The Georgia Straight - Folk Fest - July 13, 2017 by The Georgia Straight

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Annual Summer Floor Model Clearance images are for reference only, not all products shown are inclusive of the promotion.

Starts Saturday, July 15th at 10am. Hundreds of floor models, all priced to go.

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2 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT JULY 13 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 20 / 2017

JULY 14 | 14 JUILLET 11 am – 4 pm Parc Vanier Park Musée maritime de Vancouver Vancouver Maritime Museum

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JULY 13 – 20 / 2017 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT 3

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All advertised prices include taxes & fees. Conditions apply. Ex: Vancouver. All advertised prices include taxes & fees. Package, hotel, tour & rail prices are per person, based on double occupancy for total length of stay unless otherwise stated. Prices are for select departure dates and are accurate and subject to availability at advertising deadline, errors and omissions excepted, and subject to change. Taxes & fees due in destination are additional and include, but not limited to, local car rental charges & taxes, one-way rental drop fees which are to be paid upon arrival, resort fees & charges, tour ‘kitty’, airline baggage fees and cruise gratuities. *Conditions apply. For full terms and conditions please speak with a Flight Centre travel consultant or visit flightcentre.ca/adventure.†We will match any written quoted airfare. Additional important conditions apply. For full terms and conditions visit flightcentre.ca/lowestairfareguarantee. BC REG: #HO2790 Canadian Publications Mail Agreement #40009178, return undeliverable Canadian addresses to The Georgia Straight, 1635 West Broadway, Vancouver, B.C. V6J 1W9

JULY 13 – 20 / 2017 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT 5

Celebrating our 50th year in business 1967-2017

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6 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT JULY 13 – 20 / 2017

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JULY 13 – 20 / 2017 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT 7

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8 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT JULY 13 – 20 / 2017

CONTENTS

ADULTS-ONLY FUN, FRIDAY NIGHTS IN JULY! Enjoy craft beer, signature cocktails, rides and guest DJs in a kid-free atmosphere.

Richmond Night Market. Philip M. Tong photo.

NEWS

On July 14, a fleet of up to 30 canoes holding 350 paddlers will land at Vancouver’s Vanier Park in the Gathering of Canoes, part of the city’s Canada 150+ celebrations of Indigenous culture. > BY CARLITO PABLO

COVER

America has had an often troubled past, but Rhiannon Giddens stays positive as she heads to the Vancouver Folk Music Festival. > BY MIKE USINGER

FOOD

START HERE 24 21 29 13 25 11 35 15 14 28

The Bottle Confessions Dance Green Living I Saw You Renters of Vancouver Savage Love Straight Stars Style Theatre

BUY EARLY AND SAVE AT

A gap in our city’s ethnic-food scene—the traditional cuisine of Quebec—is more than filled by the new St. Lawrence restaurant. > BY GAIL JOHNSON

30 Arts 22 Music

ARTS

At Ensemble Theatre Company’s summer series, In the Next Room takes a stimulating look at the vibrator in Victorian times. > BY JANE T SMITH

TIME OUT

SERVICES 33 Careers 11 Real Estate

MOVIES

The Little Hours has fun in the nunnery; Aboriginal history takes The Road Forward; The Ornithologist defies all classification; Hollywood wins War for Planet of the Apes.

GeorgiaStraight

COVER PHOTO

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NEWS

Canoe event offers healing > B Y C A R LITO PA B LO

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MOVIES ARTS MUSIC THEATRE FOOD Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get the latest entertainment scoop Signup at straight.com/newsletters

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n Friday (July 14), a fleet of canoes will approach the shores of Vancouver in an event awash in meaning and symbolism. What transpires next will be a ceremony that has been practised for thousands of years on the shared, unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh. With the chiefs of the three First Nations standing on the beach, paddlers, including Mayor Gregor Robertson, will ask permission—as a sign of respect and recognition—to come ashore at Vanier Park. Known as the Gathering of Canoes, the landing of up to 30 canoes with 350 paddlers is the first of three signature events spearheaded by the City of Vancouver as part of its Canada 150+ celebration of Indigenous culture that predated and has endured throughout the country’s official history. The landing is also a high point of this year’s Pulling Together Journey, an annual canoe expedition by First Nations people and representatives of police and government agencies, which aims to promote healing of historical wrongs. The voyage is led by the Pulling Together Canoe Society, whose president, Rhiannon Bennett, has been participating in the journeys for more than a decade, since 2006. “Pulling Together recognizes the past, and that means that we talk about it openly and honestly,” Bennett told the Georgia Straight in a phone interview. “We talk about the fact that it was police officers that come into our communities and take our children, and the police officers and the Indian agents were the ones that carry out all of these things. So now, we are coming together to acknowledge that those things have happened and to build relationships to go forward in a better way. And that is very much the spirit of the [Canada] 150+, [which] is acknowledging the atrocities that have happened and making a commitment to go forward together.” Bennett is a Musqueam, and she has worked for many years with Aboriginal youth and families. “We’ve been quietly doing our work on reconciliation for a very long time, and we’ve been doing this work long before it was common knowledge for people to talk about that,” she said about the Pulling Together Journey.

Like the 2013 All Nations Canoe Gathering at False Creek, this week’s Gathering of Canoes presents the chance to mend historical wounds. Yolande Cole photo.

The activity started as an annual event in 2001 following a canoe journey put together by former RCMP sergeant Ed Hill, which visited several First Nations communities along the coast of B.C. in 1997. The Pulling Together Canoe Society was incorporated in 2004, with the mission to enhance understanding between Indigenous peoples and publicservice agencies, especially the police. “We’re participating in Vancouver’s 150+ because the spirit of that event is in line with our vision and our mission statement,” Bennett said. Paddlers have been pulling together to foster healing in B.C. since 2001, and the concept of reconciliation with First Nations assumed a national stage with the creation years later of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC). The TRC was a part of the 2007 Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement, and its mandate was to document the legacy of the residential schools and recommend steps to move forward. In September 2013, survivors of the residential schools, along with First Nations leaders and elders, paddled into False Creek in canoes to launch Reconciliation Week in Vancouver. In 2014, the City of Vancouver designated itself a City of Reconciliation by adopting a framework to build a relationship with the Musqueam, Squamish, and TsleilWaututh based on mutual respect, strengthened partnerships, and economic empowerment. Bennett will be in a Musqueam

canoe when the flotilla arrives in Vancouver on July 14. She was in Gibsons on July 6 for the initial launch and blessing of the canoes when the Straight interviewed her. She and other participants were to take their canoes to Sechelt later and begin the sea travel from there the next day. According to Bennett, representatives from the RCMP, the Canadian navy, and the police departments of Vancouver and Abbotsford will join young First Nations and Aboriginal paddlers in the West Coast journey. On July 13, the canoes are scheduled to travel from Horseshoe Bay to Ambleside Park in West Vancouver. The next day, the paddlers will be joined in Ambleside Park by Mayor Robertson and other public officials on their way to Vanier Park in Vancouver, where the chiefs of the city’s three host nations will be waiting. “We will announce to the chiefs who we are and why we’re there, and then we will ask permission to come ashore,” Bennett said. “That’s the protocol that our communities have taken since time immemorial. We recognize people’s territories, that we always ask permission to come in.” The public is invited to witness the traditional landing to be followed by entertainment, lunch, and other community activities until 4 p.m. The canoes are scheduled to depart at about 2 p.m. The Gathering of Canoes starts at 11 a.m. at Vanier Park (1000 Chestnut Street) with the arrival of a flotilla from Ambleside Park.

The Georgia Straight | Vancouver’s News and Entertainment Weekly | Volume 51 Number 2584 1635 West Broadway, Vancouver, B.C. V6J 1W9 www.straight.com Phone: 604-730-7000 / Fax: 604-730-7010 / e-mail: gs.info@straight.com Display Advertising: 604-730-7020 / Fax: 604-730-7012 / e-mail: sales@straight.com Classifieds: 604-730-7060 / e-mail: classads@straight.com Subscriptions: 604-730-7000 Distribution: 604-730-7087 EDITOR + PUBLISHER Dan McLeod ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Yolanda Stepien GENERAL MANAGER Matt McLeod EDITOR Charlie Smith SECTION EDITORS

Janet Smith (Arts/Fashion) Mike Usinger (Music) Steve Newton (Time Out) Adrian Mack (Movies) Brian Lynch (Books) EDITORIAL ADMINISTRATOR Doug Sarti ASSOCIATE EDITORS

Gail Johnson, John Lucas, Alexander Varty STAFF WRITERS

Tammy Kwan, Lucy Lau, Travis Lupick, Carlito Pablo, Amanda Siebert, Craig Takeuchi, Kate Wilson SENIOR EDITOR Martin Dunphy EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Jennie Ramstad PROOFREADER Pat Ryffranck CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Gregory Adams, Nathan Caddell, David Chau, Jack Christie, Jennifer Croll, Ken Eisner (Movies), George Fetherling, Tara Henley, Michael Hingston, Ng Weng Hoong, Alex Hudson, Kurtis Kolt,

Robin Laurence (Visual Arts), Mark Leiren-Young, John Lekich, Amy Lu, Bob Mackin, Michael Mann, Rose Marcus, Beth McArthur, Verne McDonald, Allan MacInnis, Guy MacPherson, Tony Montague, Kathleen Oliver, Ben Parfitt, Vivian Pencz, Bill Richardson, Gurpreet Singh, Jacqueline Turner, Andrea Warner, Jessica Werb, Stephen Wong, Alan Woo ART DEPARTMENT MANAGER

Janet McDonald SENIOR DESIGNER David Ko CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS

Alfonso Arnold, Rebecca Blissett, Trevor Brady, Louise Christie, Emily Cooper, Randall Cosco, Krystian Guevara, Evaan Kheraj, Kris Krug, Tracey Kusiewicz, Kevin Langdale, Shayne Letain, Matt Mignanelli, Mark “Atomos” Pilon, Carlo Ricci, William Ting, Alex Waterhouse-Hayward DIGITAL PRODUCT MANAGER

Chet Woodside LEAD WEB DEVELOPER Jeffrey Li WEB DEVELOPER Tina Luu (On Leave) JUNIOR WEB DEVELOPER Riva Ridley WEB ADMINISTRATOR Miles Keir

PRODUCTION SUPERVISOR Mike Correia PRODUCTION

K.T. Dean, Sandra Oswald AD SERVICES ASSOCIATES

Jon Cranny, Lyndsey Krezanoski DIRECTOR OF ARTS & MARKETING

Laura Moore SALES DIRECTOR

Tara Lalanne SALES MANAGER Sharon Smith (On Leave) ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVES

Glenn Cohen, Lauren Ellis, Robyn Marsh, David Pearlman, PROMOTIONS + SPECIAL PROJECTS

Navdeep Chhina ADVERTISING + PROMOTION ASSISTANTS

Maya Keeven (On Leave), Ahlia Moussa DIGITAL SALES COORDINATOR

Brenna Woodhouse CIRCULATION MANAGER

Dexter Vosper INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY DIRECTOR

Dennis Jangula CREDIT MANAGER Shannon Li ACCOUNTING SUPERVISOR

Tamara Robinson RECEPTION/PROMOTIONS ASSISTANT

Teagan Dobson

The Georgia Straight is published every Thursday by the Vancouver Free Press Publishing SUBMISSIONS The Straight accepts no responsibility for, and will not Corp. Copies are distributed free every week throughout Vancouver, Burnaby, North necessarily respond to, any submitted materials. All submissions should be and West Vancouver, New Westminster, and Richmond. International Standard Serial addressed to contact@straight.com. Number ISSN 0709-8995. Subscription rates in Canada $182.00/52 issues (includes GST), $92.00/26 issues (includes GST); United States $379.00/52 issues, $205.00/ 26 issues; foreign $715.00/52 issues, $365.00/26 issues. Contact 604-730-7087 if you wish to distribute free copies of the Georgia Straight at your place of business. Entire contents copyright © 2017 Vancouver Free Press, Best Of Vancouver, BOV And Golden Plates Are Trade-Marks Of Vancouver Free Press Publishing Corp.

10 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT JULY 13 – 20 / 2017

HOUSING

Renters of Vancouver: Just barely getting by Now that his wife has developed health issues, a government worker fears his income won’t be enough for them both if they have to move > B Y KATE WIL SON

Renters of Vancouver takes an intimate look at how the city’s residents are dealing with the housing crisis. Tenants choose to remain nameless when they share their stories.

“I

have a good full-time job with the federal government. I’m worried that my wife and I won’t be able to afford a new home if our landlord chooses to sell or renovict us. Given that he knows the market value of our suite is much higher than what we pay, we think it might be quite likely. “I was born in Surrey, and I’ve always lived in and around Vancouver. I moved into this home in 2009, which is why our rent is so low relative to the area. “Technically, the apartment is a three-bedroom, but that’s very misleading. It’s in a narrow laneway house that has three floors. There’s the room that we sleep in; my wife is self-employed, so one room is dedicated to her profession, teaching clients; and the third room is a pantry and storage, because we don’t have any other storage space in the apartment. It’s very small. “The landlord raises the rent each year by the maximum he is allowed to under the Residential Tenancy Act. Currently, we pay $1,569, but the two girls who moved in above us a while ago pay around $1,780. Their suite is identical to ours. Two people

A Surrey-born apartment renter worries that his landlord is forcing him and his wife out through passive-aggressive means by not repairing or updating things.

moved in below us within the last six months, and they pay about $1,900 for a two-bedroom basement suite. He knows he could get more money from us if he wanted. “We might be able to stretch to pay market rent if we had two incomes, but since November my wife has had some health issues. She’s got a hospital appointment scheduled in the future, and, hopefully, when

Exciting Work Opportunities! Competitive salary and benefits package including: extended health and dental plan, payment of MSP, transportation costs, fitness subsidy, education assistance program and a signing bonus. Simpson, Thomas and Associates is one of the leading personal injury law firms in BC – restricting its practice to helping the victims of car accidents. We are expanding and have the following vacancies: • Intermediate/Senior Legal Administrative Assistant – the ideal candidate should have 3 – 5 years previous experience in personal injury law. • Junior/Senior Paralegal – the ideal candidate will have a minimum of 2 years’ experience in personal injury law. • Junior Assistants – no experience? Don’t worry! ST&A will provide the training, including for the appropriate candidate, payment of taking a legal assistant course. Full and Part-time positions available. We offer flexible working hours. Please email your résumé, along with a covering letter stating the position you are applying for to Bernie Simpson, C.M. bsimpson@simpsonthomas.com or Nazlin Rahemtulla, HR Manager: nrahemtulla@simpsonthomas.com or call 604.697.3955

she’s recovered from that she’ll be able to work again. In the meantime, I’m the only person supporting us and might be for the foreseeable future. We’ve thought about claiming disability benefits, but she doesn’t fulfill the criteria. “If we were forced to move out, we could downsize, but the smallest we could go would be a twobedroom because my wife needs

the second one for her job. It would be near impossible to find a twobedroom at the same rent as we pay now—and we already spend 53 percent of our monthly income on our home, which costs around the market average for just a one-bedroom. On top of that, I pay about $85 for Shaw, $85 for our cellphones, $10 for Netf lix, $120 for hydro, and around $130 to feed and look after my cats. That leaves about $20 a day to feed two people. It’s doable, but we don’t have any spending money, and we wouldn’t be able to afford a move. We’ve considered going to the suburbs, but the rates are comparable when you factor in commuting costs. “The landlord is very bad at fixing things, and we think it might be because he’s trying to force us out so he can raise the rent for the next tenant. One example is when our washing machine broke. I emailed him, and the landlord said that he had to get his handyman—but because the handyman was out east because his parents were sick, the landlord wouldn’t be able to do the job. A month later, I emailed to ask if the handyman was back yet, and the landlord said he wasn’t. Another month went by and I emailed again, and the landlord said I should probably fix it myself. I considered it, but to do that I’d have to lift it down off the wall, and if I got hurt then we wouldn’t have any income at all. More time

passed, with me contacting him regularly, and seven months later he finally responded saying that he was shipping in some parts. And then it turned out one of them was broken, so we had to wait about four more weeks after that. “He won’t fix anything. Even the little things like the door handle, which falls off as I go to pull the door closed. Nothing has been updated or replaced since the house was built— the carpet is at least 25 years old, and it’s thrashed. “The landlord is also very difficult with the hydro bills. We don’t think the city has approved the suite downstairs, and our electricity is linked to theirs. B.C. Hydro assumes a certain usage for a household, and the rate jumps at one point, and then another. Because we’re two households combined, we’re always being charged the highest amounts. On top of that, he only comes around to give us the bill every six months, and will expect to be paid for half a year’s expensive hydro on the spot. I have to hope that we’ve saved up enough, and there have been times that—because of circumstances beyond our control—we haven’t. “In the state we’re in, we have just enough to get by, barely. But it’s difficult knowing that we’re one bad event away from potentially being homeless. Something needs to be done to correct the housing crisis in this city.” -

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BALLOT CLOSES JULY 18TH 12 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT JULY 13 – 20 / 2017

GREEN LIVING

Quupe gets the goods to the right people The Vancouver startup allows users to offer their recreational and hobby-oriented items for rent Ramaswamy, and Amanda Shou came up with the concept while atith the incredible tending Vancouver’s Centre for Digitgrowth of the sharing al Media, where they noticed many economy, it’s become students borrowing resources such a run-of-the-mill as bicycles, snowboards, and vacuum practice to hitch a ride in a stran- cleaners from one another. Although ger’s car or stay the night in an un- they were aware that similar peer-tooccupied apartment during a week- peer platforms already existed both end getaway. So it’s only natural nationally and internationally, they that we begin sharing products like sought to create a streamlined exlawn mowers, GoPros, and sewing perience that would take the hassle machines, right? and guesswork out That’s the of renting from Green Living thinking beneighbours and Presented by hind local starother citizens. tup Quupe—its A quick name is short browse on the for the word Quupe website recoup—an online platform that (quupe.com/ ) reveals a myriad of allows citizens to offer their rec- goods fit for various activities, such reational and hobby-oriented as turntables, road bikes, DSLRs, items for use. These “lenders” power washers, and canoes. Hammake money by renting out ob- ilton and her team take great care jects like tennis rackets, tents, and to curate the inventory in order to video-game consoles that may be maintain a high-quality aesthetic. collecting dust in storage, and A rental calculator is also available, “borrowers” are able to avoid com- which employs data such as the year mitting to products that they need an item was purchased, its original only temporarily. price, and its rate of depreciation to Developed by four former class- determine a fair per-day charge. mates, the service taps into a young Once a borrower’s request to rent generation’s tendency to rent rather something has been approved, paythan buy. “There was a time where ment is made through the platform. everything was very driven by con- Complimentary delivery services are sumption,” Angela Hamilton, CEO also available if the borrower is unand cofounder of Quupe, explains able to meet the lender at a specific by phone. “Now we’re noticing a location. All products are insured trend of people wanting to go away for up to $2,500 in case of loss or from that and more toward the ex- damage. “This is a behavioural periential. They really want to go change,” Hamilton says of the sharout and do fun things as opposed to ing process. “So we really put a lot of owning everything.” thought and effort into how to make Hamilton and fellow Quupe it as easy as possible for people.” founders Zeeshan Rasool, Vijay Quupe launched in February and > BY L UC Y LA U

Offers valid until July 31, 2017. See toyota.ca for complete details. In the event of any discrepancy or inconsistency between Toyota prices, rates and/or other information contained on www.getyourtoyota.ca and that contained on toyota.ca, the latter shall prevail. Errors and omissions excepted. Lease example: 2017 Prius c CVT KDTA3P, MSRP is $23,815 and includes $1,840 freight/PDI and fees leased at 0.99% over 60 months with $1,555 down payment, equals 260 weekly payments of $55 with a total lease obligation of $15,705. Applicable taxes are extra. Lease 60 mos. based on 100,000 km, excess km charge is $.07. $1,000 in incentives to cash customers is available on 2017 Prius c models and cannot be combined with advertised lease offer. Customer incentives on 2017 Prius c models are valid until July 31, 2017. Incentives for cash customers on 2017 Prius c models are valid until July 31, 2017 and may not be combined with Toyota Financial Services (TFS) lease or finance rates. If you would like to lease or finance at standard TFS rates (not the above special rates), then you may be able to take advantage of cash incentive offers by July 31, 2017. Cash incentives include taxes and are applied after taxes have been charged on the full amount of the negotiated price. See toyota.ca for complete details on all cash incentive offers. Weekly lease offers available through Toyota Financial Services (TFS) on approved credit to qualified retail lease customers of new and demonstrator Toyota vehicles. Down payment and first weekly payment due at lease inception and next weekly payment due approximately 7 days later and weekly thereafter throughout the term. Visit your Toyota Dealer or www.getyourtoyota.ca for more details. Some conditions apply; offers are time limited and may change without notice. Dealer may lease/sell for less. Each specific model may not be available at each dealer at all times; factory order or dealer trade may be necessary.

From left, Quupe cofounders and classmates Zeeshan Rasool, Angela Hamilton, Amanda Shou, and Vijay Ramaswamy.

has since attracted more than 1,200 users around the city. A mobile application is in the works and will be released in mid-July, first for iOS and then for Android. Hamilton hopes that the idea will continue to gain traction among the ecofriendly (product-sharing decreases

consumption and the number of goods that will potentially end up in landfi lls) and the outdoors-inclined (at the moment, one of Quupe’s most popular categories is camping equipment). By connecting Vancouverites with one another, the service also helps

combat common perceptions that it’s hard to make friends in the city. “I think some people may be craving connections with their neighbours but don’t necessarily have a reason to or a way to do that,” she says. “So I think something like this can really help bridge that gap.” -

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JULY 13 – 20 / 2017 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT 13

STYLE

Soft ruffles and embroidered denim are both trending in womenswear this summer, according to Leone’s designer-savvy buyers. David Bong photo,

Put some thought into your summer wardrobe style is one of the most versatile for summer: its modesty makes it a flatf we’re lucky—and we have been tering—and forgiving—look for all in recent weeks—summertime ages and body types. in Vancouver means temperatures so high that sporting any- DRESSY DENIM Embellished and thing other than our lightest T-shirt embroidered denim isn’t going away and shorts seems unbearable. But ’tis anytime soon. Articles like pinafores, the season for weddings, barbecues, pants, and dresses crafted from the and the odd garden party, which true-blue cotton are easy to wear— means (occasionally) putting some and breathable—in high temps, states thought and effort into our attire. Lim, and are amped up in playfulness (Plus, it never hurts to experiment when decorated with intricate needlea bit with our wardrobe—especially work and ornamentation. The buyer says that designer labels after the sun goes down, when we can get dressed without looking like such as Miu Miu have all gotten in on the trend, crafting denim jackets and we just exited a sauna.) Ahead, we’ve consulted the pros jumpers with accents like pearl deat Leone (757 West Hastings Street), tailing. “We have this beautiful Alexone of Vancouver’s premier purvey- ander McQueen denim dress in stock ors of designer fashions—which just right now with floral embroidery,” she happens to be celebrating its 30th adds. “It’s absolutely stunning.” anniversary this year—for the summer trends that are marking both RED HOT Forget summery pastels runways and racks in case you’re in and tropical hues: as a precursor to fall, red is making a big splash in the need of a little sartorial inspo. menswear department, notes buyer RUFFLED UP No longer are ruffles Bernhard Mantai. Look for a true reserved for stuffy Victorian tops poppy red that leans more blue than and the fluffy princess frocks of your orange and pair it with leather dechildhood: the frilly detail gets a so- tails for added edge. phisticated makeover this season on The colour is drenching casual and women’s skirts, blouses, and even athleisure wear, in particular, though sweatshirts. “There’s definitely some more polished items like cardigans— femininity running throughout the Mantai points out a Versace piece—are collections,” says buyer Micarl Lim. also saturated in the shade. “When you Ladies: toughen up the look by think cardigan, you might think ‘old pairing a tiered dress with combat man’,” he says. “But the fact that it’s in boots, for example, or throwing a this wonderful colour really gives it a leather jacket atop a ruffle jumpsuit lot of youth appeal.” during cool summer evenings. It’s an easy way to add some romanticism— SOFT SUEDE Suede may not be the and movement—to your ’fit without first fabric that comes to mind in the heat, but according to Mantai, the magoing full girly girl. terial is making its presence known COLD SHOULDER From rompers to in biker-style jackets and blazers. The cropped Ts to swimwear, the off-the- coats are always unlined, he says, with shoulder trend continues to ride high zero padding, lending them a looser, in women’s fashion. To add some laid-back vibe that works well for suminterest to your ensemble, however, mer. “If you didn’t look closely, you ditch the typical OTS look you’ve might actually think it was a cottonlikely been rocking and opt for tops jersey jacket or something,” he says. with cutouts at the shoulder that show The fabric is also popping up in off small peeks of skin instead. select apparel and accessories for “Back in the ’80s, Donna Karan women. As a nighttime cover, adds started that open-shoulder look, but Mantai, suede is an apt choice for those it was more with bodysuits,” says interested in a more dressed-up feel. Lim. “Now, the open shoulder is on “You might go for something like this sweaters, dresses, and blouses.” The over a nylon jacket because it does have womenswear buyer adds that the that luxurious sensibility to it.” -

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ick it up from where you left off, or go and do anew. It wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t take much to get it launched and to keep it going strong. Thursday to Saturday sets a great backdrop for making the most of it. As of Friday, Mercury in Leo moves into activation mode regarding the August eclipses. Are you happy and fulfilled? Are you at your best? Is life delivering good reward? Mercury in Leo keeps self-interest, self-love, and success ratios front and centre. Aim to pay close attention to the beating of your heart and to the signals provided by lifeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s synchronicities. The next couple of months aims the karmic spotlight directly onto affairs of the heart, and also onto one special one, be they lover, child, self, or someone of influence to you personally or of worldly prominence. Monday begins with Venus/Neptune feeling their way along. This transit can be romantic, imaginative, quiet, and relaxed, or it can produce dissipation, forgetfulness, confusion, and stir subtle undercurrents. Keep the morning open; take it as it comes. As the day advances, Mars/Uranus hits a strike-flint track. Something spontaneous or out of the blue can be a great perk-me-up. On the other hand, try not to let impetuous or reactionary emotions get the better of you. Tuesday, Venus/Jupiter and the Taurus moon are on an abundance track. Wednesday, Mercury/Saturn make it real, doable, straightforward, legit, or well-timed. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an optimum day to meet with a specialist, professional, parent, or adviser. Say it; sign it; plan it; work it; buy or sell it.

ARIES

March 20â&#x20AC;&#x201C;April 20

Places to go, things to see, do, or sayâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;Mercury/Jupiter and the Aries moon keep you on a fresh battery charge Thursday/Friday. Partake; enjoy. Monday can produce a soft start but it may not end that way. Mars/Uranus can kick it up unexpectedly but even so, the timing is good. Tuesday/Wednesday, it comes together easily, readily, and well.

something fresh can start to percolate. Monday morning you can ease into it, but by Monday evening, Mars/Uranus hit full steam ahead. Tuesday, visits, plans, talks, and travel run smooth. Venus/Jupiter gives you more to say, do, or consider. Wednesday comes together/works out very well.

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Friday/Saturday, choose; do; go. Pleasure and satisfaction are a ready mix. Take the lead; others (especially your lover) will get immediately onboard with you. Sunday through Monday morning can slow you/it down, but not by much. Mars/ Uranus hits the action switch and/or launches a chain reaction. Tuesday, TAURUS Venus/Jupiter gives you more, much April 20â&#x20AC;&#x201C;May 21 more. Wednesday, get it said, writThe weekend keeps you on ten, planned, or done. the go. Friday through Monday, the CAPRICORN stars are on a perk-me-up program. December 21â&#x20AC;&#x201C;January 20 You should have no trouble finding Family and home matters things to do or enjoy. Monday morning is ideal for romance, sleep, or hanging keep you on the go, especially through out. Later in the day, Mars/Uranus stir Monday. Quick, straightforward, and it up, perhaps unexpectedly. Tuesday easy does it best. Monday, Mars/Uracan be delightful, heartwarming, prof- nus can strike it hot. Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t give in itable, or expensive. Wednesday, get it to reactionary emotions but go for it when the moment feels right. Tuessaid, signed, and/or accomplished. day, Venus/Jupiter put more on the GEMINI go. Wednesday, take control. ExpecMay 21â&#x20AC;&#x201C;June 21 tations and objectives are readily met. One thing leads to the next AQUARIUS thing. Take it as it comes. Spontaneity January 20â&#x20AC;&#x201C;February 18 does it best for your weekendâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s enterOne way or another, the tainment. Monday morning, Venus in Gemini wants to let it go rather weekend keeps you/it on the go. Quick than take it on. As the day builds, or short does the trick best. Monday Mars/Uranus hit push-it, force-it, or evening, Mars/Uranus triggers someforge-ahead. Tuesday/Wednesday are thing out of the blue. Emotions or imoptimized. Say it; do it; buy it; sign pulse can get the better of you. Tuesday, Venus/Jupiter make it more appealing, itâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the timing is very good. lucrative, pricey, or worthwhile. WedCANCER nesday, Mercury/Saturn makes it reaJune 21â&#x20AC;&#x201C;July 22 sonable, timely, well-said, or well-done. A take-charge attitude hits PISCES it right Friday through Sunday. MerFebruary 18â&#x20AC;&#x201C;March 20 cury/Jupiter enhance communication Free up your time. A weektracks. Despite extra volume everywhere, the duo makes for relative ease end to do as you please can be wonderregarding the travel or the getting. You fully replenishing. Immerse yourself can slack off Monday morning, but in the moment; take it as it comes. during the day, watch for Mars in Can- Monday can start quietly, but watch cer to hit full steam or sudden snap. for Mars/Uranus to rev up something Tuesday/Wednesday, the going, the unexpected. Tuesday increases pleasconnecting, and the getting are good. ure or profit. Wednesday is a productive day to talk it out, make plans, and LEO accomplish the objective. -

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16 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT JULY 13 – 20 / 2017

FOLK FEST

More than a gorgeous roots record, Free-

BY M IKE US IN G ER

dom Highway by Rhiannon Giddens also doubles as a history lesson, the singer delving into an American past that has had more than its share of inexcusable atrocities. Over the course of 12 emotional tracks, the Greensboro, North Carolina–raised multiinstrumentalist goes deep as a storyteller, spinning tales that speak volumes about how far the United States has come as a civilized country, and, just as importantly, how far it still has to go. Take, for example, “At the Purchaser’s Option”, a haunting piece of skeletal Americana that has its roots in a 19th-century newspaper ad that read “For sale, a remarkable smart Negro wench, about 22 years of age; used to both house work and farming.” The ad came with the footnote that the woman had a nine-month-old that could be sold “at the purchaser’s option”. A soaring gospel-tinted cover of “Birmingham Sunday”, which was recorded by Joan Baez, revisits the 1963 Ku Klux Klan bombing of an Alabama church. The funk-powered “Better Get It Right This Time”—complete with a hip-hop breakdown— zeroes in on the alarming number of black Americans who continue to be brutalized by police. Reached on her cell in Portland, where’s she conducting violin workshops for kids who include her young daughter, Giddens says she’d like to report that most Americans have some basic knowledge of the various events chronicled on Freedom Highway.

The struggle is still real

Just because she plays the banjo, that does not mean Rhiannon Giddens will honour your screeched-out requests that she play “Oh! Susanna”.

those who aren’t part of the white establishment. “It’s not a great vibe right now,” Giddens says with a sigh. “We’ve always On Freedom Highway, Rhiannon Giddens finds an had racial issues, and we’ve uplifting way to shine a light on America’s dark past always had social issues. That, however, is anything but the case, especially But the tone and how people are talking about these when it comes to the days slavery was part of the fab- things is really difficult right now. There’s a lot of ric of the United States. negativity and blind following, but there’s not a lot “I wish these things were taught in school, but our of critical thinking.” history is taught so badly,” she says. “If you’re lucky, For a primer on how far back those issues go, it’s like, ‘There’s a picture of a slave ship. It was ter- one need only consult Freedom Highway’s “Julie”, rible. And now, moving on…’ My memories of what which has Giddens singing over sepia-toned fiddle I learned in school are really weak. So everything and muted banjo. One of the most powerful mothat I pull on now has been learned as an adult; I’ve ments on an album with no shortage of them, the done a lot of reading to educate myself about this track deals with the often complicated relationship time period. There’s a lot of really great scholarship that enslaved black Americans had with their white coming out now that’s contextualizing things cor- owners. Set during the Civil War, with Union solrectly and looking at the picture the way it should be diers arriving on the horizon, the song opens with a looked at. So I feel like we’re really lucky right now. Confederate wife pleading for her house servant to There’s no excuse not to learn about our history. It’s stay: “Julie, oh Julie, don’t leave here/Leave us who like, ‘Put the phone down and pick up a book and love you, and all you hold dear.” It ends with the lines read it.’ If it takes you three weeks or a month, then “Mistress, oh mistress, I wish you well/But in leavin’ whatever, because the more you read, the more you’ll here, I’m leavin’ hell.” “Reading primary source material—things in be like, ‘Holy crap—this is really big stuff.’ ” It would have been easy for Giddens to play it the voices of the people who lived them—is really imsafe by avoiding the political; while activism is em- portant,” Giddens says. “That’s when you start to get braced at socially conscious events like the Van- the nuances of what it was like for both sides. There’s couver Folk Music Festival, it can restrict one’s a huge power differential between Julie and her misaudience on a mainstream level. And Giddens has tress, but to understand the whole system you have to definitely crossed over into that mainstream. Clas- understand the mistress’s side as well. Because then sically trained as an opera singer, she first surfaced that helps you understand what happens after Reconas a dedicated interpreter of old-timey music with struction, what happens after emancipation. “There’s this belief that northerners wanted the the Grammy-winning Carolina Chocolate Drops. In 2013 she made overnight friends with some slaves freed and were happy to live amongst them,” heavy hitters (Patti Smith, Jack White, and Mar- she continues. “That just wasn’t true. The prevailcus Mumford), thanks to two standing ovations at ing antiblack attitude everywhere was enormously Manhattan’s Another Day, Another Time: Inside strong. So you have people in the North going, ‘Yeah, Llewyn Davis, a concert celebrating the Coen broth- slavery’s wrong, but let’s send them back to Africa ers’ film Inside Llewyn Davis. In the months that fol- because we really don’t like them and we don’t want lowed, she’d perform at the White House for Barack to live with them.’ When you realize how strong that Obama alongside Aretha Franklin and Lyle Lovett, was right from the beginning, it becomes a huge part record with the likes of Elvis Costello and My Mor- of the system today. When you have racially based ning Jacket’s Jim James, and release a cover-oriented slavery, buried in that is dehumanization and a hatred of the race you enslave. It goes hand in hand.” debut album, Tomorrow Is My Turn. For all of Freedom Highway’s importance But through all these rarefied encounters with celebrities, she never lost sight of the fact that with as a protest record, Giddens’s most impressive knowledge comes compassion. And compassion is achievement is that the album is also unmistaksomething that the United States needs, now that ably uplifting. Sometimes that’s simply because Trump’s America is almost proudly intolerant of she goes the lighthearted route. The 40-year-old

sets up in the French Quarter—complete with Preservation Hall trumpet—for the swooning Dixieland-jazz love letter “Hey Bébé” and inspirationally suggests that there’s always a better world to escape to with the melancholy acoustic ballad “We Could Fly”. But even when things get heavy, the songs on Freedom Highway have a strength and dignity that suggests, no matter how bad things get, one doesn’t give up the struggle. That spirit bleeds through the banjo-driven, sepia-toned death march “Come Love Come”, with its lyrics “When I was four, my loving mam/Was cornered by the boss’s man/She turned her head and got struck down/They buried her in the cold cold ground.” And it’s there in the album’s closer, a spirited soul cover of the Staple Singers’ “Freedom Highway”. Released in 1965, the song contains the lines “The whole world is wonderin’/ What’s wrong with the United States.” Sadly, that question is just as relevant today, despite the decades that America has had to get things right. As extreme as the story laid out in “At the Purchaser’s Option” may be, there are modern parallels. “I remembered working on a cruise ship performing with a band and having my baby with me,” she says. “All these young girls were working on the ship—cleaning and serving the food—and they were all loving my baby. I started talking to them, and they were like, ‘I had to leave my six-month-old with my mother. I’ll be off-season in four months.’ They were having to work to support their families. So, in some way or shape or form, that sort of stuff is still going on today.” And that’s why the struggle to make the world a better place has to continue. Giddens is doing her part to not only educate but also encourage discourse in a way that’s constructive. The message is clear: even in the darkest of times, there’s always hope. “You can’t live without it,” Giddens says. “If you look at the African-American community, that’s how we’ve gotten through. There’s a sheer joy at finding the light under adverse circumstances. If you can’t find that, then you might as well give up. It’s important to always remember that. You don’t survive by lying down and curling up—that’s when you die. You couldn’t do it back then and you can’t do it now. The world can be a beautiful place, but you’ve got to keep strong.” Rhiannon Giddens plays the Vancouver Folk Music Festival Main Stage on Friday (July 14).

☞

ESSAM’S SONGS ARE BEACO NS O F HO P E >>> Think music doesn’t matter?

2 Ramy Essam is here to tell

Remember when Ramy Essam was Khal Drogo on Game of Thrones?

you otherwise. He’s been arrested, tortured, and exiled from his native Egypt for writing songs that are critical of the government— both the now deposed Islamists of the Muslim Brotherhood and Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s military kleptocrats—but the knowledge that he’s made a difference is what keeps him going. In Egypt, he explains, underground music remains a vital source of encouragement and information for those fighting a brutal regime. With the mass media heavily censored, songs such as his Arab Spring anthem

“Irhal” serve as beacons of hope for those who know there is a better way to live. “Because the education sucks and it’s full of lies, and we don’t get right information from our parents or from the government or from the teachers, art is the only way to get the truth—and to open the hearts of the people who used to be silent all the time,” Essam explains, on the line from a day off in Halifax. “That’s why it’s extremely important in our world—and it works.” It works slowly, he admits. In Egypt, his informants tell him, “the shit is increasing, but we’re also increasing the good.” The first generation of

Egyptians to have grown up with social media is now coming to the fore, and it’s not going to stand for the repressive policies of the past. Today, Essam is feeling hopeful; he’s even looking forward to returning to Egypt to catch up on the new developments. But he’s also grateful for his new life in Scandinavia; there have been lonely times, but these have allowed him to hone his blend of poetic lyrics in Arabic, gutsy Middle Eastern oud, and bonecrushing, Rage Against the Machine–inspired rock. Some of his newer songs remain explicitly political. “Ya Askary”, for instance, is a direct address to

the Egyptian military, asking its enlisted men to see that their struggles are also those of the general population. Others, like the one he’s just finished, are more general in their import. “Wahdah”, based on a poem by the Palestinian literary icon Mahmoud Darwish, refers specifically to the solitary denizens of Arab-world coffee shops, but it’s just as applicable to any alienated laptop wielder on the Drive. “People are fucked-up and sad, but Darwish turns it on its head,” Essam says. “He saw this person from another angle. He’s saying, ‘Hey, the forgotten person, sitting alone all the time in the coffee see page 20

JULY 13 – 20 / 2017 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT 17

THE WORLD IS HERE! JULY 13.14.15.16 JERICHO BEACH PARK

Barenaked Ladies

Cold Specks

La Santa Cecilia

Nive and the Deer Children

Bahamas

Jim Kweskin and Meredith Axelrod

OPENS TONIGHT!

ALL WEEKEND! OVER 65 ACTS FROM 20+ COUNTRIES ON 7 SUMMER BEACHFRONT STAGES

CANADA FAR & WIDE : GRANDS ESPRITS

THURSDAY, JULY 13 7:00PM MAIN STAGE, JERICHO BEACH PARK FREE CONCERT CELEBRATING VFMF #40 AND CANADA 150!

Come celebrate the songs of Canada’s most revered composers: Joni Mitchell, Stan Rogers, Leonard Cohen and many others - performed by some of this country’s most talented singers and musicians! Hear C.R. Avery, Jim Byrnes, Cold Specks, Cris Derksen, The Funk Hunters, Katie Moore, Mélisande [électrotrad], Leonard Podolak, and Women in the Round – with Paul Pigat and his band. as they make each song their own. Become part of the concert and sing along with Choir! Choir! Choir!

From tradition-bearers to daring innovators, global sounds, outspoken voices, ancient rhythms to cool new grooves - this is your Vancouver Folk Music Festival. Come hear music with something to say. Music for every folk. SIX DAYTIME STAGES See artists in concert and sharing stages in “workshops” - unique, one-time-only, you-have-to-be-there sessions. Kathleen Edwards ON SITE ATTRACTIONS New! GALLERY 40 takes a fond look back at 40 years. LITTLE FOLKS VILLAGE has fun activities, parades & performances. FRANCOPHONE JAM TENT invites you to come join in the jam! COMMUNITY VILLAGE folks working to make the world a better place.

EVENING MAIN STAGES FRIDAY

First Nations Welcome Cold Specks Blick Bassy John K Sampson & The Winter Wheat 8:40 Rhiannon Giddens 9:55 Billy Bragg & Joe Henry 4:50 5:05 6:15 7:25

TOP 5 REASONS TO COME TO THE FESTIVAL THIS WEEKEND 1 IT’S A WHOLE WORLD OF MUSIC IN YOUR OWN BACKYARD 2 70+ CONCERTS & 50 UNIQUE WORKSHOPS COMPLET OCEAN E WITH VIEW 3 WORDS: LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION 4 ACCESSIBLE BY BIKE, FOOT, OR TRANSIT – IT’S EASY! 5 35+ DELECTABLE FOOD BOOTHS / 200+ ARTISAN MARKET & FOLK BAZAAR VENDORS

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

5:00 Blind Pilot

5:30 Sidestepper

6:10 Aoife O’Donovan

6:45 Shawn Colvin

& Noam Pikelny 7:25 Mbongwana Star 8:40 Kathleen Edwards 9:55 Barenaked Ladies

EVENING CONCERT STAGES

Eilen Jewell

Billy Bragg & Joe Henry

Rhiannon Giddens

Mbongwana Star

8:05 Bahamas 9:25 The Revivalists 40th Festival Finale led by Ferron and Roy Forbes

STAGE 3 at SUNDOWN

5:30 C.R. Avery 6:45 Ganga Giri 8:00 The Funk Hunters

6:10 La Santa Cecilia 7:25 Marlon Williams & the Yarra Benders 8:40 Alpha Yaya Diallo & Baﬁng

5:50 Hillsburn 7:10 Jonah Blacksmith 8:30 Emmanuel Jal

STAGE 5 at TWILIGHT

5:20-6:15 Ellika Solo Rafael 6:35-7:35 Wesli

5:10 Ramy Essam 6:20 ILAM 7:30 True Blues: Corey Harris & Alvin Youngblood Hart 8:45 Delgres

5:00 Katie Moore & Andrew Horton 6:10 Leif Vollebekk 7:20 Belle Game 8:30 Andy Shauf

schedule subject to change

Marlon Williams & The Yarra Benders

The Revivalists

TICKETS ONLINE AND AT THE GATE • DAY, EVENING & WEEKEND TICKETS AVAILABLE

THEFESTIVAL.BC.CA

check website for ticket outlets

Site Box Office Hours

Gates Open

Thursday: 5:30pm – 9pm Friday: 12pm – 10pm Saturday: & Sunday 9am – 10pm

Thursday: 6pm – 10pm Friday: 1pm – 10:00pm Saturday & Sunday: 9am – 9:30pm

Music Runs

Thursday: 7:00pm – 10pm Friday: 2pm – 11pm Saturday & Sunday: 10am – 11pm

EVENING TICKETS $55

SATURDAY & SUNDAY Online Now and at the Gate

Ferron 18 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT JULY 13 – 20 / 2017

John K Sampson & The Winter Wheat

Shawn Colvin

Si Kahn

Grace Petrie

Blick Bassy

JULY 13 – 20 / 2017 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT 19

THE WORLD IS HERE! JULY 13.14.15.16 JERICHO BEACH PARK

Barenaked Ladies

Cold Specks

La Santa Cecilia

Nive and the Deer Children

Bahamas

Jim Kweskin and Meredith Axelrod

OPENS TONIGHT!

ALL WEEKEND! OVER 65 ACTS FROM 20+ COUNTRIES ON 7 SUMMER BEACHFRONT STAGES

CANADA FAR & WIDE : GRANDS ESPRITS

THURSDAY, JULY 13 7:00PM MAIN STAGE, JERICHO BEACH PARK FREE CONCERT CELEBRATING VFMF #40 AND CANADA 150!

EVENING MAIN STAGES FRIDAY

First Nations Welcome Cold Specks Blick Bassy John K Sampson & The Winter Wheat 8:40 Rhiannon Giddens 9:55 Billy Bragg & Joe Henry 4:50 5:05 6:15 7:25

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

5:00 Blind Pilot

5:30 Sidestepper

6:10 Aoife O’Donovan

6:45 Shawn Colvin

& Noam Pikelny 7:25 Mbongwana Star 8:40 Kathleen Edwards 9:55 Barenaked Ladies

EVENING CONCERT STAGES

Eilen Jewell

Billy Bragg & Joe Henry

Rhiannon Giddens

Mbongwana Star

8:05 Bahamas 9:25 The Revivalists 40th Festival Finale led by Ferron and Roy Forbes

STAGE 3 at SUNDOWN

5:30 C.R. Avery 6:45 Ganga Giri 8:00 The Funk Hunters

6:10 La Santa Cecilia 7:25 Marlon Williams & the Yarra Benders 8:40 Alpha Yaya Diallo & Baﬁng

5:50 Hillsburn 7:10 Jonah Blacksmith 8:30 Emmanuel Jal

STAGE 5 at TWILIGHT

5:20-6:15 Ellika Solo Rafael 6:35-7:35 Wesli

5:10 Ramy Essam 6:20 ILAM 7:30 True Blues: Corey Harris & Alvin Youngblood Hart 8:45 Delgres

5:00 Katie Moore & Andrew Horton 6:10 Leif Vollebekk 7:20 Belle Game 8:30 Andy Shauf

schedule subject to change

Marlon Williams & The Yarra Benders

The Revivalists

TICKETS ONLINE AND AT THE GATE • DAY, EVENING & WEEKEND TICKETS AVAILABLE

THEFESTIVAL.BC.CA

check website for ticket outlets

Site Box Office Hours

Gates Open

Thursday: 5:30pm – 9pm Friday: 12pm – 10pm Saturday: & Sunday 9am – 10pm

Thursday: 6pm – 10pm Friday: 1pm – 10:00pm Saturday & Sunday: 9am – 9:30pm

Music Runs

Thursday: 7:00pm – 10pm Friday: 2pm – 11pm Saturday & Sunday: 10am – 11pm

EVENING TICKETS $55

SATURDAY & SUNDAY Online Now and at the Gate

Ferron 18 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT JULY 13 – 20 / 2017

John K Sampson & The Winter Wheat

Shawn Colvin

Si Kahn

Grace Petrie

Blick Bassy

JULY 13 – 20 / 2017 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT 19

houses. So where’s all that water from page 17 going to go?” For now, Bragg can’t answer that shop? Lucky you. No one notices question—but when an answer you. No one sees you. You are the comes, he’ll sing about that, too. > ALEXANDER VARTY only free person in this world.’ ” It’s not lost on Essam that Darwish’s poem speaks to his own con- Billy Bragg and Joe Henry play the Vancouver Folk Music Festival Main dition of exile. “Part of my optimism is that I’m a Stage on Friday (July 14). human being that’s lost my fear,” he says, “and I’ve seen so many people who’ve also lost their fear. We can lose this fucking feeling and love each other and keep going—and I’ve On his third release, Akö, Blick changed so much that I believe other Bassy audaciously entwines people can change.” > ALEXANDER VARTY musical traditions from three continents, and several cultures. The West Ramy Essam plays the Vancouver African singer and songwriter—who Folk Music Festival’s Stage 5 at Twi- plays guitar, banjo, and harmonica— light on Saturday (July 15). draws on influences from rural Cameroon, where he grew up; France, where he’s lived for many years; and the Delta blues of Skip James, an early inspiration. Arrangements for the 11 original songs are spare yet sophisA book, Roots, Radicals and ticated, with no percussion and only Rockers, about the rise of Brit- cello and trombone as accompaniain’s original rebel music, skiffle. An ment—two instruments rarely heard album of train songs, Shine a Light, in blues or African roots music. recorded in sleeping compartments “I was looking for a project where and empty railroad stations. And a the main information came from my series of modern-day broadside bal- voice and one or two other instrulads, to be released digitally as they’re ments,” says Bassy, reached on tour written. One of these is not like the in New York. “I love the cello, and I others, which makes attempting wanted something that sounded like to devise a Unified Bragg Theory a a train—because when I was a kid in daunting, if not impossible, task. the village the train was something “You can only choose two of those special. When you heard the whistle three,” the very busy Billy Bragg cau- blow, all kinds of people would go to tions, on the line from his home in the station. It was an event. I used to Dorset, on England’s south coast. sell doughnuts, calling out ‘Makala! So let’s start with the two that ap- Makala!’ I was looking for this train pear to be concerned more with the sound, which brought me back to this past than the present. Shine a Light, special scene that was an important a joint project with American pro- part of our lives then—waiting for the ducer and songwriter Joe Henry that train, for news, people, interactions.” the two will present at the Vancouver Variety and contrast characterize Folk Music Festival this weekend, the tracks of Akö. The opener, “Aké”, grew out of Bragg’s research into in a minor key, creates a haunting, skiffle, the ’50s DIY craze that even- introspective mood, followed by tually gave birth to the Beatles. the brighter, folksy “Kiki”, which in “When I was writing the skiff le turn leads to the contemporary Afribook, I was starting to become can rhythms of “Wap Do Wap”. The aware of the number of American uptempo, fingerpicked “Moût” has railroad songs that were involved,” clear links to James and the blues. Bragg explains. “All the big hits “When I was a child there was were train songs.…and it struck an old man who toured the villame that they’re often metaphorical, ges with just a guitar. The first time the American railroad songs. If you I heard him singing Skip James think of ‘Folsom Prison [Blues]’, it’s songs I thought he was singing in not really a prison song, it’s a train an African language. I am from song. It’s not the prison bars that the Bantu people, and Skip James’s make Johnny [Cash] feel like he’s music sounded like Bantu music lost his freedom; it’s hearing the and really talked to me. So when I train whistle.” eventually heard him singing on reBragg goes on to make other cordings I thought it sounded like connections. An album of railroad the old man. It immediately took songs might seem purely nostalgic, me back. Skip James for me is the but it’s both a comment on the rot meaning of the blues.” that has infected American infraExcept for a few words of Engstructure and a prescription for lish and French, on Akö Bassy sings how that could be reversed. High- exclusively in his mother tongue, speed trains, for instance, could Bassa—which now has only some put thousands to work building 300,000 speakers. By choosing it, he’s a faster, greener alternative to air sending a message to young people travel between major cities, Bragg in his homeland. says. And the youth-culture sounds “Within a language you have of skiff le, he contends, were the so- your roots, your culture, and I cial precursor of grime, Britain’s think and dream in Bassa. We have gritty urban dance music, whose 260 languages in Cameroon, but proponents came out en masse to the official ones are French and vote for Jeremy Corbyn in the re- English. Today the new generation cent U.K. election. don’t understand their own lanSo there’s the link to the musical guage—they want to speak French, news bulletins that Bragg has just and to be like westerners. In the begun releasing: like skiffle, punk, next 30 years most of these lanand grime, Bragg’s gritty, electri- guages will disappear if they are fied folk music is about seizing the not taught. That’s why it’s importmeans of production in order to ant to me to be ringing a bell to say make urgent statements about now. to my government and my people “The Sleep of Reason”, a caus- that we have to do something about tic look at Brexit and Trump, was it. My message is really about the released on the morning of our transmission of culture between interview, and Bragg’s already got the generations.” > TONY MONTAGUE the follow-up, “King Tide and the Sunny Day Flood”, ready to go. “It’s about an issue that wasn’t even Blick Bassy plays the Vancouver Folk spoken about during our election: Music Festival Main Stage on Friday the rising of the ocean, and the fact (July 14). that we can’t resolve that by recycling plastic bottles,” he explains. “In Florida, they have a thing now called a sunny-day f lood: the weather’s fine, but water comes up Some people hang it up when from under the ground, not just they turn 65, but Ferron has because of the melting icecaps, but the expansion when it’s hot. What never been one to abide by convention. they’ve done to deal with this prob- A certified pensioner as of June, the lem of rising water is they’ve raised singer-songwriter and LGBT icon could the road by a metre—but not the easily be forgiven for just wanting to

Ramy Essam

Bissy gives African roots music a case of the blues

Bragg’s nostalgia trips connect past and future

Ferron’s still trying to make the world a better place

20 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT JULY 13 – 20 / 2017

take it easy on beautiful Saturna Island. Instead, she’s returning to the stage. And it’s a big stage, too, at least in terms of her upcoming Vancouver Folk Music Festival appearance. Ferron and another local folk veteran, Roy Forbes, will close the Jericho Beach Park event on Sunday night, a fitting honour for two musicians who have been friends of the festival from day one. It’s not that Ferron’s been entirely absent from the festival, or from music. The songwriter, who is of mixed French-Canadian and First Nations heritage, took part in the opening ceremonies of the 2014 event, singing with a group of Indigenous elders. She’s also continued to release records, with her 15th, Lighten-ing, coming out in 2013. But her public appearances have been few. “It’s been a big hiatus,” she says, taking a break in Gulfport, Florida, between folk-festival appearances. “You know, I have to deal with arthritis in my hands now, so that slowed things down for a while—but I’m coming there with a band. It can be very demanding when I’m all by myself.” The impetus for her return was an invitation to play Song for All Beings, a multimedia celebration of music and activism held annually in Marin County, California. “It’s very healing,” Ferron says. “There’s a choir that sings the same thing for about two hours, and you can sing along with them. And then one by one, artists would come out and contribute a song; I did a spokenword piece, ‘It Won’t Take Long’. And then out of that, since most of my band was there, we decided that we’d try to grab a show at the Freight [legendary Berkeley folk club Freight & Salvage]. So we went and did a show at the Freight, at the end of February, and it was received just so wonderfully. The next thing you know, I have an agent again and I’m starting to be booked for shows. So it’s like, ‘Oh, I thought this was over. I guess it’s going again!’ ” YouTube footage of the Freight & Salvage concert shows an animated Ferron fronting an all-star cast of Bay Area musicians. Ferron’s songwriting tends to be about finding one’s place in an often hostile world, and she’s clearly created a supportive community of players and listeners alike. And her message has not gone out-of-date. “Maybe it was naive, but when I was younger I really thought that we could change… Well, ‘the world’,” she says. “I don’t know anymore what that means, but we all thought things could change through music and through the heart. My trust was in what the heart says, so I was writing songs to that end, and trying to learn how to be a better being—how to analyze my own stuff and make sense of it on kind of a harmonic level. “Sometimes people think I’m singing about love, but really I’m singing about the cosmos,” she adds. “But wherever you can grab it is where you grab it.” > ALEXANDER VARTY

Ferron and her All Star Band play the Vancouver Folk Music Festival Main Stage on Sunday (July 16).

Williams gets personal with heartbreak tunes That voice! Those lucky enough catch Marlon Williams’s Vancouver Folk Music Festival debut in 2015 couldn’t stop talking about it. There was something weirdly retro about the unbelievably young-looking New Zealander’s vocal timbre, as if Roy Orbison and Elvis Presley had been spliced together in Phil Spector’s lab and given a mildly androgynous makeover. Something deliciously out of time and place, too, an odd but beguiling combination of old-school Italian crooning and traditional Maori music. Sharing a daytime workshop stage with folk veterans Richard Thompson and Mary Gauthier, Williams won a standing ovation with the very first song he sang, and a palpable buzz followed him around the festival grounds for the remainder of the event. Although known mostly as an

2 to

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interpreter of old-school American country music, the 26-year-old singer is in the middle of a radical stylistic change. He’s now playing piano and working with a band, rather than accompanying himself on guitar. He’s just finished an as-yet-unreleased album on which he explores sampled beats. He’s writing his own nakedly autobiographical tunes. And, best of all, he sounds entirely happy with this development, even if it was sparked by that most unfortunate of events—a breakup. “It was that classic thing of being left to try and make sense of it all, and that came through music, for me,” Williams says, in a telephone conversation from Berlin. The shift is even more remarkable in that, while Williams had written songs before, they were always framed up as character studies, a gambit that allowed the singer to approach his material from a safe distance. “I have so many singer-songwriter friends who pour their hearts out into their music, and that puts you in a certain place, psychologically, that I was always a little bit afraid of confronting,” he explains. “But I went through some personal life changes, and then all of a sudden in the space of a couple months I had 16 brand-new songs that were all about me and what was going on in my life.” Williams admits that he’s “nervous and excited” about performing this new batch of songs, but he’s also eager to truly be himself on-stage. Before now, he says, he was as much of an actor as a singer, but now it’s his own heart that’s on the line. “Singing is a subtle craft, and I think I managed to make it seem personal,” he notes. “But it came out feeling a little bit cold, like I’d cheated my audience in a way. Of course, when I performed those songs I felt them, and I connected with them, but I was always able to hide behind myself as a performer. I felt pretty crafty and devilish—but now I feel like I’m at least being a little bit honest!”

Marlon Williams knows you can’t be a millennial folkie without a cool hat.

O’Donovan and Pikelny set to make their duo debut

guitarist Julian Lage, along with the neo-bluegrass virtuosos in Punch Brothers. And it’s not that she’s going to be Garrison Keillor’s musical guest on the Prairie Home Companion host’s fall speaking tour. So we’ll just have to wait and see; perhaps she’ll announce it from the Vancouver Folk Music Festival main stage this weekend. Which is exciting enough in itself, as it’s the public debut of her duo with Punch Brothers banjo player Noam Pikelny. The two have a long history of collaboration, thanks in part to an inadvertent push from the Boss. “We first played together in 2006, when he filled in for Greg Liszt, who was the banjo player for [her band] Crooked Still. Greg was on tour with Bruce Springsteen, so Noam came to Ireland and subbed for him, and then he came to California. In the end we became very close friends and musical collaborators, and that relationship has continued over the years. I got to sing on Noam’s second solo album, Beat the Devil and Carry a Rail, and most recently I got to go to Nashville and Knoxville and sing with Punch Brothers, filling in for Gabe Witcher, who had a new baby being born.” O’Donovan and Pikelny have also toured with their own quartet, so it shouldn’t be that big of a deal to make their duo debut in front of 15,000 folk-music fans. Especially, as the singer notes, when they already have a sizable shared repertoire of tunes both traditional and modern. “We’ll do a song called ‘Fish and Bird’, probably, which we recorded on Noam’s album; it’s a Tom Waits song,” O’Donovan says. “And of course we’ll do a couple of traditional songs, because that’s definitely where we both come from, first and foremost—the American tradition of bluegrass and old-time music.”

ONE LOVE WESTCOAST AUGUST 11-12-13 SWANGARD STADIUM RICKSHAW THEATRE REE

Afro - Latin - Reggae

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Mexico - Portland - Ottawa - Winnipeg - Vancouver

Other than that a tardy shuttle has left her stranded, things are going well for Aoife O’Donovan. Yes, she’d rather be conducting this interview from the air-conditioned comfort of her hotel room, but she’s happy enough to be in Manitoba, where she’s just led a Winnipeg Folk Festival workshop with a gaggle of talented young musicians. And things, she contends, are only going to get better—even if she’s not quite ready to spill all the beans. “I have some really exciting news that’s coming later this week,” O’Donovan says coyly, “so you’ll just have to stay tuned to social media.” The 34-year-old musician lets slip that the big announcement has to do with roots supergroup I’m With Her, in which she plays guitar and sings alongside fiddler Sara Watkins and multi-instrumentalist Sarah Jarosz. It’s not that the three > ALEXANDER VARTY will be hitting the road later this > ALEXANDER VARTY month—that’s public knowledge— Marlon Williams plays the Vancouver although she’s excited that on the Aoife O’Donovan and Noam Pikelny Folk Music Festival’s Stage 3 at Sun- American Acoustic tour they’ll be play the Vancouver Folk Music Festidown on Saturday (July 15). joined by the extraordinary jazz val Main Stage on Saturday (July 15).

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JULY 15th

DRAKE WHITE & THE BIG FIRE

THE DUNGAREES THE CHRIS BUCK BAND

KRISTIN BUNYAN

SYKAMORE

DREW GREGORY

The Georgia Straight Confessions, an outlet for submitting revelations about your private lives—or for the voyeurs among us who want to read what other people have disclosed.

Scan to confess To my friend Moping time’s over. There are people in the world with worse problems than you. Now take off that diaper, put some clean clothes on and get outside. Go for a jog or a bike ride. Do some volunteering like help the homeless. See a movie that you like, or call someone to tell them that you love them. Go take a few courses or something. Help yourself.

Proximity! I just realized all my friends, lovers, and work are because of proximity. If I lived in another part of the world I would have a different job, friends, and lovers. Strange.

THU JULY 13 FRI JULY 14 SAT JULY 15 TUE JULY 18

Just do it Finally gave my crush my phone number. Now it’s been the most exciting week of my life!

July July July July

Remember When It wasn’t that long ago that people in Vancouver would rent whole houses just to grow weed in. How things have changed.

Mr. Boom Bap presents

Mississippi Live jimmy “duck” holmes +& the Dirty Dirty The Railway Stage Presents

Los Duendes

Lust for Life presents

The Psychic Alliance + Melted Mirror Jokes - Hosted by Gavin Matts & Dino Archie

Myles Anderson 20 21 22 25

Boogie Nights w. THE NEW GROOVEMENT The Railway Stage w. FLOW N' MOTION Lust for Life w. JP MAURICE & guests Jokes w. KEVIN BANNER

Fond Memories The smell of fresh plywood reminds me of stealing wood to build skateboard ramps from housing developments in the burbs when we were kids.

Unbelievable I got told to “go do some yoga” after telling off the cyclist riding on the sidewalk BESIDE the bike lane.

Visit

to post a Confession

@RailwaySBC

579 Dunsmuir St

JULY 13 – 20 / 2017 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT 21

MUSIC

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The men of Algiers are the proud owners of an impressive collection of Reader’s Digest Condensed Books.

Algiers powers through grief > B Y M IK E U S ING E R

trangely, considering they’ve made one of the great triumphs of 2017, the members of Algiers weren’t sure how the world would react to their sophomore album, The Underside of Power. Part of that was the way that the album—a thrilling blend of dark-alley soul, experimental punk, and grimy electro—was recorded. Algiers toured heavily for its eponymous 2015 debut, making writing on the road challenging. Things didn’t get any easier once the touring cycle was over and it was time to start thinking about a follow-up. The band’s founding members—singer Franklin James Fisher, bassist Ryan Mahan, and guitarist Lee Tesche—ended up scattered across the globe. There were day jobs to return to, making time tight. Instead of building songs layer by layer as on the excellent Algiers, Fisher and Mahan came in with individual parts, some of which were utilized, some of which were rejected, and some of which were reshaped. Sessions with new drummer Matt Tong would take place in numerous studios on both sides of the Atlantic. “As I’m sure you’ve read, it was kind of an arduous record to do,” the Atlanta-raised Mahan says, on the line from his adopted hometown of London, England. “We took a slightly different approach with this album, and we really felt that when we went into the studio. We were probably underprepared. I know that Franklin had to write a lot of the lyrics in the studio, on the spot. And the time constraints where he had to get something done quickly also made things challenging.” A lot of different subjects come up during an hourlong chat with the bassist, including, but not limited to: the inspirational work ethic of DIY pioneers Fugazi; the impact of political hardcore acts such as Millions of Dead Cops; revolutionaries ranging from Che Guevara to Eleanor Kasrils; and the difference in how immigrants are treated and assimilated in different cultures. What surfaces again and again is that Mahan and his bandmates are appalled by what’s been happening in the United States. That’s perhaps to be expected based on The Underside of Power. Things open with “Walk Like a Panther”, an overdistorted shot of ghostly soul that kicks off with a speech snippet from Chicago Black Panther Fred Hampton and then crashes right into Fisher wailing “We won’t be led to slaughter/This is self-genocide.” What follows is songs that suggest that all is not lost, Algiers plays the Cobalt on Thursday (July 13). Jul 14, 10 am, $22 (plus service charges and fees) at Red Cat, Zulu Records, and www.ticketweb.ca/.

SUMMERTINGS 2017 - JULY 15

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PLAYING 45’S ON VANCOUVER’S BEST WATERFRONT PATIO SUNDAY

VANCOUVER ADAPTED MUSIC SOCIETY PRESENTS

THORA ROGERS AND SILVER LININGS & DIGGER DAN AND THE DIRT BRIGADE DOORS 6PM SHOW 7PM WEDNESDAY DRINK SPECIALS, RED STRIPE!!

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22 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT JULY 13 – 20 / 2017

DEADMAU5 Canadian electronica artist, DJ, and record producer performs on his lots of shows in a row: pt 2 tour. Oct 24, doors 8 pm, show 9 pm, Pacific Coliseum (Hastings Park, 100 N. Renfrew). Tix on sale Jul 13, 10 am, $80/45.85 (plus service charges and fees) at www.livenation.com/. TREVOR HALL American folk-roots singersongwriter and guitarist tours in support of upcoming release The Fruitful Darkness, with guests East Forest. Nov 11, doors 6 pm, show 7 pm, The Imperial (319 Main). Tix $20 (plus service charges and fees) at Red Cat, Highlife Records, and www.ticketweb.ca/.

CONCERTS

JAY-Z The American rapper and businessman performs on his 4:44 tour in support of latest album 4:44. Dec 11, Rogers Arena (800 Griffiths Way). Tix on sale Jul 14, 10 am, at www.livenation.com/.

JEDI MIND TRICKS Philadelphia-based underground hip-hop band tours in support of upcoming release The Bridge and the Abyss. Aug 26, doors 8 pm, show 9:30 pm, Commodore Ballroom (868 Granville). Tix $39.50 (plus service charges and fees) at www.livenation.com/.

CHARLES BRADLEY AND HIS EXTRAORDINAIRES American funk-soul singer-songwriter and his band tour in support of third studio album Changes. Dec 29, doors 8 pm, show 9 pm, Commodore Ballroom (868 Granville). Tix on sale Jul 14, 10 am, $42.50 (plus service charges and fees) at www.livenation.com/.

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despite how things look in the racially fragmented States. Consider “The Underside of Power”, which promises, over cold locust-buzz synths and metallic percussion, “Change is coming now/One day a change is gonna come.” On the synth-hazed “Cleveland”, Fisher uses his powerhouse vocals to pay poignant tribute to Americans who’ve found themselves in front of the wrong place at the wrong time. Less optimistically, there are also punk-as-fuck direct protests. (“Animals” is inspired by the crew currently holed up in the White House.) The whole package adds up to something that suggests a deep love for everyone from TV on the Radio to Sam Cooke to Wire to the Locust to John Carpenter, but not to the point where Algiers is interested in anything other than blazing a path of its own. And despite how unsure they were of having created something beautiful, when the Top 10 lists are tallied at the end of 2017, The Underside of Power will be making more than one appearance. Not that you’ll get Mahan to acknowledge that. “A friend of ours, Zachary Lipez, who writes for Noisey, interviewed us last time,” the bassist says, talking about the release of Algiers. “He wrote this actually pretty amazing piece that my mother really liked, where he went ‘I don’t understand why these guys aren’t big.’ He said that we’re too straight for the weirdos, and too weird for the straight. Because of that, he said, ‘Algiers are doomed to fail.’ He was obviously being tongue-in-cheek, but he’s right and we’re still a really interstitial band. Some hardcore music fans really get into us, but other hard-core music fans—they’ll read something written about us, and then hear something that’s underwhelming compared to the way that people have described the music.” The best one can do for those people is feel sorry for them. As for Algiers, it’s too busy doing its part to make the world a more enlightened place—which might be the best way to pay tribute to those that not only have come before them but continue to inspire them. “Franklin writes 90 percent of the lyrics, but we all talked about themes that we wanted to talk about and about putting forward a message of grief,” Mahan says. “Somebody described the record as sort of going through the stages of grief, and that’s really poignant to me. People who have been politicized go through a stage where they are very cynical and everything is shit. But people have throughout time pushed through the shit, and many of those moments in time made things better. That’s important to recognize.” -

BROCKHAMPTON Los Angeles–based hip-hop collective tours in support of debut release Saturation. Sep 27, doors 7 pm, show 8 pm, Biltmore Cabaret (2755 Prince Edward). Tix on sale Jul 14, 10 am, $20 (plus service charges and fees) at www.ticketfly.com/. LEON Swedish pop singer-songwriter tours in support of latest EP For You, with guest Wrabel. Oct 13, doors 8 pm, show 9 pm, The Imperial (319 Main). Tix on sale

2THIS WEEK VANCOUVER FOLK MUSIC FESTIVAL The Georgia Straight presents the 40th annual celebration of folk music, featuring Billy Bragg and Joe Henry, Shawn Colvin, Kathleen Edwards, Rhiannon Giddens from the Carolina Chocolate Drops, Barenaked Ladies, Mbongwana Star, Sidestepper, Nive Nielsen and the Deer People, Ramy Essam, Chouk Bwa Libète, Korrontzi, Native North America, Roy Forbes, Si Kahn,

Marlon Williams and the Yarra Benders, Emmanuel Jal, and Grace Petrie. Jul 13-16, Jericho Beach Park (3941 Point Grey Rd.). Tix $65-155, info www.thefestival.bc.ca/.

TRUCK STOP CONCERT SERIES Red Truck Brewing presents the annual summertime concert series, featuring performances by Drake White and the Big Fire, the Dungarees, the Chris Buck Band, Kristen Bunyan, and Sykamore (Jul 15), and Lee Fields and the Expressions, Vince Vaccaro, and Real Ponchos (Aug 12). Jul 15; Aug 12, Red Truck Brewery (295 E. 1st). Tix at www.truckstopconcertseries.com/. CONSTELLATIONS Music by Asianunderground artist Talvin Singh, hip-hop duo Mob Bounce, and composer, spokenword poet, and beatboxer Rup Sidhu. Part of the Indian Summer Festival. Jul 15, 9:30 pm, Vogue Theatre (918 Granville). Tix $2530, info www.indiansummerfest.ca/.

2UPCOMING HIGHLIGHTS PNE SUMMER NIGHT CONCERTS Featuring performances by Mother Mother (Aug 19), Billy Currington (Aug 20), the Pointer Sisters (Aug 22), High Valley (Aug 23), ZZ Top (Aug 24), Chicago (Aug 25), Colin James (Aug 26), Huey Lewis and the News (Aug 27), Tom Cochrane and Red Rider (Aug 29), the B-52s (Aug 30), the Doobie Brothers (Aug 31), Rick Springfield (Sep 1), the Gipsy Kings (Sep 2), and the iHeart Radio Beach Ball (Sep 3 and 4). Aug 19 to Sep 4, PNE Amphitheatre (2901 E. Hastings). Free with PNE admission (reserved seats available), info www.pne.ca/. WESTWARD MUSIC FESTIVAL Music by Gov’t Mule, Vince Staples, A Tribe Called Red, Dear Rouge, Charlotte Day Wilson,

see page 24

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or international f lavours, kind of stuff that brings to mind Vancouver has pretty much lumberjackets more than yoga got you covered: want Chi- pants. Sauce—whether it’s white or nese, Japanese, Indian, Mex- more jus-like—is celebrated. ican, Lebanese, Persian, Greek, Just as in so many restaurants in Algerian, or Moroccan for dinner? la belle province, rustic pork rillette No problem. And although food from with grainy mustard and whole-wheat France is well represented, the food of bread precedes every meal. Standout Quebec? Not so much—until now. starters include mushroom vol-auSt. Lawrence is a charming new vent—the puff pastry surrounded by spot that specializes in fare from the Mornay sauce abundant in fresh dill, land of Carnaval, tarragon, chervil, joual, and Laval. and chives—and It’s the latest steak tartare with from J-C Poirier, chèvre noir, a Gail Johnson the Saint-Jérôme– cheese that originborn chef who—along with his part- ated in Chesterville, Quebec, made of ners in the restaurant group called goat’s milk in the style of aged cheddar Kitchen Table—is behind Ask for and wrapped in black wax. Luigi, Pourhouse, Pizzeria FarThose who can’t fathom a Queina, and Joe Pizza. As was the case bec-based dinner without poutine with Ask for Luigi when it opened will find a more elegant version here. in 2014, expect to see St. Lawrence Pomme Duchesse à la Royale consists popping up on people’s lists of the of a baked potato with its flesh piped city’s best new restaurants this year. back into the skin, accompanied by Awash in deep-blue hues, the res- cheese curds and gravy. taurant occupies the former Powell For main courses, tourtière de ville Street home of Big Lou’s Butcher Shop. au cerf calls for venison, the meat Craig Stanghetta and the team at Ste. stuffed high in a neat little pie that’s Marie Art and Design nailed the cor- adorned with pastry fleur-de-lis (plus ner space’s interior, giving it refined a toothpick hoisting a mini Montdetails like subtle ceiling ornamenta- real Canadiens flag). The ballotine de tion and an exquisite stained-glass canard is a rich dish with a technical window along with rustic touches preparation. Ballotine is traditionally such as antique plates and kitchen a boned chicken, duck, or other bird items that adorn the walls. There are stuffed with forcemeat and other insome black-and-white framed photos gredients. Here, forcemeat made from of Poirier with his parents and thick, sage-seasoned duck legs surrounds old French cookbooks here and there, tender breast meat, all of it tidily giving the place a homey feel. wrapped in collard greens. The two The drinks list is almost exclu- hefty rounds rest atop a sauce made sively French, save for a handful of out of bones, then reduced with white beers and a selection of Japanese wine, orange zest, and maple syrup. whiskies that are a nod to the build- Completing the meal are braised ening’s history. Once part of Japan- dive and a traditional pommes Dautown, the former Komura grocery phine, a mix of potato purée and pâte store was forced to shut down during à choux, or pastry dough. the Second World War. (The word Rounding out the main courses Komura remains on the ground in are braised rabbit, pork chop with front of the restaurant’s door in its Oka cheese and butcher sauce, original mosaic tile, with similar lingcod, and hanger steak with estiling continuing inside.) cargots, bone marrow, and, naturOn offer are apéritifs like ellement, frites. (Small plates start Dubonnet, Noilly Prat, and French at $10; mains begin at $32.) 75 (the cocktail described as “le Tarte au sucre is a must-have vrai”, made with cognac, not gin); dessert: surrounded by cream, the French wines and ciders; and li- sugar pie is just like grand-maman queurs and spirits such as calvados, used to make, with a lattice top. Chartreuse, and Grand Marnier. Rice pudding with salted-caramel Add in the French music playing sauce, meanwhile, comes in a big in the background and the French bowl for the entire table to share. words flying about the room (all of If you manage to snag one of six the front-of-house staffers speak seats at the kitchen bar, you get the language save for one, as do a front-row seat to all the action many kitchen staff) and you may as that takes place in the tiny cooking well be sitting in a bistro in Mon- space, including the dessert station, treal or Quebec City—both cities with Poirier serving up many of the that Poirier has called home. dishes himself—ça c’est bon. Don’t be surprised to feel the need for a walk along the seawall ST. LAWRENCE 269 Powell Street; after dinner or the next day; true 604-620-3800. Open from 5:30 p.m. to its roots, this food is hearty, the to 11 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday.

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JULY 13 – 20 / 2017 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT 23

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n a recent afternoon, as a friend and I were enjoying a few drinks and bites on Chambar’s sunny patio, sommelier Kaela Augustine giddily bounded up to our table with an attractive blue-and-white-labelled bottle of wine in hand. “We just got this in,” she exclaimed as she put a couple of glasses in front of us and proceeded to pour. “It isn’t even on the list yet. It won’t go on until tomorrow, but you really need to try it!” The bottle in question was the Chambar Viognier/Roussanne 2016: a custom blend created exclusively for Chambar by the Okanagan’s acclaimed Laughing Stock Vineyards. Winemaker David Enns had the lead, with Chambar’s (allfemale) sommelier team calling the shots on the final blend. And what a blend it is. The Viognier, which makes up half of the composition, comes from the winery’s Perfect Hedge vineyard located down south in Osoyoos, while the Roussanne comes from a grower closer to the winery’s Naramata home. After both varieties were coferOkanagan’s Laughing Stock Vineyards created the custom mented via a natural wild-yeast fermentation, the grape blend Chambar Viognier/Roussanne 2016 for Chambar. skins macerated in the wine for 44 days. It’s a welcome addition to Vancouver’s food scene, and The result is a sturdy orange wine, full of peaches, apricots, lemon, and ginger, which are cradled by light although we have an embarrassment of quality Mexican tannins providing a little oomph, then with just a hint joints around town, the elevated cuisine here makes it far of grip on the finish. It’s bright and juicy enough to hit from redundant. Think starters like grilled cactus with seafood well, yet it definitely carries enough weight to halloumi cheese, avocado, and salsa verde, and mains stand up to grilled meats and game. In fact, as I perused like Little Neck clams in red rice with green almond the menu I was hard-pressed to see anything the wine sauce, charred avocado, broccolini, and mizuna greens. Now, the wine program for such a place needs to be wouldn’t take a shine to. It easily complemented the spiced-nuts and charcu- pretty inspired and spot-on to properly echo the disterie board we had on the table, but I can totally see it tinctiveness and authenticity of the food. I’m happy to as a worthy accompaniment to chef Nico Schuermans’s report that Gomez and Tellez can consider this mission accomplished. The compact list coquilles St. Jacques, a dish involvstarts out with a handsome quintet of ing seared bacon-wrapped scallops, sparklers, featuring modern classics Puy-lentil-and-sage salad, pickled like Spain’s Parés Baltà NV Organic beets, and maple Dijon. My next Kurtis Kolt Cava Brut ($10.50 per glass, $45 per visit, though, I’m looking forward to a glass of the stuff with their canard et gnocchi: spice- bottle), then moves to geekier selections like C & P Brerubbed duck breast, gnocchi, goat cheese, celery-and- ton Vouvray “La Dilettante” Sec 2015 ($72 per bottle), a Loire Valley fizz made from Chenin Blanc and teeming apple salad, hazelnuts, and bigarade sauce. Even on its own, the wine stands tall, with plenty of with Honeycrisp apples, lemonade, and brioche. Venturing onward through the list, we have local character to swirl, sniff, sip, and ponder. Sooner than later, head to Chambar (568 Beatty Street) and check it out for gems like Lock & Worth Sauvignon Blanc Sémillon yourself, whether by the glass ($14) or by the bottle ($68). 2016 ($9.75 per glass, $46 per bottle), zippy with limes, A few days after that experience, I found myself up at yellow grapefruit, and a handful of minerals, as well the bar at Yaletown’s new contemporary Mexican hot spot, as Eric Texier’s St-Julien en St-Alban Syrah 2014 ($65), Fayuca (1009 Hamilton Street). Again, I had quite an im- a natural wonder of blackberries, white pepper, lavenpressive wine experience, but for those who missed the der, and fresh herbs from the Rhone. The list doesn’t even hit the 30-selection mark, but it Straight’s springtime coverage of the opening, a little about the restaurant first. The culinary focus here is on northern still took me a ridiculous amount of time to decide on Mexico’s Pacific coast, with indigenous elements integral to a wine to go with dinner. It was a kid-in-a-candy-store many dishes, along with British Columbia’s bounty of in- scenario, for sure. Frankly, I could have closed my eyes gredients, from organic, seasonal vegetables to sustainable and pointed anywhere on the page and I would have seafood. The venture is a collaboration between Ernesto been more than happy with my selection. Gomez, whom many know as the co-owner of the city’s Kudos to the team on this exciting new chapter in popular Nuba eateries, and famed Mexican chef Jair Tellez. Vancouver wining and dining. -

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Music time out

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Pup, Hannah Georgas, Touché Amoré, Watsky, Too Many Zooz, Busty and the Bass, Bliss n Eso, Youngblood, Beach Season and Neon Dreams, DD Dumbo, Ralph, and Midnight Sister. Sep 14-17, Vogue Theatre (918 Granville). The event also runs at Biltmore Cabaret, Imperial Theatre, Fox Cabaret, and Red Truck Brewery. Tix $59.50-224.50, info www.westwardfest.com/.

CLUBS & VENUES AT THE WALDORF 1489 E. Hastings, 604-253-7141. The Waldorf has been a Vancouver mainstay since the late 1940s with its retro and Polynesian décor. Three separate rooms, including Tiki Room, Tabu, and the Hideaway. Punk as F*CK Tuesday, Wiki Wednesday, and TING! Dancehall and Reggae Thurs. 2WIKI WEDNESDAYS Jul 12 2TING! THURSDAYS Jul 13 2POSE Jul 14 2ELECTRO SWING Jul 15 2PUNK AS F*CK Jul 18 2WIKI WEDNESDAYS Jul 19 2TING! THURSDAYS Jul 20 2BBNO$ Jul 21 2PUNK AS F*CK Jul 25 2WIKI WEDNESDAYS Jul 26 2TING! THURSDAYS Jul 27 2FLR2FLR Jul 28 BACKSTAGE LOUNGE Arts Club Theatre, 1585 Johnston, Granville Island, 604-6871354. Vancouver’s only live-music venue on the water, with music nightly. Hot Jazz Jam night on Tue. 2ISLAND VIBES REGGAE NIGHT WITH TANK GYAL Jul 12 BILTMORE CABARET 2755 Prince Edward, 604-676-0541. Resident DJs My!Gay!Husband!, Sincerely Hanna, and Rico Uno Sat; burlesque with Burgundy Brixx & the Purrrfessor Sun; tropical, electro, goth, world, and rudeboy with DJs Peter & Robbie (Humans), DJ Bee, Wobangs, and Basedgoth Tue. 2ANDREW COMBS AND BARNA HOWARD Jul 14 2JAYMES YOUNG Jul 15 2RIO BY NIGHT Jul 20 2SO THERE I WAS....HIGH Jul 29 2MARGARET GLASPY Aug 11 2VNV NATION Aug 14 BLUE MARTINI JAZZ CAFE 1516 Yew, 604-428-2691. Live jazz, soul, and blues. Closed on Mondays.

Now delivering, visit w w w.jam - jar.ca 24 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT JULY 13 – 20 / 2017

COBALT 917 Main, 778-918-3671. Live bands some nights, DJs other nights. Karaoke Mon, classic tunes and free pizza Tue; live painting art raffle Wed. 2ALGIERS Jul 13 2LUCY DACUS Jul 24 2CHASTITY BELT: CANCELLED Jul 28 2JOHN MORELAND Aug 9 2PALLBEARER Aug 15 2FRANKIE COSMOS Aug 24

COMMODORE BALLROOM 868 Granville, 604-739-4550. General admission venue with 900-person capacity features live performances by touring bands and musicians from across North America and around the world. Tix at www.commodoreballroom.com/. 2THE AVALANCHES Jul 13 2KATCHAFIRE Jul 14 2ECCW WRESTLING: BALLROOM BRAWL VIII Jul 15 2BEN HARPER AND THE INNOCENT CRIMINALS Jul 16 2THE PSYCHEDELIC FURS Jul 19 2CHASE RICE Jul 28 2ROYAL BLOOD Aug 8 2LUCENT DOSSIER EXPERIENCE Aug 10 2SYLVAN ESSO Aug 15 22 CHAINZ Aug 18 2DESCENDENTS Aug 24

don’t miss out! For up-to-the-minute, searchable Music Time Out listings, visit

www.straight.com

FORTUNE SOUND CLUB 147 E. Pender, 604-569-1758. Located in the heart of Chinatown, Fortune Sound blends high and low by bringing up-from-the-street ambience into a modern setting, complemented by the Funktion One sound system. Featured nights include Happy Ending Fridays, Sup Fu? Saturdays, Hip Hop Karaoke, and live shows covering electronic, rap, hip-hop, dubstep, and metal. 2BAD SUNS Oct 14 FRANKIE’S JAZZ CLUB 765 Beatty, 778727-0337. Live music Thu-Sun. and menu items that include fresh house-made pastas and signature entrées. Wine list features Italian and BC VQA wines along with local craft beer, classic, and feature daily cocktails. Happy Hour Wed-Fri. from 4 to 6 pm features live music and no cover. 2GOGO PENGUIN Sep 9 FUNKY WINKER BEANS 37 W. Hastings. Evil Bastard Karaoke Experience seven days a week. THE IMPERIAL 319 Main, 604-868-0494. Vancouver’s newest midsize music venue features live bands and DJs. 2PERFUME GENIUS Jul 15 2WAXAHATCHEE Jul 25 2SIX60: CANCELLED Jul 26 2BETTY WHO Aug 7 2TEMPLES Aug 9 2QUANTIC Aug 19 2POKEY LAFARGE Aug 24 2JOHNNYSWIM Aug 31 2ASGEIR Sep 6 IVANHOE PUB 1038 Main, 604-608-1444. Pub with live bands on weekends and open jam night Sun from 4 to 8 pm. Open at 9 am with breakfast and daily food specials. Pool tourney Thu. No cover.

RAILWAY STAGE AND BEER CAFÉ 579 Dunsmuir, 604-564-1430. 24 taps of local craft beer. Comedy Tue, darts Wed, live music Wed, Thu, Fri, and all day/night Sat. $3 Beers til 3, $5 beers til 5. 2JIMMY “DUCK” HOLMES Jul 13 2LOS DUENDES Jul 14 2THE PSYCHIC ALLIANCE + MELTED MIRROR Jul 15 2JOKES Jul 18 2JP MAURICE Jul 22 2JOKES Jul 25 RICKSHAW THEATRE 254 E. Hastings, 604-681-8915. Live bands some nights. 2EAGLES OF DEATH METAL Jul 15 2MAD ALCHEMY CARAVAN Jul 21 2WEDNESDAY 13 Jul 22 2PICKWICK Jul 29 2EVERY TIME I DIE Aug 2 2EVERY TIME I DIE Aug 2 2ANCIIENTS Aug 4 2IN THE WHALE AND THE PLODES Aug 5 2EL TRI Aug 6 2ONE LOVE WESTCOAST PARTY VIP CONCERT Aug 11 2MEW Aug 18 2LAST PODCAST ON THE LEFT Aug 24 ST. JAMES HALL 3214 W. 10th, 604736-3022. 250-seat venue at St. James Community Square features concerts presented by the Rogue Folk Club. 2RY X Aug 23 2BIRDS OF CHICAGO Sep 7 2GARNET ROGERS Sep 23 2MOSES SUMNEY Sep 30 2DON ROSS AND CALUM GRAHAM Oct 5 VENUE 881 Granville, 604-646-0064. 2THE DRUMS Jul 18 2JIDENNA Aug 27 2SHOUT OUT LOUDS Nov 12 VOGUE THEATRE 918 Granville, 604-5691144. Entertainment venue specializing in all-ages concerts by touring acts from around the world. Tix at www. voguetheatre.com/. 2CONSTELLATIONS Jul 15 2MICHAEL JACKSON HISTORY TOUR Jul 22 2TY SEGALL Aug 3 2JAMES VINCENT MCMORROW Aug 15 2DEAD CROSS Aug 25 2MAC DEMARCO Sep 12 WISE HALL 1882 Adanac, 604-254-5858. Live music by local artists and international touring acts. 2RACHELLE VAN ZANTEN Jul 13 2THE PARTY ON HIGH STREET AND HIGH SOCIETY Jul 14 2HANK PINE SYNTH BAND MONDAY Jul 17 2PLANET PINKISH Jul 19 2COLLEEN BROWN, KIMBERLEY MACGREGOR, AND AMY VAN KEEKEN Jul 20 2HANK PINE HIP HOP BAND MONDAY Jul 24

TIME OUT MUSIC LISTINGS are a public service provided free of charge, based on available space and editorial discretion. We can’t guarantee inclusion, and we give priority to events taking place within one week of publication. Submit listings online using the event-submission form at straight.com/AddEvent. Events that don’t make it into the paper due to space constraints will appear on the website.

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hat sets Thai food apart from many other cuisines is the combination of spicy and sweet flavours in its dishes, which are often garnished with peanuts and elegantly shaped fruits and vegetables. For those wanting to experience authentic Thai food, there will be plenty of opportunities at the Thai Festival, which takes place next Saturday and Sunday (July 22 and 23) on the north plaza of the Vancouver Art Gallery. The Thai consul general in Vancouver, Sutthiluck Sa-ngarmangkang, told the Georgia Straight by phone that two culinary experts from Bangkok will be in town to demonstrate how to cook one typical dish (papaya salad) and one typical dessert (a rice bowl with coconut milk). “We have food sampling as well,” Sutthiluck said. “And besides the food and cooking demonstration, they will also show how to carve the fruits and vegetables. It’s a very delicate art of the Thai people, to do the food carving.” She pointed out that Thai iced tea, which is heavily fortified with milk and herbs, is one of the most popular drinks in the world. One of the hallmarks of Thai food is the use of healthy herbs. According to the consul general, many of Thailand’s favourite dishes will be available at the festival’s 10 food booths, including pad Thai, som tum, green curry, and sticky rice. Local Thai restaurants SalaThai, U & I Thai, and Take Thai Home will be among those participating. There will also be a royal exhibit honouring King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who died last October 13 after more than 70 years on the throne. He was succeeded by his only son, the then Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, in December. Thailand’s population of 70 million is fourth-largest in Southeast Asia, behind Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam. About a third of the country’s people are of Central Thai ancestry, with another 24.9 percent being Khon Isan (northeastern Thai) and 9.9 percent Khon Muang (northern Thai). Fourteen percent are Thai Chinese and another 7.5 percent are Southern Thai, with the rest including people of Malay, Mon, and Khmer descent. This will be the fourth Thai Festival presented by the Royal Thai Consulate General, which opened in Vancouver in December 1996. In addition to the food products, the festival will also feature a Thai spa, a classical dance troupe from Thailand, and opportunities to learn how to do Thai-style painting. There will also be prizes awarded, including airline tickets to Thailand, which was Asia Pacific’s most popular tourist destination last year, according to Mastercard. That’s because Thailand had three cities in the top 10 for international overnight arrivals: Bangkok (No. 1), Phuket (No. 6), and Pattaya (No. 8). -

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I met you when you tried to help detach my shirt that was caught on someone’s fanny pack zipper. You tried really to detangle us, but I ended taking off my shirt to get the job done. Afterwards, you politely asked me to dance during Wiz Khalifa. I wonder if you remember dancing near my friend’s totem “Popular Slut Club.” I wish we had our phones on us to exchange numbers. You were really cute, funny and a great conversationalist. So, I’m sending this into void. If I don’t find you, at least I can say I tried. If you remember me, please tell me what piece of kandi I gave you and what my name is (I remember yours)!

KI SUSHO

I SAW A: I AM A: WHEN: JULY 5, 2017 WHERE: Ki sushi

I was sitting with friends at Ki sushi in New Westminster around noon and we made eye contact as you left the restroom. You are tall, dark haired, beard, and handsome. I am the woman wearing the floral tights and grey shirt, dark haired,short. You were having lunch with some family. Would love to chat.

BIRTHDAY KARAOKE AT FUNKY WINKER BEANS

You approached my mom and I while we were shopping the the electronic section of London Drugs. You asked my name and I was obviously too shy to talk to you. Perhaps we could start over? Coffee?

HEADING TO BUNTZEN LAKE

I SAW A: I AM A: WHEN: JULY 2, 2017 WHERE: Buntzen Lake

SLEEVE OF CROWS ON THE SFU B-LINE

It was your birthday (26th I think) and you were celebrating with a group of friends with karaoke at Funky Winker Beans. Before I left (just before 1am), I walked up to your table and asked whose birthday it was. You stood up, said it was yours and gave me a hug as I said, “Happy Birthday!” I told you that you were “gorgeous, really beautiful” and you seemed genuinely touched by it. I don’t say that sort of thing often to people I don’t know so I really appreciated your response. Thanks! That made my night :)

You and two other friends (and a dog) asked to park at a friends while you headed into Buntzen Lake. Myself and two other friends were just leaving for a two day hike up Eagle Mountain. We all walked and talked down the road to the lake. I was so intrigued by the things you spoke of and your upcoming schooling. I’d love to hear more about them! You: Taller, brown wavy hair in a ponytail, white shirt and sunglasses with little fur(?) earrings. Me: Full of hiking gear, glasses, long hair. Coffee or a hike sometime?

I SAW A: I AM A: WHEN: JUNE 30, 2017 WHERE: SFU B-line heading east

I SAW A: I AM A: WHEN: JUNE 27, 2017 WHERE: Funky Winker Beans karaoke

I SAW A: I AM A: WHEN: JUNE 29, 2017 WHERE: Langley London Drugs

I was sitting by the back entrance on the SFU B-line, absorbed in my iPhone when you stepped on the bus and took a seat across the aisle. I felt your eyes on me when you stepped in, which initially caught my attention. Then I couldn’t stop glancing over. You: baby blue t-shirt, short blonde hair, two sleeves of tattoos; your left arm with 3 crows flying toward a darker/ larger tattoo on your wrist. Me: black dress, striped cardigan, sunglasses. You look super familiar and I don’t know why.

GIRL WITH CLEAR GLASSES

I SAW A: I AM A: WHEN: JULY 2, 2017 WHERE: Waldorf Hotel

I was the guy in a flannel shirt when you bummed a light from my friend. Ran into you a few times afterwards but was too busy trying to check on my friend to properly chat. You were good company.

THE CORNER OF MARINE AND BOUNDARY WHEN: Everyday WHERE: EverythingWine.ca Sorry for staring, but you were dreamier than I imagined. I was in awe of how well-traveled you are, offering so much more than I was used to. Your fresh vibe and wine knowledge was intoxicating, and made me want to come back for more. Meet me at 8570 River District Crossing. I will be at the Tasting bar, and it’ll be my treat. In the meantime, add me on FB @everythingwineinc. Can’t wait to see you.

TUBING IN MAPLE RIDGE

I SAW A: I AM A: WHEN: JUNE 24, 2017 WHERE: Maple Ridge Park You were tubing with 2 girls, 2 guys. I was having lunch on the bench with my grandma. Your guy friends stopped for a quick beer run. So... when are you going next?

BLONDE IN BLUE DRESS @LIQUOR STORE BUTE/ DAVIE 5MN BEFORE THEY CLOSE

I SAW A: I AM A: WHEN: JUNE 30, 2017 WHERE: @Liquor Store Bute/Davie

Ok we just met at the Liquor Store Bute/Davie 5min before they close. You elegant 30-40 something, blonde, with this short blue dress... Saw you looking at me like no one lol I know; I’m not your usual style - but that’s exactly what you liked... tell me I’m wrong! What’s next ?

Visit straight.com to post your FREE I Saw You _ JULY 13 – 20 / 2017 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT 25

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ARTS

In the Next Room (or The Vibrator Play)

BY JANET SM IT H

centres around a Victorian-era New York doctor who uses a vibrator to treat women’s “hysteria” in his home office. So you know there have to be some stimulating discussions as director Keltie Forsyth and her cast get ready to stage Sarah Ruhl’s smart, witty play for Ensemble Theatre Company this summer. “We have had some wild conversations in rehearsal,” Forsyth confirms to the Straight over the phone. “There are nine simulated orgasms that happen on-stage in this show, so we’ve had to have some frank conversations around that. There are some men in the show, but we’ve had to talk about women’s experiences a lot—sexual, but also experiences in the medical system.” The play, which was nominated for a handful of Tony Awards after its U.S. premiere in 2009, slyly uses the near-absurd repression and ignorance of women’s sexuality near the end of the 19th century to reflect on where we are today. While the aptly named Dr. Givings enacts his “cure”, using a device that comes thanks to the new age of electricity, his own wife is feeling unfulfilled. The irony is clear: the real action is happening not in her bedroom, but “in the next room”, thanks to a male-dominated society that refuses to see her as a real sexual being.

When a play reaches climax

In the Next Room traces the odd history of the vibrator (Thorston Gohl photo); director Keltie Forsyth (below left) says the play’s most absurd moments are true.

Ensemble Theatre Company tackles female sexuality in Sarah Ruhl’s historical In the Next Room (or, The Vibrator Play) The medical history around the use of the vibrator, Forsyth says, is fascinating. “With hysteria, you’re giving a disease to women’s sexuality. Then you make the thing that treats it a medical procedure; the sidestep is thinking of women’s sexuality like the flu,” she says. “The vibrator was available via the Sears catalogue around the turn of the century, and then when people stopped thinking of it as a disease they became unavailable.” A lot of the facts in Ruhl’s play come directly from Rachel Maines’s 1999 book The TechnolOrgasm a studied but hilarious history ogy of Orgasm, of the use of the vibrator as a legit medical device—and then its fall into disrepute. “If you read it, you realize the most absurd things in the play are real,” Forsyth says. Still, Forsyth is struck by how contemporary the play feels in Ruhl’s hands, even while it depicts such a surreal past. It does, after all, depict the loneliness and frustration of women faced with a fast-changing technological world. Sound familiar? “One of the beautiful things about this play is it examines how sexual intimacy and satisfaction can bring us a lot of joy,” Forsyth observes. “And I do think we have trouble thinking about it in that way, especially now in the age of Tinder. “We now have a generation of people who get their primary education about sexuality from pornography and who are modelling their behaviour around it. I think we are still struggling to find that real connection: we’re trying to match something that isn’t real,” she explains. “The social structures that really hold the characters in this play back—we still deal with them.” It’s all pretty loaded territory to manoeuvre, and Ruhl manages to mix in commentary on everything from class to race. The key, Forsyth says, is her writing. Like the other two shows

THINGS TO DO

artistic director Tariq Leslie has programmed at the 2017 Ensemble Theatre Company repertory festival—A Prayer for Owen Meany and Master Class (see story below)— it delivers a satisfying balance between laugh-outloud comedy (just watch Givings’s miraculously cured patients as they blissfully depart his office) and deeply moving moments.

“She’s one of my favourite playwrights,” Forsyth, who completed her master’s thesis on one of Ruhl’s other well-known works, Eurydice, enthuses. “She’s funny, smart, and there’s this generosity about humankind.” Ensemble Theatre Company presents In the Next Room (or The Vibrator Play) in repertory at the Jericho Arts Centre from Thursday (July 13) to August 17.

Actor Chris Lam juggles two huge roles in ETC’s summer repertory roster

Usually in repertory theatre, if you take on one big role, you alternate with a smaller part in another play. But Chris Lam is juggling two gargantuan roles—not to mention holding down two day jobs, as a stock associate and a mover—at Ensemble Theatre Company this summer. For starters, he’s playing the lead in A Prayer for Owen Meany, a role that, as any reader of the original John Irving novel knows, has character quirks that will demand some special attention from Lam. “In the Irving novel they describe his high-pitched voice, and I have a voice coach working with me on it,” Lam tells the Straight over the phone on one of his rare breaks during the day. “It has to be vocally safe for me to do every single night. I have to speak in that voice for the entire play, in this high falsetto. So it’s almost like a singing part, like I’m singing for two-and-a-half hours. It’s a very, very technical part, like training for a marathon. I really as an actor just have to build to it.” He figures he’s only off-stage for five minutes combined during the play, a 1960s-set tale of friendship and faith. And that would be enough to fill any actor’s summer, but Lam will be alternating the role with that of composer Dmitri Shostakovich in Master Class, David Pownall’s clever four-hander about Soviet leader Joseph Stalin and his culture minister confronting two nonconformist artists (the other being Sergei Prokofiev). “In a way it’s even harder,” Lam reveals of his role as the Russian composer. “None of the four characters leave the stage, and even when I’m not speaking I’m actively listening the whole time. “The characters are 180 degrees from each other,” he adds of Meany and Shostakovich. “Owen Meany is very opinionated and speaks in this very interesting voice.…Shostakovich is very quiet, very passive. And I actually have to play the piano—some of his actual pieces.” At least Lam didn’t have to learn how to do that: he already plays. While such demands might send most performers into the fetal position, Lam is loving every minute of this summer’s challenge—his first with ETC and his first performing in repertory (though he has directed in repertory before). “As an actor I feel I have my entire range utilized,” says the apparently indefatigable Lam. “I’m very grateful. I feel very fulfilled, and the writing is very strong, with a lot of depth. I really want to make sure I do justice to these parts because they’re so well-written.” > JANET SMITH

ARTS High five

Editor’s choice CLOWNING AROUND Scott Bellis has played his share of comedic characters at Bard on the Beach, so it’s fitting he will play director to a Shakespeare play that features two clowns: The Two Gentlemen of Verona. This is a chance to see an early romantic romp that’s one of the Bard’s lesser-known comedies, with two of his funniest characters. It’s also a chance to spot all of Shakespeare’s favourite tricks, from the girl disguised as a boy to the father determined to marry his daughter off to the wrong guy. The fact that there’s a live basset hound in the show—Vancouver’s own Gertie—is just a bonus. The Two Gentlemen of Verona runs to September 17 at Bard on the Beach’s Howard Family Stage in Vanier Park.

Five events you just can’t miss this week

HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN IN CONCERT (July 13 to 15 at the Orpheum) Watch the film while the VSO plays every note of John Williams’s wizardly score.

THE DROWSY CHAPERONE (To August 19 at Malkin Bowl) A sharp parody for anyone who loves old musicals.

NO FUN (July 14 and 15 at the Firehall Arts Centre) A dance ode to Iggy Pop as raucous as the original stage-diver himself.

EDWARD BURTYNSKY: THE SCARRED EARTH (To October 16 at the Audain Art Museum) It’s worth the journey to Whistler to see these vast, man-mangled landscapes.

THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (To July 23 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre) Go big or go home.

In the news

A LAUGHING MATTER Mayor Gregor Robertson and visiting Chinese artist Yue Minjun invite Vancouverites to bring their smiles to English Bay’s Morton Park this Thursday (July 13) at 10 a.m. as the mayor proclaims the official Day of Laughter. This event celebrates Yue’s first visit to Vancouver—but the artist’s face will be recognizable to anyone who’s walked through Morton Park. His sculpture A-maze-ing Laughter depicts his likeness in the shape of 14 laughing bronze men. The Vancouver Biennale is putting on the free public event to celebrate Yue’s visit, and to amplify the message that laughter is a human right. The day’s programming runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and will include a proclamation by the mayor, a noon-hour Laughing Yoga session, complimentary refreshments, and a chance to meet the artist. JULY 13 – 20 / 2017 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT 27

ARTS

Bold Merchant of Venice underscores hatred TH E AT RE THE MERCHANT OF VENICE By William Shakespeare. Directed by Nigel Shawn Williams. A Bard on the Beach production. At the Howard Family Stage on Thursday, July 6. Continues until September 17

In his directorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s notes, Nigel

2 Shawn Williams describes The

Merchant of Venice as a â&#x20AC;&#x153;sinister parable for our timesâ&#x20AC;?. His vision boldly underlines the hatred, venality, and inhumanity that drive so much of the plot, but that vision gets watered down considerably in the second half of the play. Merchant has long been controversial for the anti-Semitism directed at the character of Shylock, the Jewish moneylender who demands a pound of flesh as his bond for the loan of 3,000 ducats to the wealthy merchant Antonio. The merchant has borrowed the money to bankroll his fiscally imprudent young friend Bassanio as he woos the wealthy heiress Portia. Bassanio succeeds, but when Antonioâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s economic ventures fail and he canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t repay the debt, Shylock demands justice. Portia, disguising herself as a lawyer, exhorts Shylock to be merciful, then deploys a legal technicality that saves Antonio but bankrupts Shylock and forces him to convert to Christianity. Mercy, anyone? Williamsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s contemporary production creates a world of heartless greed: in the opening scene, projections of stock-market tickers wash over the back walls while clusters of welldressed people cross back and forth across the stage to slick music, freezing momentarily in pools of light. When Shylock, wearing an impeccable business suit and yarmulke, falls down, he is greeted by cruel laughter. The callousness continues as Antonio sits in a restaurant, making his waiter bend down and pick up

the bills heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s casually tossed on the ground. Bassanio, all James Dean slouch and sunglasses, describes Portia in purely economic terms: he caresses the word riches and shrugs off â&#x20AC;&#x153;Sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fair,â&#x20AC;? then mimes slapping her ass. In this world, Shylockâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s disgust at Antonioâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s habit of lending without charging interest seems perfectly reasonable; itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s all about good business practice. And Shylockâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s desire for revenge makes sense when weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve witnessed his repeated humiliations. The design is more consistently successful than the acting in this stylish production, where laptops and smartphones feel right at home alongside old-fashioned brass scales on Marshall McMahenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s handsome set, a mostly bare stage with austere square columns that recede into the background. Conor Mooreâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s video projections saturate the space with emblems of material wealth, while Drew Faceyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s costumes are up-to-the-minute sharp. Patrick Pennefatherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sound and Adrian Muirâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lighting are most dramatic whenever the action freezes into

D! N E EDGES Firehall Arts Centre EK EDGE E 5 July 13 W

annual festival of contemporary dance

DANCING on the EDGE ST A L

This Merchant of Venice (here with Kamyar Pandazeh and Luisa Jojic) sets the Bardâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s story in a world of callous contemporary greed. David Blue photo.

JULY 6-15

a stylized slow-motion sequence, a technique Williams uses effectively to foreground many of the monologues. Some of the best belong to Warren Kimmelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Shylock, a high-status businessman who knows when he has the upper hand and plays it with calm dignity. Just before his trial, we see him praying in a tower, lifting his voice in worshipful song, his stillness in stark counterpoint to the Venetians scurrying about in the courtroom. But given all that has come before, Williams could do more to highlight the hypocrisy of Portiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and the Dukeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s final judgment; Shylock simply accepts his fate and leaves. Williamsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s critique is similarly diminished when Bassanio meets Portia; a change of clothes and a long look into her eyes seem to be all thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s needed to reform this assslapping cad into a worthy husband. And Williams seems to be getting at something in the scenes between Jessica, Shylockâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s daughter, and Lorenzo, with whom she has eloped, but the point eluded me in Chirag Naikâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

unfocused performance as Lorenzo, which leaves Carmela Sisonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Jessica looking lost much of the time. Charlie Gallant brings a finely tuned presence to Bassanio. Nadeem Phillip and Paul Moniz de SĂĄ both do solid work as two other suitors of Olivia Huttâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Portia, a strong, smart woman, especially when sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s in the guise of the lawyer. As her companion, Nerissa, Luisa Jojic is always crystal clear. Too many of the other actors in this production attempt to use volume as a substitute for meaning, though, which makes for a very shouty evening. Merchant is a challenging play, and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s both smart and brave to treat it as a lens through which to view the bleak realities of our times. That lens is sharpest at the top of this production, but unfortunately loses focus long before the end.

> KATHLEEN OLIVER

CITY OF ANGELS Book by Larry Gelbart, with lyrics by David Zippel and music by Cy Coleman. Directed by Jennifer Copping. Produced by the PIT Collective. At Performance Works on Sunday, July 9. Continues until July 17

City of Angels is a multiple Tony

2 Award winner, but itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s almost a

musical for people who hate musicals. There are such long breaks between songs that itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s startling when two characters suddenly break into a duet. And thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not a single showstopping number, nothing thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s even remotely memorable enough to hum as oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leaving the theatre. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a problem for a musical. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s also a problem for the PIT Collectiveâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ambitious but flawed staging of City of Angels. The bloated Broadway mess clocks in at over three hours, and while the company struggles admirably to acquit itself with all of the many moving parts, it

never quite comes together. City of Angels is set in the 1940s and straddles two worlds. Stine (Donal Thoms-Cappello) is a writer from New York whose pulpy detective novel is being made into a movie. He has a threepicture deal and relocates to Los Angeles to write the script, but he has to contend with director-producer Buddy Fidler (Paul Herbert), a Hollywood big shot who rewrites Stineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s every word. Stineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wife, Gabby (Caitlin Clugston), is a book editor whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s devastated that her husband is selling out. The other world is that of Stineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s screenplay, occupied by a parade of perfect film-noir stereotypes. Stone (Michael Lomenda) is the hard-boiled hero of Stineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s novel, a tough but moral private eye with a secret past and lightning-fast wit. He canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t resist the dames, of course, so when femme fatale Alaura Kingsley (an excellent Crystal Balint) slinks into his office to trade innuendo-laden quips and hire him for a job, he takes the cheque and signs on for a world of hurt and double-crosses. Director Jennifer Copping plays both Stineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s secretary, Oolie, and Fidlerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s secretary, Donna. At first itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s clever and fun as Stineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s reality suddenly interjects into Stoneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s world, like when the characters all start speaking gibberish and moving backward, conveying Stineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s in-themoment rewrite, but it has diminishing returns every time it happens again after that. There are also significant sections presented as black-and-white film projections, but they always feel a bit amateur and go on a little too longâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;a lot like this City of Angels experience. All of the leads offer good performances, and there are some great lines and wonderfully comedic moments, but the whole production feels fussy and overly staged, which makes it drag and lag. And thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a more lethal combination than any of City of Angelsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; other sins. > ANDREA WARNER

Wanna Yuk?

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FULL-LENGTH WORK

NO FUN July 14 & 15 iÂ?iÂ&#x2DC;Ă&#x160;-Â&#x2C6;Â&#x201C;>Ă&#x20AC;`

Firehall Arts Centre

EDGE OFF

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SITE SPECIFIC OUTDOOR WORKS RV THERE YET?Ă&#x160;Ă&#x160;Ă&#x203A;>Ă&#x20AC;Â&#x2C6;Â&#x153;Ă&#x2022;Ă&#x192;Ă&#x160;Â?Â&#x153;V>Ă&#x152;Â&#x2C6;Â&#x153;Â&#x2DC;Ă&#x192; Â&#x2C6;Â?iĂ&#x160;<iĂ&#x20AC;Â&#x153;Ă&#x160; >Â&#x2DC;ViĂ&#x160;Â iĂ&#x20AC;Ă&#x20AC;Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x160; Â&#x153;Ă&#x20AC;Â&#x2C6;Ă&#x152;>ÂŽĂ&#x160; WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD? Ă&#x2022;Â?Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x160;ÂŁ{Ă&#x160;EĂ&#x160;ÂŁxĂ&#x160;Ă&#x160;Ă&#x160;Ă&#x203A;>Ă&#x20AC;Â&#x2C6;Â&#x153;Ă&#x2022;Ă&#x192;Ă&#x160;Â&#x2C6;Â&#x2DC;Ă&#x152;iĂ&#x20AC;Ă&#x192;iVĂ&#x152;Â&#x2C6;Â&#x153;Â&#x2DC;Ă&#x192; Ă&#x160; >Â&#x2DC;ViĂ&#x160; Â&#x153;Ă&#x2022;Â&#x2DC;`>Ă&#x152;Â&#x2C6;Â&#x153;Â&#x2DC;Ă&#x160;Â >Â&#x2C6;Â?Ă&#x160; Â&#x153;Ă&#x152;iÂ&#x2DC;LiĂ&#x20AC;}ÂŽ THUNDERBIRD SHARING CEREMONY Ă&#x2022;Â?Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x160;ÂŁxĂ&#x160;Ă&#x160;-Ă&#x152;>Â&#x2DC;Â?iĂ&#x17E;Ă&#x160;*>Ă&#x20AC;Â&#x17D; iĂ&#x20AC;Â&#x2C6;Â&#x153;Ă&#x192;>Ă&#x160; >Â&#x2DC;ViĂ&#x2030;-ÂŤ>Â&#x17D;Ă&#x153;Ă&#x2022;Ă&#x192;Ă&#x160;-Â?Ă&#x2022;Â?iÂ&#x201C; Â Ă&#x2022;Â?Â&#x2C6;>Ă&#x160;/>vviĂ&#x2030;Ă&#x160; Â&#x153;LĂ&#x160;-Ă&#x2021;>ÂŤÂ?iÂ&#x17D;Ă&#x160; >Â&#x17D;iĂ&#x20AC;ÂŽ

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July 15 Firehall Arts Centre DANCE DIALOGUE:Ă&#x160;7Â&#x2026;>Ă&#x152;Ă&#x160;Â&#x2C6;Ă&#x192;Ă&#x160; >Â&#x2DC;ViĂ&#x160; Ă&#x20AC;>Â&#x201C;>Ă&#x152;Ă&#x2022;Ă&#x20AC;}Ă&#x17E;Âś

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28 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT JULY 13 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 20 / 2017

BALLOT CLOSES JULY 18

ARTS

Strange beauty, direct from China D ANC E OATH–MIDNIGHT RAIN A Beijing Modern Dance Company production, presented by Dancing on the Edge. At the Firehall Arts Centre on Thursday, July 6. No remaining performances

The hypnotic Oath-Midnight

2 Rain is one of the Beijing Mod-

In Oath-Midnight Rain, the eerie “Insect” swings on a big trapeze.

costumes. Choreographer Escamillan is an emerging talent, and there’s a lot of promise here; he could punch the movement up into even more explosive, sharper action-reaction, but this is a fun, entertaining piece with wide appeal and ample amounts of humour. Like so much on the program, it’s slick and entertaining but not too deep. Veteran local dancer and choreographer Cori Caulfield unfurls three pieces called The Poets, a nod to a trio of hit songs: David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance”, the Tragically Hip’s “Grace, Too”, and Leonard Cohen’s “Suzanne”. Hailley Caulfield Postle displays her mad tap skills, with attitude to burn, in the opening number. She is helped by a cool remixed arrangement by composer Mark Taylor that turns Bowie’s foray into new-wave-pop-swing into something much more eerie and resonant. At the end, her sibling Cori channels one of Cohen’s best-loved songs into a sensual, fluid solo of longing. With her usual emotional depth, the dancer paints a portrait of a sad

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Kevin MacDonald & Amber Lewis – Much Ado About Nothing (2017)

ern Dance Company’s signature works, rife with tai-chi–like movement, references to Buddhist symbolism, and haunting Mandarin songs. So why does it remind you so much of Japanese butoh? It may be because the characters seem to inhabit the same pain-ridden territory, a sort of purgatory between life and death, moving oh-so-slowly in each solo. But it’s also because this piece (commissioned by the Venice Biennale way back in 2006) might be best enjoyed, like butoh, by embracing the nonrational, letting go of literal meaning so that you can just lose yourself in this strange fever dream. Artistic director Gao Yanjinzi’s elaborately costumed and made-up dancers represent symbols from Chinese culture, many referring to the journey of the soul in Buddhism. Flower has a billowing blue-black gauzy skirt that the male dancer can pull up and over himself, like a morning glory’s petals closing up for nightfall; sometimes he upends himself, his legs emerging from the fabric mass like flailing stamens and stigmas. Grass wields a long hemp whip, Fish flutters a black-andred scalloped silk cape, and Bird is a gruff, red-bearded warrior whose fabric “wings” tether him, tied high up at each side of the stage. The most fascinating of the bunch is the weirdly alluring, corset-wearing Insect, fixing sad, curious eyes on us as he swings sensually on a trapeze, his bizarre long braid sweeping the floor. If the show sounds like a parade of cute, anthropomorphized animals and plants, think again. The characters come and go like apparitions in the night, often tormented by burdens they seem to be trying to unload: witness the nightmare-inducing silent scream of Flower, or Bird’s violent struggles to unleash his wings. The soundtrack, a mix of throat-singing-like grunts, Peking opera vocalizations, rain sounds, and indie-ish singer-songwriter anthems, adds to the feeling of delirium. The dancers are wildly charismatic, honed, and committed. Gao, whose work we last saw here in 2015 in the collaborative Made in China, excels at creating atmospheric imagery. Sure, a little of Oath-Midnight Rain might get lost in translation, and the slow, meditative pace may take some getting used to. But Gao’s conjured exactly what she set out to: that liminal, eerie place between night and day and life and death, a strange carnival of souls.

woman, maybe “half-crazy”, as the lyrics tell us, an ottoman and Persian carpet evoking the Gypsy cabin the real muse is supposed to have lived in. In between, Caulfield’s dance students, sporting shiny plastic yellow pants, bring the Hip hit to life; the piece plays cleverly with the song’s building rhythms, but feels a lot lighter and glossier than Gord Downie’s lyrics would suggest. In Compass, dancer-choreographer Olivia C. Davies pushes into more complicated, deeper terrain that is enigmatic and haunting. It opens with Indigenous storyteller Rosemary Georgeson relating the tale of her friend Blue, a woman who loses “any connection to the inside world”—to cozy beds, to warm rooms. In other words, she lives on the street, and the spotlight finds Davies curled up on a park bench, covered in her own red scarf—an image familiar to anyone who’s passed through the neighbourhood that lies just outside the Firehall. What makes this piece so intriguing is the way Davies posits that maybe— instead of slowly decaying, losing her mind, or getting high—the woman is passing through a spiritual transformation. Sometimes Blue convulses and twitches like she’s tweaking, but those moments clearly lead to something else—something happening at a more transcendent level, between life and afterlife, or between dreams and reality. You can see the influence of provocative Toronto choreographer Santee Smith on this work (she was one of its dramaturges), but the intense Davies brings her own preternatural muscular grace, her incredibly long limbs reaching to the ground or the sky in slow, unearthly movement. It will be well worth looking out for the full-length fruition of this piece, Crow’s Nest and Other Places She’s Gone, at this year’s Downtown Eastside Heart of the City Festival.

EDGE FOUR A Dancing on the Edge presentation. At the Firehall Arts Centre on Monday, July 10. Continues on July 12

Dancing on the Edge’s latest program opens with a striking image: the curious sight of dancer-choreographer Ralph Escamillan, wearing a face-covering, teal-blue sequined bodysuit that sparkles beneath his brown pants and shirt. Looking like a kind of glam, interstellar Blue Man on his small, wooden platform, he begins to mimic an increasing array of live amplified sounds by collaborator Stefan Seslija. In this excerpt from a longer work called SQUIN, the echoing noise of dripping water seems to turn his hands, limbs, and, finally, his torso into wavy liquid. From there, Escamillan’s glitter man embodies everything from whooshing noises to electronic beats to a maniacally remixed version of Frank Sinatra’s “Under My Skin”. It’s a cool little study in how music works its way “under your skin” and into your muscles, but also in the effect of lights and

2 mixed

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JULY 13 – 20 / 2017 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT 29

straight choices

BITTERGIRL: THE MUSICAL The Arts Club Theatre Company presents Annabel Fitzsimmons, Alison Lawrence, and Mary Francis Moore’s musical that charts the romantic breakups of three women and the lively antics that ensue. To Jul 29, Granville Island Stage (1585 Johnston, Granville Island). Tix from $29, info www.artsclub.com/.

ar ts/ timeout THEATRE DANCE MUSIC COMEDY ET CETERA GALLERIES MUSEUMS

two young people becomes the catalyst for reunion, redemption, and a family’s healing. To Sep 22, Bard on the Beach (1000 Chestnut). Tix from $21, info www.bard onthebeach.org/2017/the-winters-tale/.

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THEATRE 2OPENINGS THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA Broadway Across Canada presents Cameron Mackintosh’s production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical about a beautiful young opera singer who is tutored by a mysterious phantom. Jul 12-23, Queen Elizabeth Theatre (650 Hamilton). Info www.broadwayacrosscanada.ca/. ENSEMBLE THEATRE COMPANY’S SUMMER FESTIVAL The Ensemble Theatre Company presents productions of Sarah Ruhl’s In the Next Room (or The Vibrator Play), John Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany, and David Pownall’s Master Class. Jul 13–Aug 18, Jericho Arts Centre (1675 Discovery). Info www.ensembletheatrecompany.ca/. THIS IS OUR YOUTH Midtwenties Theatre Society presents Kenneth Lonergan’s bittersweet portrait of youth poised on the cusp of adulthood. Jul 14-23, The Red Gate Revue Stage (1601 Johnston Street, Granville Island ). Tix $20, info www.mtstheatre.com/.

2ONGOING MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET The Arts Club Theatre Company presents a jukebox musical inspired by Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Carl Perkins. Directed by Bill Millerd. Book by Colin Escott and Floyd Mutrux. To Jul 16, Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage (2750 Granville). Tix from $29, info www.artsclub.com/.

THE MERCHANT OF VENICE Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival presents William Shakespeare’s drama, set in modern-day Venice, that exposes the consequences of how we treat outsiders in our midst. To Sep 16, Bard on the Beach (1000 Chestnut). Tix from $21, info www.bardon thebeach.org/2017/the-merchant-of-venice/.

BITTERSWEET BLISS If you had your hankies out watching Kenneth Lonergan’s Manchester by the Sea, you know that This Is Our Youth, a play by the same writer, is going to mix bittersweet pain into its dark humour. It’s not a tale of workingclass Massachusetts, however; this one focuses on three privileged Upper West Side kids in New York City, all gathered in one teen’s apartment, along with a pot haze and a bag of stolen cash. Watching the kids try to connect will remind you of what it was like groping your way into adulthood—the painful pleasure, a bit like that movie we mentioned, without the Kleenex. A brash new company called Midtwenties Theatre Society seems like just the troupe to take it on, Friday to Monday (July 14 to 17) and July 19 to 23 at the Red Gate Revue Stage on Granville Island. MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival presents William Shakespeare’s comedy set in 1959 Italy, where a group of actors and filmmakers celebrates the wrap of their latest movie. To Sep 23, Bard on the Beach (1000 Chestnut). Tix from $21, info www. bardonthebeach.org/2017/much-adoabout-nothing/. THE WINTER’S TALE Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival presents William Shakespeare’s drama in which the love of

THE TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival presents William Shakespeare’s tale of two best friends who are in love with the same woman. To Sep 17, Bard on the Beach (1000 Chestnut). Tix from $21, info www.bardonthebeach.org/2017/the-twogentlemen-of-verona/. THEATRE UNDER THE STARS Annual outdoor-theatre event features productions of Mary Poppins and The Drowsy Chaperone on alternating evenings. To Aug 19, 8 pm, Malkin Bowl (610 Pipeline Road, Stanley Park). Tix $30-49, info www.tuts.ca/.

DANCE 2THIS WEEK

VANCITY THEATRE!

Writer/Director MARIE CLEMENTS Producer / Executive Producer SHIRLEY VERCRUYSSE Editor JENN STROM Composer WAYNE LAVALLEE Director of Photography MIKE MCKINLAY Production Designer JAMES BOATMAN Sound Designer TROY SLOCUM Costume Designer CHELSEA GRAHAM A NATIONAL FILM BOARD OF CANADA Production 30 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT JULY 13 – 20 / 2017

COMEDY 2ONGOING THE COMEDY MIX 1015 Burrard, Century Plaza Hotel & Spa, 604-684-5050, www. thecomedymix.com/. Comedy club with pro-am night Tue at 8:30 pm, showcase Wed at 8:30 pm, and featured headliners Thu at 8:30 pm and Fri-Sat at 8 and 10:30 pm. Cover $8 Tue, $10 Wed, $15 Thu, $18 Fri, $20 Sat. 2TIM NUTT Jun 13-15 2MATT BILLON Jul 20-22.

OUT ON THE EDGE As the Dancing on the Edge festival leaps, glides, twists, and turns into its final weekend, look for Unwrapping Culture, Co.ERASGA’s collaboration with Thailand’s brilliant Pichet Klunchun. Prepare for mountains of trinkets culled from that country’s night markets in a dizzying, neon-coloured look at the politics of commercialism amid an ancient Buddhist culture. It happens tonight through Friday (July 12 to 14) at the KW Production Studio, Woodward’s Heritage Building. Elsewhere, you’ll want to rock out at No Fun, Helen Simard’s outrageous ode to Iggy Pop, Friday and Saturday (July 14 and 15) at the Firehall Arts Centre. And we like the looks of the mixed Edge 6 program at the same venue on Wednesday and Friday (July 12 and 14), featuring the innovative work of Deanna Peters and Daelik.

DANCING ON THE EDGE FESTIVAL 2017 The 29th annual event pushes the frontiers of contemporary dance with performances by over 25 choreographers and over 80 dance artists. Participating dance companies include Aeriosa Dance and Spakwus MUSIC Slulem, Alexandra Elliott Dance, All Bodies Dance Project, Beijing Modern Dance 2THIS WEEK Company, Chick Snipper, Co.ERASGA and Pichet Klunchun Dance Company, Cori SUMMER MUSIC VANCOUVER Caulfield and coriograph theatre, Daelik, FESTIVAL Music in the Morning preDeanna Peters and Mutable Subject, sents a three-day festival of new and Emmalena Fredriksson and Arash Khakpour, old classical music. Includes concerts LINK Dance Foundation, Helen Simard, It and pre-show chats. Jul 13-15, various Burns Hot and Fast, Julianne Chapple, Vancouver venues. Tix $20-38, info Karen Jamieson Dance and Carnegie www.musicinthemorning.org/. Dance Troupe, Kinesis Dance somatheatro, Les Productions Figlio, MascallDance, HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER Mile Zero Dance, Monica Shah, Olivia C. OF AZKABAN IN CONCERT As part of the Davies, Naomi Brand, Ralph Escamillan and Harry Potter Film Concert Series, conductor FakeKnot, Sara Porter, and Yvonne Ng and Justin Freer leads the Vancouver Symphony tiger princess dance projects. To Jul 15, vari- Orchestra in a performance of the soundous Vancouver venues. Tix $24-28/by dona- track while the film plays on a big screen in high definition. Jul 13, 7 pm; Jul 14, 7 pm; tion, info www.dancingontheedge.org/.

OPENS JULY 14

Jul 15, 2 pm, Orpheum Theatre (601 Smithe). Info www.vancouversymphony.ca/.

YUK YUK’S COMEDY CLUB 2837 Cambie, 604-696-9857, www.yukyuks.com/vancou ver/. Comedy club with Top Talent Tue at 8 pm, amateur night Wed at 8 pm, and professional headliners Thu-Fri at 8 pm and Sat at 7 and 9:30 pm. Cover Tue $10, Wed $7, Thu $10, and Fri-Sat $20. 2JAMES KENNEDY Jul 14-15 2DAMONDE TSCHRITTER Jul 21-22 2BRETT MARTIN Jul 28-29. VANCOUVER THEATRESPORTS LEAGUE Some of the world’s most daring and innovative improv. #NoFilter (Thu, 9:15 pm); Oh, Canada: The True North Strong and Funny (Thu, Fri, and Sat, 7:30 pm); Ok Tinder (Fri and Sat, 11:15 pm); Rookie Night (Sun, 7:30 pm); TheatreSports (Tue and Wed, 7:30 pm; Wed, 9:15 pm; Fri and Sat, 9:30 pm). Jul 12-19, The Improv Centre (1502 Duranleau, Granville Island). Info www.vtsl.com/.

2THIS WEEK VANCOUVER THEATRESPORTS FUNDRAISER FOR B.C. FIRES APPEAL Watch the Vancouver TheatreSports League in its classic TheatreSports show. Proceeds go to the Canadian Red Cross British Columbia Fires Appeal, which benefits those impacted by this summer’s wildfires. Jul 12, 9:15 pm. Info www.vtsl.com/. TIM NUTT Canadian standup comedian known for his Comedy Now special for CTV and the Comedy Network. Jul 13-15, The Comedy MIX (1015 Burrard). Tix $20/18/15, info www.thecomedymix.com/. JAMES KENNEDY Standup comedian performs a solo show. Jul 14-15, Yuk Yuk’s Comedy Club (2837 Cambie). Tix $19.05, info www.yukyuks.com/vancouver/.

ET CETERA 2THIS WEEK INDIAN SUMMER FESTIVAL Annual event offers literary dialogues, musical performances, and public-art exhibitions featuring Grammy Award–winning musicians, oral storytellers, hip-hop artists, and international visionaries. To Jul 15, various Vancouver venues. Info www.indiansummerfest.ca/.

see page 32

MOVIES REVIEWS THE LITTLE HOURS Starring Aubrey Plaza. Rating unavailable

A bunch of great comic actors get to romp

2 around in rural Tuscany in The Little Hours,

and it’s also pretty fun for us, too. Following Joshy (2016) and 2014’s likable zom-com Life After Beth, writer-director Jeff Baena here gets to exorcise a jones for medieval literature—didn’t see that coming!—specifically, the tale of a horny young fugitive hiding out in a 14th-century convent, ripped with some almighty liberties from Giovanni Boccaccio’s The Decameron. As Sister Fernanda, the angriest and most rebellious of a trio of nuns, Baena’s partner and Life After Beth star Aubrey Plaza nominally leads the ensemble cast with perhaps a tad too much reliance on her resting-bitch chops. Rounded out by the not entirely committed Sister Alessandra (Alison Brie, How to Be Single) and gonzo Sister Ginerva (Kate Micucci, Garfunkel and Oates), the joke here is that the hot-to-trot threesome

Nasty habits, dirty mouths

Kate Micucci, Alison Brie, and Aubrey Plaza get the horn big-time when a handsome young handyman arrives at the convent in The Little Hours.

or even television in most places. This investigation connected her with the Native Brotherhood, a longrunning advocacy group that, despite the name, Modern attitudes and medieval sex clash hilariously in director Jeff Baena’s Decameron-inspired The Little Hours empowered many women (including nonaboriginal speak in contemporary lingo replete with lots of F founding editor Maisie Hurley) in this matrilinbombs, while striking a flip attitude heavy on the eal mix of West Coast cultures. The surviving men and women of the group, eye-rolling and middle-school politics. It all gets off to a wonderful start with Fernanda and of the newspaper, provide powerful testimonand Co. viciously attacking the handyman Lurco, ials for Clements’s camera, blended (by editor Jenn played by Grandma filmmaker Paul Weitz. Since Strom) with equally compelling visits with connobody was thinking too carefully about sublim- temporary artists, writers, and musicians. These ated libidos back then, John C. Reilly’s sweetly in- include Vancouver stalwarts Shakti Hayes and effectual, wine-loving Father Tommasso (he can’t Russell Wallace, playwright Corey Payette, and even get the facts about sodomy straight) decides to hip-hop artist Ronnie Dean Harris, among many replace Lurco with Tom Cruise look-alike Massetto others, all contributing to catchy songs by Mani(Dave Franco, Neighbours). He’s on the run after toba composer Wayne Lavallee. The well-produced tunes are presented as illusbanging Francesca (scene-stealer Lauren Weedman, Wilson), wife of the vengeance-obsessed Lord trative music videos, informal performances, background to older footage, and concert settings Bruno (The Hero’s Nick Offerman, having a ball). Fred Armisen and Molly Shannon are also on- that fittingly blend anger, self-assertion, and pure board, as Mother Superior and a visiting bishop, re- celebration. These are seen alongside dramatic spectively, so be assured: it’s a blast, like a 90-minute re-creations, archival stills and news footage, old episode of Drunk History upgraded with spectacu- clippings, material addressing the missing-women lar photography. But it isn’t bawdy, which The Little crisis, slow-motion mood setters, and the aforeHours very much wants to be, awkward moments mentioned interviews, as well as reenactments of of nudity included. Baena was never going to get the filmmaker riffling through Native Voice. Ultimately, 10 movies’ worth of material is stuffed erotic delirium from these self-consciously hip young American stars, but whatever. It still has way into just under two hours, making for a journey that’s a little harder to absorb than it could have more laughs than Flavia the Heretic. > ADRIAN MACK been. Still, whatever your own background, you’re likely to come away from this Road saying—as an THE ROAD FORWARD elderly participant recalls of dominant-culture folks responding to her own group’s historical presentaA documentary by Marie Clements. Rating tions—“How come I didn’t know these things?” If unavailable the film is too much of a good thing, it just shows The Road Forward offers an embarrassment what we’ve been missing. > KEN EISNER of riches regarding the political, cultural, and day-to-day life of Canada’s First Nations THE ORNITHOLOGIST people, particularly in this region. This deluxe-looking NFB documentary was Starring Paul Hamy. In English and Portuguese, written and directed by Marie Clements, who with English subtitles. Rating unavailable had been inspired to create a stage musical and St. Anthony of Padua was a 13th-century then her first feature after searching through Portuguese friar and disciple of St. Francis copies of the Native Voice, a B.C. newspaper that connected far-flung communities starting of Assisi, founder of the Franciscan order. Born in 1946, long before the advent of the Internet Fernando Martins, the future saint was known

WEEK IN WIDESCREEN

2 Chick flick DESERT HEARTS A landmark in queer cinema, Donna

Deitch’s outstanding 1985 feature, based on a Jane Rule novel, sends newly divorced university prof Helen Shaver to 1950s Reno and straight into the arms of sculptor Patricia Charbonneau. The restored film returns to the Cinematheque for three nights starting Saturday (July 15). -

> KEN EISNER see next page

MOVIES

The projector

for his charismatic speeches, commitment to extreme poverty, and fatally sickly nature. In fact, some doctors still refer to a rare, deliriuminducing intestinal infection as St. Anthony’s Fire. He’s also the patron saint of lost things, and people certainly lose their shit here. A fifth feature for Portugal’s João Pedro Francisco, The Ornithologist is one weird-ass fever dream of a movie—two hours of unpredictable mayhem, grotesque humour, and almost sublime contemplation, some of it zoological. But the less you know in advance the better, once you have decided to surrender to this Franciscan’s oddly spiritual journey. The tale starts slowly, with another Fernando (French actor Paul Hamy), a bird-obsessed specialist who has travelled to remote northeastern Portugal to capture details about a rare black heron. He finds what he’s looking for; we also see him from the heron’s point of view. But while kayaking through a steep, colour-saturated ravine, Fernando fails to notice approaching rapids that will dash his reverie, and his boat. He washes up somewhere on the Portuguese end of St. James’s Way, known in Spain as El Camino de Santiago. In short order, the ornithologist is found by a pair of female pilgrims from China who take their Christian conversion far too seriously, atavistic night spirits who rob and piss on him, a mute shepherd who catches his ire, some bare-breasted, equestrian Amazons who mistake him for a deer, and— well, I’ve already said too much. There are many memento mori, including skulls and saintly relics, images of bondage and other semibiblical cruelty, full male nudity, and the speaking of rarely heard languages, including the regional Mirandese and ancient Latin. People drink blood from wounds and milk from animal teats. The director, who already dubs the lead actor’s Portuguese, later begins intermittently subbing himself for Hamy. Threading through this sometimes baff ling widescreen barrage is a seemingly sincere search for deeper meaning that is also being threatened as the natural world disappears. Oh, and there’s also some ’80s pop music to further enliven this medieval theme-park ride.

What to see and where to see it

Dude night

MALI BLUES Lutz Gregor’s acclaimed

2016 doc follows four musicians as they challenge the regressive forces of religious fundamentalism. Screening at the Vancity Theatre on Monday (July 17).

OTELLO Catch the Royal Opera House’s

latest version of Verdi’s Shakespeare-inspired masterpiece, with Jonas Kaufmann in the lead, for one night only at the Vancity Theatre on Tuesday (July 18).

CALL ME THIEF Set in Cape Town’s gangland of the 1960s, the brutal, if ultimately uplifting, Call Me Thief comes to the Vancity Theatre on Wednesday (July 19) via the Vancouver Foreign Film Society..

THE LAST PICTURE SHOW Screening with Starman

in a one-night tribute to Jeff Bridges, here’s the 1971 comingof-age drama that arguably kick-started the last great era in American film. Ben Johnson, Cloris Leachman, Timothy Bottoms, and Cybill Shepherd (making her screen debut) costar in this must-see at the Rio Theatre on Sunday (July 16). JULY 13 – 20 / 2017 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT 31

Arts time out

from page 30

GALLERIES VANCOUVER ART GALLERY 750 Hornby, 604-662-4719, www.vanartgallery.bc.ca/. 2PICTURES FROM HERE (photographs and video works by Vancouver-based artists) to Sep 4 2STEPHEN SHORE: THE GIVERNY PORTFOLIO (25 works by contemporary American photographer Stephen Shore complement the exhibition Claude Monetâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Secret Garden) to Oct 1 2ELAD LASSRY (first major Canadian exhibition of photographs, collages, drawings, sculptures, and films by the Tel Avivâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;born, Los Angelesâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;based artist) to Oct 1 2PERSISTENCE (exhibition draws together three recent contemporary installations by Canadian artists Julia Feyrer, Tamara Henderson, Shelagh Keeley, and Germaine Koh) to Oct 1 2CLAUDE MONETâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S SECRET GARDEN (exhibit showcases 38 paintings that span the career of the French artist who is regarded as a master of the impressionist movement) to Oct 1

MUSEUMS THE MUSEUM OF ANTHROPOLOGY AT UBC 6393 NW Marine Drive, 604-822-5087, www.moa.ubc.ca/. 2AMAZONIA: THE

RIGHTS OF NATURE (exhibition features Amazonian basketry, textiles, carvings, feather works, and ceramics both of everyday and of ceremonial use, representing Indigenous, Maroon, and white settler communities) to Jan 28 2TRACES OF WORDS: ART AND CALLIGRAPHY FROM ASIA (multimedia exhibition examines the physical traces of words, both spoken and recorded, that are unique to humans) to Oct 9 2IN A DIFFERENT LIGHT: REFLECTING ON NORTHWEST COAST ART (exhibition presents more than 110 historical indigenous artworks and explores what we can learn from these works) Jun 22â&#x20AC;&#x201C;Spring 2019

donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t miss out! For up-to-the-minute, searchable Arts Time Out listings, visit

www.straight.com

TIME OUT ARTS LISTINGS are a public service provided free of charge. We canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t guarantee inclusion, and we give priority to events taking place within one week of publication. Submit listings online using the event-submission form at straight.com/AddEvent. Events that donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t make it into the paper due to space constraints will appear on the website.

We fucked with the wrong chimp in War for the Planet of the Apes.

Movie reviews

from previous page

WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES Starring Andy Serkis. Rated PG

Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve harboured a peculiar for the Planet of the Apes movies ever since I saw the 1968 original at Chilliwackâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s historicâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;and since demolishedâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; Paramount Theatre at age 11. Even then I could tell that it was pretty dumb, but I had a thing about â&#x20AC;&#x153;gorillasâ&#x20AC;?â&#x20AC;&#x201D;even if they were mostly chimpanzees, like Roddy McDowallâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s kind-hearted Cornelius. The franchise has been pretty hit-and-miss so far, though. Tim Burtonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 2001 remake with Mark Wahlberg was freakinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; awfulâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;except for the part about Estella Warrenâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;whereas the 2011 reboot with James Franco wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t too bad. And the latest entry, War for the Planet of the Apes, continues that not-toobad tradition, mainly because of the action scenes and visual effects. As the film opens, we see American soldiers stealthily creeping up a forest hill that looks a lot like B.C. because it is. They have threatening phrases like â&#x20AC;&#x153;Monkey Killerâ&#x20AC;? and â&#x20AC;&#x153;Bedtime for Bonzoâ&#x20AC;? scrawled on their helmets, so you know these macho men are in line for an ass-whuppinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. After the expected pounding by an army of apes on horseback, lead simian Caesar (motion-capture superstar Andy Serkis, of Gollum fame) solemnly tells the few surviving grunts: â&#x20AC;&#x153;I did not start this war.â&#x20AC;? He sends them back alive to prove that his kind arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t â&#x20AC;&#x153;savagesâ&#x20AC;? and just asks to be left alone in the woods. But if you believe that happens, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got a forest full of anthropoids to sell you. After some sumptuously shot scenes in which the gentle apes frolic happily near a waterfall to a sweeping orchestral scoreâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the poop-chucking is kept to a minimum, at least for nowâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the pesky humans return with machine guns sporting cool green-laser scopes and Woody Harrelson as the swaggering, ape-hating Colonel. After he wastes most of Caesarâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s family, the plot line gets locked on revenge as the grieving chimp sets off on horseback with his three most trusted disciples for a little payback. As if it werenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t already clear that humans are the real animals and apes essentially good, the foursome rescue a mute young girl (Amiah Miller) and take her with them. Along the way, they also encounter a goofy little chimp (Steve Zahn), and bring him along for comic relief and cuteness and to make sure that that sweeping orchestral score never wavers. The sentimentality on display verges on saccharine, but the wild action sequences, lush photography, and first-rate production design make up for it. Harrelson shaves his skull with a straight razor and impressively flexes his head muscles, but those special effects are nothing compared with the mindblowing visuals that make the filmâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s last half-hour a sterling example of what Hollywood producers like to call â&#x20AC;&#x153;movie magicâ&#x20AC;?.

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In Theaters July 21st IN SELECTED THEATERS

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SEE WWW.RIOTHEATRE.CA FOR COMPLETE LISTINGS & UPDATED CALENDAR

32 THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT JULY 13 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 20 / 2017

> STEVE NEWTON see next page

TANNA Starring Marie Wawa. In Nauvhal, with English subtitles. Rated PG

A fascinating ethnographic study more than it is a conventionally satisfying movie, Tanna unfolds entirely in Nauvhal, a language spoken by Melanesians in Vanuatu, a South Pacific archipelago remote enough that locals have so far managed to avoid total absorption by outer cultures. The film was nominally written and directed by Martin Butler and Bentley Dean, Australian docmakers making the transition to features. Their most significant undertaking was living with Yakel villagers of the title island for seven months, gaining their trust and learning regional lore while finding nonprofessionals capable of handling on-camera chores unselfconsciously. In the end, they went with a Romeo and Juliet–type tale of forbidden love, explicating enduring taboos, tribal politics, and spiritual beliefs along the way. Basically, things turn on teenage Wawa (Marie Wawa), who’s about to be initiated into adulthood when she falls for handsome Dain (Mungau Dain), Yakel royalty still smarting over losing his parents to rivals called the Imedin. Things get worse when a Yakel shaman is attacked by Imedin, threatening not only their security but their repository of kastom—the knowledge of traditional ways. Wawa was already an unlikely match for Dain (should we mention

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Romeo and Juliet comes to the South Pacific in Tanna, shot entirely in the Nauvhal language with nonactors from Vanuatu’s Yakel community.

that he appears to be twice her age?) before the current chief promises her hand to an Imedin man, in order to facilitate peace between bands. A worthy cause, but this does little to ameliorate the lovers’ personal pain, so they make a run for it. Turns out that people of all types can be petty, vindictive, and shortsighted. The human foreground isn’t always that interesting, but the

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savage love I’m a gay medical student with a medical fetish, and I can’t even open up to my therapist about this. I think the fetish started when I was young; I was once in the hospital and given a suppository for a fever. Then one time I was given a Fleet enema. I don’t think the “butt stuff ” turned me gay, but my fetish may stem from the aspect of being controlled. I grew up in a very conservative religious household. I’ve never been in a relationship, and I don’t know that I could have one while hiding what turns me on. In my profession, we have to be confident and even sort of “dominant” in our roles as providers, but underneath I’m incredibly submissive. I didn’t go into medicine for this reason. We have very strict professional boundaries and ethical expectations, and I have no problem with that. I expect my job to be very clinical and boring. But outside of work, I feel like my sexual desires need some kind of outlet. > DILEMMA OF CONSCIENCE

“Someone can have one persona at work and another at home,” said Eric the Red, a Florida nurse and a fellow medical fetishist. “DOC can be confident and dominant at work—his patients need someone confident and dominant to get them through their medical issues—and then fi nd someone to spend his life with who brings out his submissive side and gives him the balance to make him feel like a whole person.” In other words, DOC, when you do start dating and having relationships, you’re going to want to be open about your kinks. They’re nothing to

> BY DAN SAVAGE 10 full-symphony times. This new generation of women! Impressive! But then I watched an 18-year-old Russian woman with an equally beautiful black American man. She sucked away on his dick and swallowed 12 times in five minutes! I kept thinking: She’s gonna get a break now? Maybe a hug? A beer, a joint, a pay raise? Something?!? Nope. She even apologized for spilling some come at one point. Now I’m SAD. It’s the exact same shit I faced when I started in ’73. Gaysex-talk some sense into stupid straight boys! Y’all gay men do blowjobs without degradation. Tell straight men how it’s done!

be ashamed of, and there’s no point in hiding your sexual interests from your future partner(s). You want a sex partner who meets your needs, not one you have to hide your needs from. So long as you keep things professional at work—which shouldn’t be hard, since it’s being the patient and not the doctor that turns you on—you have nothing to feel conflicted about. “The one practical problem he will encounter is that since he actually knows how to give a physical, he may have less patience with fetishists who are not medical professionals in real life and don’t really know what they are doing,” said Eric. “Over the years, I have trained nonprofessionals who want to play doctor to give semirealistic physicals, insert and irrigate catheters, use sounds, and otherwise have enough technical expertise to do a medical scene that’s realistic enough that I can enjoy being their patient without screaming, ‘No, that’s not how it’s done!’ He may find himself doing the same.” The good news? “DOC won’t have any trouble finding like-minded people,” said Eric. “Medical fetishists are well organized online; just spend a few minutes on Google and he’ll find them.”

> REALLY ANGRY GAL IS NEEDING GAYS

There’s nothing inherently demeaning about giving someone a blowjob, and plenty of people—gay, straight, bi, pan, demi, sapio, et cetera—give and receive blowjobs without splashing around in the degradation pool. That said, RAGING, gay men are just as likely as straight men to “dip in the degradation pool” when they’re getting blowjobs—particularly when a blowjob is being fi lmed. No need to take my word for it: head over to the gay aisle at PornHub. You’ll find lots of videos where the guys giving blowjobs are degraded—called names, roughly handled, made to apologize for come spillage—and you’ll be hard-pressed to find one in which the word cocksucker isn’t tossed around. But don’t feel bad for all those gay cocksuckers, RAGING: For many gay men, the taunts we feared most in high school become the dirty talk that gets us off

As a 56-year-old, 95-percentstraight woman, I’d like to think all y’all gay men can enjoy blowjobs without that dip in the degradation pool straight men always take. Maybe you could gaysex talk some sense into stupid straight men. On PornHub recently, I watched a fearless young woman use a dildo five ways and come at least

in adulthood. As for the video you saw—a Russian interfering with an American erection—there must have been breaks that were edited out (no guy can come 12 times in five minutes), so hugs, beers, and joints may have been made available when the cameras weren’t running.

I have a phone-sex kink, and I got

Tinder to explore that. I tell guys it won’t get physical and that I’m interested only in text play and photoswapping. I matched with a cute, kinky guy, and I have been playing with him mostly over text for about two years. The issue is that I found out recently that he’s engaged. I’m pretty conflicted about this. He says that sex with her is good but vanilla and that she’s unwilling to experiment. He also isn’t comfortable sharing his kinks with her. I understand that some people have a hard time reconciling the dirty shit they want to do in bed with the sweet girl they want to marry, but he seems unwilling to try. Do I cut him off ? Is he just doing what he has to do to make an otherwise good relationship work? Is it okay of him if she never finds out and everyone is happy? > PLAYING HURTFUL OVER TEXT ONLY?

The odds that your sext buddy’s wife will never find out are slim. Spouses snoop, computers and phones get left open, a dirty message or photo intended for one person (say, you) gets sent to the wrong person (say, her). If you’re not comfortable playing with someone who is deceiving his

girlfriend and/or wife—if you don’t want the incriminating message his wife inevitably finds to be one intended for or from you—you should end this, PHOTO. But it is possible to continue playing/texting/sexting with a semiclear conscience: he may be doing what he needs to do to make this relationship work; he’s exploring his kinks without touching another woman; if this is cheating, it’s cheating lite; et cetera. Whatever you ultimately decide to do, PHOTO, you should encourage this guy to open up to his fiancée about his fantasies and kinks. It’s exhausting to spend your life with someone you have to hide from— exhausting and rarely successful. If he doesn’t want the truth to end his marriage, he needs to tell her the truth now. Engagements are easily called off, marriages less so. ITMFA UPDATE: We want to send tasteful ITMFA American-flag lapel pins to every member of Congress! Go to ImpeachTheMotherFuckerAlready. com, select a member of Congress, and write a short note explaining why you want that motherfucker impeached! It costs $15 to send two tasteful pins— and one unmistakable message—to Congress! All proceeds benefit the ACLU, Planned Parenthood, and the International Refugee Assistance Project! Help us flood Congress with ITMFA pins! On the Lovecast, trans activist Buck Angel: savagelovecast.com . Email: mail@savagelove.net. Follow Dan on Twitter @fakedansavage.

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