Noise, I knew it was a play that would interest and entertain Vancouver audiences,” says Firehall Arts Centre’s Artistic Producer, Donna Spencer.
“While it has many entertaining comedic moments, it is powerfully thought-provoking, making us think about our role in reconciliation and our responsibility to gain a greater understanding of the Indigenous people and their history here on Turtle Island and in Canada. The Firehall is proud to be working in partnership with Savage Society on this premiere production and honouring Taran’s legacy.”
Cast of White Noise: Featuring: Sam Bob as Deneyu, Columpa Bobb as Ts’ekwi, Braiden Houle as Windwalker, Mike Wasko as Jason Manning, Anita Wittenberg as Ashley Manning, Anais West as Jessika Manning.
Savage Society’s Artistic Director Kevin Loring adds: “Savage Society had been working with Taran for about five years. We had been trying to help nurture his growth as an artist and support his artistic ambitions and out of that work came White Noise which is a wonderful example of Taran’s imagination and artistry. We miss Taran dearly and this production will help us celebrate him and share his bright light with the wider community.”
Win Tickets to the World Premiere
Here’s how you can enter to win a pair of tickets to the world premiere of White Noise:
About Taran Kootenhayoo: Taran “Standing Sunrise” Jerry Kootenhayoo was proud to be Denesuline and Stoney Nakota. Born in Cold Lake, Alberta, and a member of the Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation. Taran was like water flowing between many different mediums and disciplines. First and foremost he was a storyteller, and all of his passions filled a big basket that he shared with us. He was an activist standing up for Indigenous rights, weaving his activism and art because he cared about the land and the people. He was an actor and had the gift of captivating an audience by understanding his body’s movement and truth to the words he said; he was a poet and spoken word artist. That was a place where he could bring his activism, humour, and powerful voice to life; he was a skateboarder, which was also a considerable part of his film creation. He was a transformer. He was a director. He was a writer. He wrote for the screen and stage. He was a fantastic dancer and had style—the poster boy of Indigenous fashion. He had a popular meme page. Taran was cool in whatever he was involved in. He could steal the show, but he was always generous in his offerings as a person and performer. He just made things better.
The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (“VSO”) has announced The Path Forward, a new artistic collaboration between the VSO, its Indigenous Council, and three host First Nations. This multidisciplinary experience will feature poetry by Poet Laureate Christie Lee Charles and contemporary Indigenous art and music alongside a performance by the VSO.
The VSO will perform: Carnival of OUR Animals, a VSO commission composed in collaboration with members of xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ilwətaɁɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) nations; Métis composer Ian Cusson’sIndigenous Songs from the House of Death; and Chief Dan George’s Coast Salish Anthem.
“The VSO’s Indigenous Council was created to build inclusion with the three host nations: Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Nations, plus the urban Indigenous populations and the Metis peoples,” says VSO Indigenous Council Chair, Dennis Thomas-Whonoak.
“Music plays such a huge part in Indigenous cultures, and we intend to incorporate traditional songs and stories in collaboration with the VSO and the musicians to create one-of-a-kind musical performances. The Path Forward is the next step in our commitment to Truth & Reconciliation. We are excited to showcase the creativity and cultures of our local Indigenous communities as we contribute to the reconciliation process.”
VSO and VSO School of Music President and CEO, Angela Elster says: “The Path Forward is the culmination of two years of conversations and collaboration with the VSO Indigenous Council members and their communities in the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations.”
“This performance is an authentic celebration of Indigenous culture through music, story, dance, and poetry,” adds Elster. “It is exciting to see how The Path Forward and other creative projects led by the VSO Indigenous Council bring together our entire community through irresistible musical experiences.”
As a gesture of gratitude and deep love, the VSO and VSO Indigenous Council dedicate The Path Forward to VSO Indigenous Council member, Elder Lillian Howard who passed away in October, 2021.
About the VSO Indigenous Council
Four years ago, the VSO convened the Indigenous Council as a commitment to Truth and Reconciliation. The Council’s founding members were Chastity Davis, Chair; Alexander Dirksen, Metis Youth; Lillian Howard, Elder; Orene Askew, Squamish; Dennis Thomas-Whonoak, Tsleil-Waututh; Karen Gerbrecht, VSO Musician; Susan Anton, VSO Board. This creative group imagined and developed The Path Forward. Dennis Thomas-Whonoak currently chairs the VSO Indigenous Council and membership is evolving.
