VSO Presents The Polar Express in Concert: Win Tickets

Comments 79 by Rebecca Bollwitt

All board! This season the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (“VSO”) presents the world premiere of The Polar Express in Concert at the Orpheum on November 19th.

Polar Express in Concert

VSO Presents The Polar Express in Concert

Where: VSO Digital Concert Hall (Orpheum Theatre, 601 Smithe, Vancouver)
When: Tuesday, November 19, 2019 at 7:00pm
Tickets: Available online now

This once-in-a-lifetime world premiere concert event will bring the Oscar® nominated holiday classic to Orpheum Theatre, and will feature The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and choir performing every note from Alan Silvestri’s masterful score (with original songs co-written by Silvestri and Glen Ballard) while the entire film is projected on a 40-foot HD screen. Festive and fun pre-show activities will include carolers, a selfie photo wall, coloring tables for kids, an exclusive and immersive way to buy merchandise, and even Santa Claus!

In The Polar Express in Concert, experience the musical magic of Christmas Eve through Alan Silvestri’s unforgettable score and be immersed as The Polar Express adventures up and down mountains, slip-slides over ice fields, and teeters across mile-high bridges. Embark on this musical journey to the North Pole while watching the iconic film about friendship, bravery, and the spirit of Christmas. The wonder of life never fades for those who believe.

Pre-Show with the Composer

Alan Silvestri (Avengers, Forrest Gump, Back to the Future 1-3, Predator) – the film’s composer and two-time Academy Award® and Golden Globe® Award nominee for an exclusive pre-show discussion about the score and his career. Moderated by conductor Justin Freer starting at 6:00pm at Pyatt Hall (limited to 100 seats), all patrons interested in attending should RSVP here.

Follow the VSO on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram for more information about their performances and special holiday events this season.

Win Tickets

I have a pair of tickets to give away to this magical evening. Here’s how you can enter to win:

  • Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
  • Click below to post an entry on Twitter
[clickToTweet tweet=”RT to enter to win tickets to @PolarinConcert #PolarExpressinConcert with @VSOrchestra #VancouverSymphonyOrchestra #MyVSO http://ow.ly/myAe30pRjTs” quote=” Click to enter via Twitter” theme=”style6″]

I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 9:00am on Thursday, November 14, 2019.

UPDATE The winner is Lauren!

Tigh-Na-Mara Toy Drive in Parksville

Add a Comment by Rebecca Bollwitt

You know it as a gorgeous seaside resort and conference centre, home to Canada’s top-rated spa, but later this month it will be home to the biggest toy drive of its kind on Vancouver Island! The Tigh-Na-Mara Toy Drive is happening November 27th, where you can make a difference in the life of a child and enjoy a buffet breakfast.

Tigh-Na-Mara Toy Drive

Tigh-Na-Mara Toy Drive in Parsville

When: Wednesday, November 27, 2019 from 6:30am to 10:00am
Where: Tigh-Na-Mara 1155 Resort Drive, Parksville

“The smiles the kids will get on Christmas morning that they wouldn’t have had otherwise, it really does move us all,” said Paul Drummond, who is the General Manager at Tigh-Na-Mara Seaside Spa Resort & Conference Centre in Parksville.

Drummond’s hope that no local child will go without a gift on Christmas morning. He is optimistic that the event he started 11 years ago will once again help fill the SOS Toy Shop where Christmas wishes and dreams come true for residents in-need.

Last year marked the 10th year of the Tigh-Na-Mara Toy Drive, the biggest toy drive of its kind on Vancouver Island. Over the years, the event has brought in close to 13,950 toys and over $67,500 in donations for the SOS Caring for Community at Christmas program.

Guests bring a new, unwrapped toy, a gift card or a monetary donation and receive a free buffet breakfast at the award-winning resort. Last year the event garnered 1,990 gifts, $4,573 in gift cards and $9,230 in cash and cheques.

The SOS Caring for Community at Christmas program (formerly called Caring for Kids at Christmas) has been running for 51 years in the Parksville Qualicum Beach region. It provides gifts for children and youth in low-income families, and local grocery store gift cards to families and individuals in need, so they may choose food that is important to them over the holidays.

Guests at the event are also encouraged to bring a non-perishable food item for the local Salvation Army food bank, which will provide food for hundreds of residents over the holiday season and beyond.

Tigh-Na-Mara

For more information follow Tigh-Na-Mara on FacebookInstagram, or Twitter.

Dance in Vancouver: Win Tickets

Comments 12 by Rebecca Bollwitt

Celebrating BC’s Contemporary Dance Scene

Vancouver’s contemporary dance scene takes centre stage in Dance In VancouverNovember 20-24, 2019. This curated biennial event provides a unique opportunity to experience the ideas and creativity of dance generated by a diverse community of local artists, as well as cross-fertilization between genres including ballet and street dance

OURO Collective - Photo by Jeff Hamada
Dance in Vancouver – OURO Collective – Photo by Jeff Hamada

Dance in Vancouver

When: Wednesday, November 20 to Sunday November 24, 2019
Where: Scotiabank Dance Centre (677 Davie St, Vancouver)
Tickets: $34/$25 students & seniors available by calling Tickets Tonight at (604) 684-2787 or purchasing online

Produced every two years by The Dance Centre, Dance In Vancouver is unique for its concentrated focus on promoting the province’s contemporary dance talent, not only to local audiences, but also to dance promoters and curators who come from across Canada and around the world to sample West Coast dance.

Opening Event
Wednesday, November 20, 2019 4:00pm to 11:00pm
Free admission
Dance In Vancouver opens with a day of free talks and events including a roundtable discussion about dance in the city with visiting guests, and a keynote address. Different spaces at Scotiabank Dance Centre will be animated with Alexa Mardon and Erika Mitsuhashi’s site-specific Tour, a studio presentation of Kinesis Dance somatheatro’s multi-disciplinary Against, and Lee Su-Feh/battery opera innovative kinetic sculpture installation, the Dance Machine.

Performances

Vision Impure
Pathways
Thursday, November 21, 2019 8:00pm
Noam Gagnon’s latest work Pathways explores the intricate push and pull of relationships impacted by urban living. Ten extraordinary dancers draw on all their strength, speed and agility to power through the explosive choreography, striving to find moments of emotional connection amidst the visceral intensity.

Amber Funk Barton/the response.
VAST
Friday, November 22, 2019 8:00pm
Inspired by personal travels, Amber Funk Barton’s atmospheric solo VAST is an ode to the explorer that resides in all of us, the traveler and the dreamer who wonders what resides beyond the edge. The choreography fuses seamlessly with lighting, sound and set design to create an evocative meditation on our limitations as human beings, and how despite these limitations we still desire to propel ourselves forward into unknown territory.

Raven Spirit Dance
Gathering Light
Saturday, November 23, 2019 2:00pm
Gathering Light follows the journey of seed to flower, beginning with the stirrings of consciousness to the full embrace of transformation. This luminous quartet choreographed by Artistic Director Michelle Olson delves into the impulses rooted in our bodies that travel through us to find the light, while revealing the ceremonies that support our full bloom. Performed in the round, the work creates a distinctive sense of ritual where transformation is an experience we share with the performers.

Joshua Beamish/MOVETHECOMPANY
Saudade
Saturday, November 23 and Sunday, November 24, 2019
Saudade investigates loss, memory, and the deep longing for something unattainable. Six outstanding male dancers merge elegant balletic lines with street-style dynamism and drive, conjuring up fleeting intimacies in a series of ghostly solos, duets, and group passages, accompanied by a hauntingly beautiful cello score.

OURO Collective
HAKO
Sunday, November 24, 2019 2:00pm
Known for imaginative and original works based on hip hop, waacking, breaking, popping and contemporary dance, OURO Collective teams up with experiential design studio Tangible for HAKO, a multidisciplinary dance experience. Using interactive installations, striking visual effects and exhilarating movement for an ensemble of five virtuosic dancers, the work reframes our relationship to technology, and joyfully re-ignites our capacity for curiosity and play.

Installations

Thursday to Saturday November 21-23, 2019 from 6:30pm to 11:00pm
Free admission

  • Company 605 is creating a special installation version of their most recent work, Loop, Lull, in which five virtuosic dancers adapt to changes and attempting increasingly complex feats. Audiences can drop in and stay as long as they wish. (6:30 to 8:00pm and 9:00pm to 10:30pm nightly).
  • Lee Su-Feh/battery opera’s Dance Machine is a kinetic sculpture – 64 pieces of bamboo suspended from a central copper disk – that can be transformed into multiple configurations by the movement of the bodies within it. (6:30pm to 11:00pm nightly.)

Follow The Dance Centre on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for more info.

response. VAST - Photo by Chris Barton
Amber Funk Barton/the response. presents VAST – Photo by Chris Barton

Win Tickets

I have a pair of tickets to give away to Amber Funk Barton/the response. presents VAST (Friday, November 22, 2019 8:00pm) at the Scotiabank Dance Centre. Here’s how you can enter to win:

  • Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
  • Click below to post an entry on Twitter
[clickToTweet tweet=”RT to enter to win tickets to @responsedance during #DanceinVancouver @DanceCentre http://ow.ly/aU8730pQUde” quote=” Click to enter via Twitter” theme=”style6″]

I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Thursday, November 14, 2019.

UPDATE: The winner is Rosemarie! Kenei

Things to do in Vancouver This Weekend Nov 8-10, 2019

Add a Comment by Rebecca Bollwitt

Miss604 is proud to be a sponsor of the Starry Night Gala for Together We Can on Saturday. You can find this event and more things to do in Vancouver this weekend below, along with a link to this list of Remembrance Day Ceremonies on Monday.

Things to do in Vancouver This Weekend

Things to do in Vancouver This Weekend - Autumn

Friday, November 8, 2019
Bruce McCulloch at the Shadbolt Centre
The Island Magic Show ft Bizzaro
Calligraphy Night at Oakridge
Vancouver Canadian Immigrant Fair
Hope in Shadows Photo Exhibition – Opening Reception
A Chamber Music Celebration: Trio, Quartet, and Quintet
The Thrilla at The Villa 2- Professional Boxing Event
Architecture and Design Film Festival
Little Black Dress Gala 2019
Canadian & International Contemporary Fine Art Auction
Friday Afternoon at the Mansion
Vancouver Podcast Festival
EAT! Vancouver
FEAST: Asian Dining Festival
Chutzpah! Festival
Co.ERASGA Presents Passages of Rhythms
Green Day’s American Idiot in North Vancouver
Downtown Eastside Heart of the City Festival
The Incredible Adventures of Mary Jane Mosquito
The Arts Club Presents: The Sound of Music
The Cultch Presents: Kuroko
Bear Creek Park Lights

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Eastside Culture Crawl Prize Package

Comments 64 by Rebecca Bollwitt

Vancouver’s four-day fête in celebration of visual arts, design, and crafts, the Eastside Culture Crawl, runs November 14 to 17, 2019 throughout Vancouver’s Eastside community. The Crawl will present a line-up of more than 500 visual artists who will open their art studios, collaborative work spaces, garages, and homes — to engage with the public, showcase their remarkable work, and encourage fellowship.

Eastside Culture Crawl Poster 2019

23rd Edition of the Eastside Culture Crawl

  • When: November 14 to November 17, 2019
    Thursday & Friday: 5:00pm to 10:00pm
    Saturday & Sunday: 11:00am to 6:00pm
  • Where: Various Eastside locations between Columbia, 1st Ave, Victoria Dr, and the waterfront

Encompassing the region bounded by Columbia Street, 1st Avenue, Victoria Drive, and the Waterfront, the Eastside Arts District is home to the highest concentration of visual artists, designers, and craft makers in Canada. The Crawl eagerly welcomes arts patrons and collectors, community builders, and inquisitive tourists to immerse themselves in this enriching community of artists through on-site visits, and interactive installations.

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