Royal watchers will know that May 19 is the wedding day of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. The Sunshine Coast Grandmothers and Grand Others (SCG&GO) invite you to put on your fancy hat (fascinator?), find your favourite teacup and join them at Pebbles Restaurant in Sechelt on May 19 from 2-4 p.m. where Miss Berni G will entertain while you enjoy fancy sandwiches and sweets by Chef Gordon. The SCG&GO is a local grassroots organization in touch with the grandmothers of Africa who must care for their grandchildren when their own sons and daughters have died from AIDS or war. The Grandmother organizations across Canada and around the world work with the Stephen Lewis Foundation to raise money to help support African grannies with the basics they need. Tickets for this fundraiser are $30 at Laedeli Gifts and The Blackberry Shop, Gibsons, Ambrosia Organic, Roberts Creek, and Driftwood Inn, Sechelt (where Pebbles Restaurant is located).
World Fiddle Day
May 19 is World Fiddle Day and Coast String Fiddlers celebrates 25 years of bringing music to the fiddle friendly Coast. The Fiddlers will be at the Persephone Beer Farm on Stewart Road near Gibsons from 2-4 p.m. on Saturday, May 19. Bad to the Bow and Coast String Fiddlers will play.
Art Show
Professional travel writer and artist Colleen Friesen invites the public to her show of recent work this Saturday, May 19 from 10-4 at Unit 10, Royal Reach complex in Sechelt (5761 Wharf Ave.). These creative, lively pieces of mixed media, collage and paint are for sale. See them before the nomadic Friesen resumes her travelling life. Visit colleenfriesen.com for more.
Playback
Hey, Gibsons! Next up for everyone’s favourite classic rock band Playback is a performance on Saturday, May 19 at the Gibsons Legion at 8 p.m.
Five Voices
Visual Language – 5 Voices opens at Fibreworks
Gallery and Studio at the yurts in Madeira Park on May 19 and runs to July 2. Five artists have taken a three-year in-depth journey exploring visual language as a form of communication. Combining the elements of design and their personal source of inspiration, each artist has created their own story in textiles, but not exclusively through fabric and thread. The opening reception is on Saturday, May 19 from 2-4 p.m. All are invited.
May Day
Pender Harbour May Day is this Saturday, May 19. Celebrate with a pancake breakfast, parade, games, vendors, food and fun from 9 to 4 in Madeira Park.
Handbuilding Workshop
Join Pat Forst at her lovely Gibsons studio and learn how to plan and assemble clay slabs into a square or geometric shape to form vases, cups or dishes. No previous experience is necessary. Workshop is on Saturday and Sunday, May 19 and 20 from 10 a.m.-3p.m. Cost: $150+materials ($15-20). To register, contact Pat at [email protected] or 604-840-0304. Workshop takes place at Forst Pottery, 1040 Chamberlin Rd, Gibsons.
Mr. Gaga
Mr. Gaga is a documentary by Tomer Heymann about Ohad Naharin, artistic director of the Batsheva Dance Company, who is regarded as one of the most important choreographers in the world. It is the story of an artistic genius who has redefined the language of modern dance. The film screens at the Sunshine Coast Arts Centre (Trail & Medusa, Sechelt), Sunday, May 20 at 10:30 a.m. as part of the Sunshine Coast Arts Council’s Art & the Documentary Sunday Film Series. It was filmed over a period of eight years and mixes intimate rehearsal footage with an extensive unseen archive and breathtaking dance sequences. Mr. Gaga emphasizes the exploration of sensation and availability for movement and has attracted a wide following among dancers around the world. The film was released in 2017, runs 100 minutes and is rated: PG. Guest speaker will be Sunshine Coast dancer and choreographer, Katherine Denham. Free muffins and coffee will be served thanks to sponsor, Strait Coffee. Suggested donation of $10. Doors open at 10a.m. For more see: sunshinecoastartscouncil.com
Spanish Civil War book
On Wednesday, May 23 at 6 p.m. local writer Alex Laidlaw presents “Reading the Spanish Civil War: Poetry and Prose as Portal to History” at the Gibsons Public Library. If you’ve ever read a story or novel and got interested in the broader historical context, then read and researched obsessively for months after ... then you understand this writer’s interest. See: https://www.facebook.com/events/2039687432910057/ for more.
Photo Show
A bevy of local photographers will showcase their best work at the 4th annual Celebrate Local Photographers exhibition, hosted by London Drugs Photo Lab and the Sunnycrest Mall, Gibsons, in the Mall (situated between John the Barber and Telus.) The Gala Opening is on Thursday, May 24 from 3 to 7 p.m.; the show continues through Sunday, May 27 from 1 to 5 p.m. daily. Take in a visual feast, have a seat and relax while you enjoy iced tea and treats, talk with local photographers and get inspired. Photos will be available for sale. Admission is free.
Wonderful World Concert
“What a Wonderful World” sings the Pender Harbour Choir in their spring concert. They invite you to join them in celebrating the wonder and beauty of our world with song. The program covers a breadth of musical styles; one of the highlights is the haunting “So Still” from the Emily Carr Suite by Brian Tate. The tempo changes with the joyful “Arioso,” written by the choir’s director, Kenneth Norman Johnson. And all will be invited to join in to sing the familiar Louis Armstrong song “What a Wonderful World.” Performances are 7:30 p.m. (reception at 7), Friday, May 25 at the Sunshine Coast Botanical Gardens in Sechelt and 2:30 p.m. (reception at 2) on Sunday, May 27 at the School of Music in Madeira Park. Tickets are $20 (children 12 and under, accompanied by an adult, are free) and are available from EarthFair in Madeira Park, Sechelt Visitor Centre, from choir members, and if available, at the door.
Spring Concert
Lost in the Stars is the title of a spring concert from A Cappella Strait and Choralations Children’s Choir that will feature choral music that encourages you to “feel the atmosphere” and all its many moods. This concert will be mostly a cappella choral pieces selected by director Janice Brunson, sourced from modern times (including works by Ola Gjeilo, Eric Whitacre and Morten Lauridson), a beautifully-set Irish folksong, some popular songs, and some rare Middle Ages choral works. Concert is on Friday, May 25 at 7 p.m. at St. John’s United Church, Davis Bay and on Saturday, May 26 at 7 p.m. at St. Bartholomew’s Anglican Church, Gibsons. Tickets are at the Sechelt Visitor Centre (Seaside Building) and at Laedeli Gifts and Cards in Gibsons. Adults pay $20. Students/ Seniors $15. Children under 12 go free.
Jazz at the Market
Jazz singer Laura Crema, bassist Rene Worst and guitarist Steve Giltrow perform in the last show of an ongoing jazz series at the Gibsons Public Market on Saturday, May 26. Cocktails are at 7 p.m.; music at 7:30. Tickets are $20 online at gibsonspublicmarket.com, One Flower One Leaf Gallery (Gibsons), The Medicine Shoppe (Wilson Creek) and Strait Music (Sechelt). Early dinner is an option at the Market. See: stevegiltrow.ca for more information.
Call for Artists
The District of Sechelt is looking for artist, designers and/or photographers residing on the Sunshine Coast to create original designs that will be reproduced and applied as vinyl wraps on BC Hydro Utility Boxes. All information about the project is available online: http://www.sechelt.ca/City-Hall/Current-News/Article/2484/Call-for-Artists-Designers-and-Photographers. Deadline to apply is Monday, May 28. This program was made possible by a partnership between the District of Sechelt, the Sechelt Downtown Business Association and the BC Hydro Beautification program.
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 Artbeat column one day to one week ahead only depending on space. Deadline is Tuesday noon for Friday’s paper.
