Live music and a good cause: What could go better together?
The Columbia Performing Arts Society is planning to host fundraisers every month at the Columbia Theatre, to benefit local charities and provide live music at the downtown New Westminster venue.
On Saturday, Jan. 18, the theatre played host to a successful show staged by Jerry Doucette and Ken Boychuk, Musicians United In a Show of Hearts. The show raised money for Variety - The Children's Charity.
"Jerry Doucette, the R&B Allstars, the Mojo Stars, the Simpson Brothers Band and Taylor Clarke put on an amazing show for the lucky attendees," says an email from Marlyne Marrese of the Columbia Performing Arts Society. "Music fans, representatives form the Variety Club and our many sponsors danced the night away."
The next fundraiser is planned for Feb. 8, with performances by the R&B Allstars and Barracuda - The Essential Tribute to Heart. Billed as Fire in the Heart, it's going to raise money for those affected by the Oct. 10 fire in downtown New Westminster, and it will celebrate the history of the buildings and their occupants.
Businesses are invited to help out by becoming sponsors - contact [email protected].
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Things are looking good for City Stage New West, if attendance at a recent library program is any indication.
The theatre company's production of Freud's Last Session opens tonight (Jan. 29) and runs until Feb. 9. The play tells the story of an imagined meeting between Sigmund Freud and writer C.S. Lewis on the eve of the Second World War.
In advance of the show, it held an event at the New Westminster Public Library on Tuesday, Jan. 14 - The Freud-Lewis Connection.
It brought together two guest speakers - Dr. Monika Hilder, an authority on C.S. Lewis from Trinity Western University, and Dr. Mychael Gleeson, an expert on Freud - to talk about the two men and their points of view.
The event brought out a near-capacity crowd
"The good-natured sparring between the two experts added immensely to the liveliness of the evening," says a press release from City Stage New West. "Following Dr. Hilder's somewhat critical commentary about Freud, Dr. Gleeson pronounced herself 'appalled' by some of the English professor's remarks and said - humorously - that 'We can never be friends now!', eliciting chuckles from the audience."
The play delves into the big questions - not the least of which is "Does God exist?" - and promises to provide a thought-provoking evening of theatre. It's on at Galbraith House, and tickets are available through www.brownpapertickets.com.
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If you're looking for a way to spend a February evening, there's an eclectic assortment of events coming up at the Massey Theatre.
The theatre's latest events listings offers up a number of ideas for next month.
Among them:
* Friday, Feb. 7: It's a tribute to Buddy Holly and Johnny Cash, with Johnny Vallis and David James, 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $42.50.
* Saturday, Feb. 15: The UBC and SFU Sikh Students Association presents their seventh annual Sikh variety show, Nihaal 2014: Jaagrithi. Proceeds are going towards building a new school in Rajisthar, India. Tickets are $10. Call 778-240-2228 or 604-787-3437.
* Saturday, Feb. 22: The Backstage Performers Society presents A Night of Stars gala at 8 p.m., with a pre-gala reception featuring gourmet appetizers and desserts, wine, coffee and tea. Performers include Omar Khan, Laurell and Cody Karey. Tickets are $18.50 and $23, and the money raised helps the society to provide financial assistance and opportunities for young performers in the fields of music, theatre and dance..
* Monday, Feb. 24: The Arts Council of New Westminster's Last Mondays at the Movies series continues with The Reluctant Fundamentalist, a 2012 political thriller. Tickets are $9 at the door.
For tickets to Massey events, call the box office at 604-521-5050 or buy online at www.masseytheatre.com.
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The winners of last year's Royal City Literary Arts Society Write On! contest are returning this year - but this time as judges.
The society has invited last year's first-place winners to judge this year's writing contest, which is underway until March 15.
The winners in all three categories have agreed to take on the job.
This year's hopefuls will have their work read by Jonina Kirton in poetry, Corey Levine in non-fiction and Antonia Levi in fiction.
So who are they? Bios provided by the society give a bit of insight into the three talented writers:
Kirton is a Métis/Icelandic poet who lives in New Westminster. Her writing has been featured in a number of journals and anthologies, including Enlightening Times UK, Other Tongues: Mixed-Race Women Speak Out anthology, Pagan Edge, First Nations Drum and Quills Canadian Poetry Magazine. Her first collection of poetry and lyric prose, page as bone - ink as blood, will be released in the fall of 2015 with Talon Books.
Levine spent 20 years doing human rights work in conflict zones around the world and now lives in Victoria. Her writing credits include publication in The Globe and Mail and Ottawa Citizen newspapers, and This, Embassy and Peace magazines.
Levi, meanwhile, is best known for her non-fiction work on Japanese animation but is now "reinventing herself as a fictionista." She has published three books of non-fiction and several short stories, and she's currently working on two novels and a short story collection.
Visit the Royal City Literary Arts Society website for all the details about the contest.
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Is there a boy in your house who likes to sing?
The B.C. Boys' Choir is celebrating its 45th anniversary this year, and as part of the celebrations it's offering its SongWave Boys Honour Choir program for boys around the region.
Boys aged seven to 12 who love to sing can "test-drive" the choir for six weeks, a press release notes. The program starts Wednesday, Feb. 5 and runs through to March 12 at Deer Lake United Church in Burnaby from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. each evening.
Registration forms are available from school music teachers or www.bcboyschoir.org. The cost is $60. For details, call 1-888-909-8282.
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Do you have an item for Lively City? Send arts and entertainment ideas to Julie, [email protected], or find her on Twitter, @juliemaclellan.
