Beethoven’s famous Fifth Symphony will be performed by the Coast Symphony Orchestra along with works by Pablo de Sarasate, Saint-Saens and Arturo Marquez at their spring concert Sunday, June 3 at 2:30 p.m. at the Sechelt Indian Band Hall. José Cerón-Ortega is the conductor and he has invited local musician Hanna Crudele to be violin soloist. Tickets for $20 will go quickly but you can find them at Laedeli in Gibsons, Strait Music in Sechelt and at the door.
This Weekend
The 15th annual Pender Harbour Blues Festival is three days of the rockin’, chillin’, wailin’ blues, June 1 to 3, at various venues in Madeira Park and Garden Bay. Performances by Jim Byrnes, David Gogo, Brandon Isaak, Kenny ‘Blues Boss’ Wayne, Al Foreman, Tim Hearsey, Jim Foster, Simon Paradis, Luci Herder, Karen Graves, Steve Hinton, Blue Line Trio, Poppa Greg and the Chillin’ Dylans, The Grand Koolios, Joshua Wood, Bonar and Ted. Many free shows; some ticketed or with your dinner reservation. Phone 604-741-1186 or see phblues.ca.
Georgia Fats
On Saturday, June 2, Georgia Fats go live at the Gibsons Legion. They’ll be debuting some new tunes to accompany their EP that charted on University and CBC radio. Expect the unexpected with this group. Music starts at 8 p.m. and tickets are at the door for $8 members; $15 non-members. They are: Boyd Norman, bass/vocals; Joel Fafard, guitar/vocals; and Barry Taylor, drums.
Clay Wall Mural Workshop
Design and make a clay wall mural using the techniques Pat Forst has developed to create an image you can be proud of. Workshop to be held at the Forst Pottery Gallery, 1040 Chamberlin Rd., Gibsons, on Saturday and Sunday, June 2 and 3 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. for $150 plus materials (about $15 to $20). Register at 604-840-0304 or [email protected].
Lovebird
We Found a Lovebird is a Vancouver band that has been getting lots of attention from fans and music reviewers these days. Hear lyrical covers of bands like Slow – Lovebird has been called “delectably dreamy” by Georgia Straight. They play the Roberts Creek Legion on Saturday, June 2 at 9 p.m. Check out their new video for Mess We Call the West, the lead single from their most recent album, Lobby.
Singing High Tea
She’s a singing sensation, and she’s coming to the Sunshine Coast. Stephanie Standerwick loves rock, blues, jazz, old gospel and contemporary, plus she really does a number on cover songs of Motown, Elvis and the greats. She’s giving a concert in Gibsons on Saturday, June 2, from 2 to 4 p.m. The High Tea includes fancy sandwiches and scones with Devon-shire cream, hosted by the Women’s Group at Calvary Baptist Church of Gibsons, 711 Park Road. For over a decade, the singer has been performing internationally, in commercials and movies, and having original songs featured all over the world. In her spare time, Standerwick enjoys dancing, acting and exploring her other love, molecular biology. She is interested in the healing properties of sound frequencies and how positive music and lyrics affect the brain. High Tea in Concert with the recording artist costs $20 with tickets at Laedeli in Sunnycrest Mall, Gibsons.
Duck Pluck
The ducks are back. The Sunshine Coast Community Services Children’s Festival is not until June 23, but you can buy your Duck Pluck raffle tickets now. Over 20 prizes are up for grabs, including a kayak with roof rack from Canadian Tire and $350 in BC Ferries vouchers. Tickets are one for $5 and five for $20. They can be purchased at Sunshine Coast Community Services (5638 Inlet Avenue, Sechelt), Community Services Thrift Store (731 North Road, Gibsons), Laedeli in Sunny-crest Mall, Pastimes in Sechelt and Gibsons Public Market (check sccss.ca for times and additional locations). All proceeds from the Children’s Festival and Duck Pluck raffle go to the Sunshine Coast Community Services Society, the largest non-profit on the Coast.
Choices
May 25 to 27 was one of those weekends: so many overlapping arts events, so difficult to make choices. The Pender Harbour Choir performed at the Botanical Garden on Friday evening to an appreciative crowd who liked the favourites such as Bridge Over Troubled Water. A highlight for me was the new, original composition by artistic director Kenneth Norman Johnson. Titled Arioso, it’s sung in Italian and was handled beautifully by the choir.
On Sunday The Chair Actors gave their second performance of The Wild Flower Book, an original and historical play about pursuing a dream by local playwright Louise Phillips. They perform again this weekend on June 1 at 7 p.m. and June 2 and 3 at 3 p.m. at the Seniors Activity Centre in Sechelt. Tickets sell for $20 at the Centre, Sechelt Fish Market or Sechelt Visitor Centre.
Authors at Library
Local authors with library connections will read from original works on Thursday, June 7 at 7 p.m. at the Sechelt Library. They are: Nikki Iversen, Roxanne Gregory, Jocelyne Gregory, Teresa Eckford and Shannon Lightfoot. Every writer has a connection with the library: two volunteers, a staff member, a spouse of a staff member, and a friend of a volunteer. Phone the Library to register for this free event at 604-885-3260.
Phoenix Rises
Suncoast Phoenix Community Choir (conductor Sara Douglas, piano collaborator Tom Kellough) will present a spring concert, Earth, Sea and Sky, on Friday, June 8 at 7 p.m. at the Sechelt Indian Band Hall and Saturday, June 9 at 2 p.m. at Calvary Baptist Church, Gibsons. Musical selections range from classical to rollicking sea shanties. Admission by donation.
Dancing Brush
Mardi’s Dancing Brush art program offers an abstract art workshop of painted plaster on board at the Roberts Creek Community Hall on June 8 and two other sessions. All art materials are included along with snacks and sparkling drinks. Discover your inner Picasso for $349. Contact: [email protected]
TrashFormation
The Sunshine Coast Arts Council is holding an open call for their August Group Show (July 25 to Aug. 19). The exhibition’s title is TrashFormation and they are asking artists to re-examine articles that are broken and discarded, no longer valuable or functional, and to transform them into art. Art can stimulate, aggravate, shock, intrigue, beautify, clarify. What can you find that is thrown away and repurpose it into something artful that evokes an emotion in the viewer? Step outside your normal artistic parameters, create in a new way, using materials scavenged and found. TrashFormation will be a juried exhibition. To apply: send in your proposal with drawings and/or images of your ideas and considered materials by June 15. If selected, finished art work must be delivered by July 23. Send your digital submissions to: [email protected].
Nutcracker
In 2017 Coasting Along Theatre Society (CATS), the folks who bring you The Nutcracker ballet every season, was accepted into artsVest, a matching incentive and sponsorship training program of Business for the Arts. With funding support from Canadian Heritage and the B.C. government, artsVest provides in-depth sponsorship training in each community. The goal is to build greater awareness in the business community of the benefits of investing in arts and culture and the importance of a thriving arts community. CATS received funding of $6,250 in recognition of their success in promoting local business through sponsorship.
Along with their major sponsor, Swanson’s Ready-Mix Ltd., the Sunshine Coast Credit Union was a sponsor for the new Schools Outreach Program. Students attended the full Nutcracker production. The teachers were given a study guide in advance and the 500 students and teachers were thrilled to watch the ballet. CATS is getting ready for their seventh season with eight performances again this year. To be a co-sponsor of the Schools Outreach program or a sponsor of costumes or artists, or to make a donation, please see www.coastingalongtheatre.org, or contact Kathleen Holmes, artistic director, at 604-989-6050.
Message Me
Please send notice of your arts and entertainment events to my email: [email protected] or phone 604-741-9360. Items go into the Art Beat column one day to one week ahead only, depending on space. Deadline is Tuesday noon for Friday’s paper.
