Local Arts

On Thursday, July 23 some of the Coast's finest names in music will gather at the Heritage Playhouse in Gibsons to celebrate its latest arrival, the Knabe concert grand piano.

In 1996, the arts scene in the Gibsons area was a mere shadow of today's vibrant activity. Yet the Coast had become home to hundreds of artists and artisans, and their presence attracted tourists, as local businesses were discovering.

If three days of camping, international cuisine, artisans and a plethora of musical styles and acts interests you, then the fifth annual Bonfire Music Festival is the place to be.

Gibsons artist Patricia Collier has just been published as the illustrator of a new book, Happily Retired: What works, what doesn't, by Ottawa writers Julie Chahal and Linda Lucas.

The previous Women of the Coast musical event was a huge success, so the performers are doing it again. Come celebrate Women of the Coast in a winter concert of live music this Saturday at 8 p.m.

An amazing turn at the piano from the kid they call JJ, a sensual flamenco dancer, Heidi Riggs, and some fine old bluegrass tunes marked the launch of the Showcase of the Performing Arts (SOPA) on July 2.

It's Charlie. From the moment Idol finalist Charlie Daigneault and her guitar took the stage at Sailor Dan's Restaurant Tuesday night, June 30, there was no doubt why she was in the top three of the Coast's first Youth Idol competition.

Colourful and multi-talented David Lindley is coming back to the Coast to entertain once again. On Thursday, July 9, Lindley lights up the Rockwood Pavilion in Sechelt with his musical virtuosity and his flashy wardrobe.

The Gibsons Live Poets Society presents the inaugural event in their literary series, a reading by award-winning author Tim Bowling on Wednesday, July 8, at 7 p.m. Bowling will read from his eighth collection of poetry, The Book Collector ($16.

The eighth annual Showcase of the Performing Arts (SOPA) - a fundraiser for the Heritage Playhouse and a way to promote local performing arts - runs the first three weeks of July. Tonight, July 3, lovable Joe Stanton performs solo. Tickets are $15.