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Nikki’s Now Generation

Art Beat
Becoming
Becoming: Last weekend DSdanse youth dance company and special guest dancer Danielle Gardner from So You Think You Can Dance; Sarah Hutton, former Source dancer and teacher of Dominique’s School of Dance; and Cassidy Rainer, member of the Modus Operandi dance program in Vancouver, performed at the Heritage Playhouse in the dance production titled Becoming. They presented a new group work from Alison Denham, Sylvain Brochu, Sarah Hutton and youth choreographer Audrée Hutchinson, a beautifully intimate and emotional production with a dash of humour.

Music teacher and mentor Nikki Weber hopes they can draw a good crowd to hear the annual young people’s show, Now Generation, on May 8. This performance includes Kiah and Faye Duffy, Talia and Ashaya Walkey, and Renee Harper, all current youthful singers. Weber stays in touch with those from the previous generation who will also perform: Sarah Loverock, Tanya (Comeau) Staunton, and guests Connor Lindsey and Axel Loitz, with Walter Martella on piano, Sacha Fassaert on guitar, and Barry Taylor on drums. The concert is at the Heritage Playhouse, Gibsons, on Sunday, May 8 at 2 p.m.  Tickets are $18 (adults), $12 for kids 12 and under, available at Gaia’s in Gibsons and Strait Music in Sechelt, or people can contact Weber (Nylkaweber@gmail.com) who will leave tickets under your name at the door. Could be a good Mother’s Day event.

Theatre romp

All the World’s a Stage is presented by Driftwood Theatre School. Fifteen talented young thespians (aged 10 to 17) take the audience on a rollicking romp through the life, times and works of William Shakespeare with iconic scenes from Hamlet, Macbeth and Julius Caesar, interwoven with a rousing sword fight, some classic cross-dressing, and a dash of murder and mayhem. Show is at the Heritage Playhouse, Gibsons, on Saturday, April 30 at 2 and 7 p.m. See www.driftwoodplayers.ca/dts.htm for more.

This weekend

The Creek Big Band is playing at the Sechelt Seniors Activity Centre on Saturday, April 30 at 7:30 p.m. Dance, dance, dance. Tickets at the door.

The Festival of the Performing Arts wraps up this week, but you haven’t missed the best part. The Festival Highlights concert takes place on Sunday, May 1 at 2 p.m. at Raven’s Cry Theatre, Sechelt. Admission is by donation.

Friendly fundraiser

Ride a pony, see the teacup pig, or kiss a llama at a fundraiser for the Gibsons Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre on Sunday, May 1 from noon to 3 p.m. It’s free by donation and you can take a tour, have coffee, or listen to music at Party Ponies & Farm Ventures, 713 Sullivan Rd. in Roberts Creek.

Open house

The YMCA is hosting an open house on Sunday, May 1 from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. at the YMCA Camp Elphinstone, 1760 YMCA Rd. in Gibsons. The event is free, so come out and join them for some fun activities, tours, light snacks, community booths and more.

Photos wanted

Photographers interested in displaying their photos can contact London Drugs in Gibsons by the deadline of May 1 to say they want to participate in a photo show at the end of May.

All photos will be printed by London Drugs with foam core mounting also available. The public can celebrate local photographers at a gala event on May 27 from 3 to 7 p.m. and May 28 through 30 daily. See londondrugs.com for more information, or phone 604-886-8720.

Piano honours

On April 17, the Sunshine Coast Festival of the Performing Arts presented the Piano Encore Concert, the result of a week of piano competition at the Arts Centre. Medallion and music prize winners are: Baroque Medallion, Poppy Adnitt; Classical Medallion, Clara Dyson; Intermediate Romantic Medallion, Clara Dyson; Senior Romantic Medallion, Shermaine O. Castillo; Margaret Webb Post-Romantic Medallion, Emily Picard; 20/21st Century Medallion, Jessica Carroll; Junior Canadian Medallion, Caleb Geue; Intermediate Canadian Medallion, Amelia Mellis; Performers’ Choice Medallion, Caleb Geue; Technical Studies Medallion, Caleb Geue; Concert Group Medallion, Amelia Mellis; Student Piano Duet Medallion, Mina and Sora Shibasaka; Family Piano Duet Medallion, Leif Montgomery and Katherine Hume; Ken Dalgleish Composition Award, Hannah Wing; Montgomery Music Prize for a French Composer, Galen Wilson. Some will be performing at the final Festival Highlights concert on May 1 at 2 p.m. at Raven’s Cry Theatre in Sechelt.

Autism film

Sunshine Coast organization ANCA® World Autism Festival™ has garnered international recognition for their film Connected: A film about autistic people. Filmed on location in Edinburgh, Scotland at the festival in 2014, with excerpts from the 2013  event held here on the Sunshine Coast, this film has caught the attention of Life Fest Film Festival (home of the Capra Awards) in Hollywood. The film was produced and directed by local Vancouver film maker Sonia Suvagau with original score composed by Sebastian Hugeneck of Sonia Productions Inc. The founders of the ANCA World Autism Festival, Leonora Gregory-Collura and Charlie Collura, who are the executive producers of the film, will be attending the film screening with many members of the cast. You can view the official trailer at vimeo.com/ondemand/ancaconnected/153959599

Dinner dance

There are still tickets available for the Flair on the Coast Cancer Support Group dinner dance on Saturday, May 7. Doors open at 6 p.m., meal at 7 p.m., at the Sechelt Seniors Activity Centre. Come along, rock and roll to the sounds of Playback, a great local group. Help support this local cancer support group through a raffle, 50/50 draw, and a great night out for $30. Get your tickets at Wakefield Jewelers, Georgian Trading Company, Pretty Natty Duds and Rowland Brake and Muffler.

Noon deadline

Send your notice of arts events by Tuesday at noon for Friday’s newspaper to jandegrass@dccnet.com or phone 604-886-4692. Please include a contact person’s phone number or email.