Chinese Varsity Club Reunion

The Chinese Varsity Club (better known as the CVC) at UBC is currently locating
Executives or Member Alumni of the club for the purposes of organzing a reunion for everyone. If you, or someone you know, was a part of the CVC, please contact Nathania Lo, CVC President (2004-2005) at nathanialo@ubccvc.com

Japanese Canadian Relocation

The Vancouver Museum is planning a show on the Japanese Canadian Relocation in May. They are interested in hearing from anyone who has a lapel sign or label/ribbon from the 40s declaring the wearer not to be confused as Japanese. If you have such an item, please contact Larry Wong at lywong@shaw.ca

Bride and Prejudice

Premise
A brash American beguiles a headstrong Indian woman whose mother is intent on arranging her four daughters' marriages.

Gurinder Chadha's "Bride and Prejudice" is a pretty movie, but it's also a pretty crazy one: an imitation Bollywood-Hollywood musical loosely based on Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice." On the other hand, it's knowingly off-the-rails and if you're in a tolerant or adventurous mood, very entertaining.
Chadha is the gifted Indian-British director of the beguiling 2002 sports comedy-drama "Bend it Like Beckham," a movie whose sleeper success obviously gave her some carte blanche. She's expended it here on a goofy and voluptuous dream project.

What can you say about a movie that translates Austen's famous opening sentence "It's a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife" into the rocking pajama party quartet "No Life Without Wife," sung and danced by the bouncy Bakshi sisters headed by radiant star Aishwarya Rai? Or one that keeps flipping its characters from Amritsar, India, to London to L.A.—and, at one point, has an entire Amritsar open air market break out into song and dance (with English lyrics)?

Bollywood, of course, refers to that specifically Indian genre of musical romances that is its country's most popular movie form and, until recently, an object of neglect and scorn by many western film critics. It's a lavish, outlandish genre, just as the old Hollywood musicals were, built on grand purple emotions, operatic ballads and scintillating, gorgeously silly dances.

Chadha has pulled out all the stops here in partially recreating it, hiring Bollywood's biggest current star, Rai, as her leading lady; anchoring the cast with major Indian actors such as Namrata Shirodkar and Anupam Kher; and spicing it up with an American pop star, Ashanti. She also has hired one of the best Bollywood cinematographers (Santosh Sivan), the consensus best Bollywood choreographer (Saroj Khan) and a famous Bollywood composer (Anu Malik).

As for Austen's plot, it's already inspired many adaptations, including the famous MGM version with Greer Garson as Elizabeth Bennett and Laurence Olivier as her mysterious beau William Darcy and the excellent 1995 BBC series, with one more on the way. But here it's kept only in outline and in riffs like "No Life Without Wife." There is a William Darcy, a hunky rich American played by Australian Martin Henderson and a sort of Elizabeth Bennett: the witty and independent Lalita Bakshi, played by Rai. And there are Bakshi's parents and sisters, who remind us of the Bennett originals, and a lower-class villain, Daniel Gillies' Johnny Wickham.

The performances to remember here include Rai's; she's an actress of great, piquant beauty (she's an international L'Oreal spokeswoman) and also a screen natural who sweeps through her musical numbers with a natural's smiling ease. And there's also the relatively unknown British stage actor Nitin Ganatra who, as the cloddish, L.A.-Indian suitor Mr. Kholi, conjures up a smiling idiot of such enjoyable silliness that he recalls Peter Sellers' whimsically cracked Indian movie characters.

A performance to forget (or at least forgive) is Henderson's Darcy. Though he manages a believable American accent, he's been written as too much of a dreamboat to have any edge. The tale, like Austen's, is a romance in which Lalita and Darcy must overcome their initial antagonism—the highly verbal tiffs of brainy lovers—and a few mistaken assumptions. But though Chadha has made her production fascinatingly ornate and sumptuous-looking, she, unlike Austen, is not trying to be a social realist. The movie's connections with the real India and America are daydream-light.

Beyond those Austen plot echoes, "Bride and Prejudice" seems closer in story and even spirit to an Elvis Presley musical or something like "Week-end in Havana" with Carmen Miranda. It's a big, freewheeling hoot of a movie, which uses the Bollywood conventions—and a few Hollywood ones—in a mood of blithe playfulness and mocking expertise. The movie has its flaws, including a few weak performances and some catchy but forgettable songs, but they're mostly forgivable.

"Bride and Prejudice" is an intellectuals' excursion into a mad pop genre; what ultimately limits it is the fact that Chadha, in making a crazy film, isn't quite nutty enough to turn it into a classic.

Review by Michael Wilmington - Chicago Tribune

Tommy Chong brings dope-joke tour to pot-friendly Vancouver

VANCOUVER (CP) - Tommy Chong says he had hash-smoke hazy memories of relaxed booze cans - the kind where cops would cruise in, jam on the piano and share a drink - as he rolled into Vancouver. The pot-friendly metropolis was an obvious place to bring his comeback standup tour as the star of the Marijuana-Logues - a dope-joke show that laughs at the feminist self-love play, the Vagina Monologues. The stage show was an off-Broadway hit in New York last year.

"I'm still on probation you know, doing a show about weed in the U.S., when you just got out of jail for selling weed paraphernalia, makes me a little nervous," says Chong backstage at Vancouver's ornate Orpheum Theatre.

Chong, 66, was one of about 50 people arrested during the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration's Operation Pipe Dreams for selling pipes and bongs over the Internet. He was released in July after serving nine months.

It's the best thing that's ever happened to him, he says.

"In the old days we'd be in dirty little clubs, some of them legal. Last time I was here, before I was locked up, I was at Yuk Yuk's. After doing time, I'm performing in beautiful, grand theatres like the one we're in now. And the audiences are bigger."

The Orpheum was far from sold out. The $50 ticket price may have been too much for stoners on a budget. They could spend an equally enjoyable evening with a half-quarter, the Up In Smoke DVD and munchies in the comfort of their own basement for less.

But the crowd was certainly bigger than those for Chong's debut performances with Cheech Marin at a scummy bar near Chinatown after the two met in Vancouver in 1969. And much bigger than those gathered to hear Chong rock out in his band, the Vancouvers, earlier in the '60s.

"My dad used to work the door and man we'd get some crazy fans," he said.

"One woman said something that my dad took offence to, he told her to settle down and she wrestled him to the ground. That's when I started doing comedy."

Locals loved the band, not for the music, but for Chong's half-baked running commentary. The popular toker about town gave back to the scene by opening the city's first topless nightclub.

His latest gig offers no money shots, just three guys well past their prime rambling about their good friend, Mary Jane. There are stream-of- consciousness monologues that list all the names for marijuana, the things it makes you eat and the things it makes you forget.

Being a famous old stoner who jokes about weed for money is kind of a trip when you can't smoke it any more, he said.

While on probation, Chong is regularly tested for drugs.

"I don't know how I pass, I've got enough THC in my blood for five lifetimes."

The first performance in Vancouver wasn't completely clean though. It featured what appeared to be a lit-up lighting guy who seemed so stoned he couldn't get the spotlight on the right Marijuana-Loguer.

"Turn the light back on, man," Chong laughed as it was beamed on an unsuspecting colleague mid-sentence.

Chong was joined on stage by comedians Doug Benson and Tony Camin, of Jimmy Kimmel Live, Friends and Late Night with Conan O'Brien fame.

They're good guys, Chong says, but it's not the same without Marin, his old partner in crime. The Cheech and Chong duo filmed some of the most famous stoner movies ever.

Marin took a turn for the straight and narrow as he grew up, veering off in the opposite direction from Chong's bong-strewn psychedelic path. He's played the upstanding citizens, taking roles in films and one as Don Johnson's detective sidekick in TV's Nash Bridges.

Chong, on the other hand, has stuck with what he knows with parts in Best Buds, High Times Potluck and Far Out Man, and also writing and directing the latter.

In recent years he and his wife have toured with a nightclub act that features various versions of his stoner role.

Spending time in jail gave him enough publicity to warm up bowls around the world for another instalment of Cheech and Chong.

Since his July release from prison, he has been finishing an autobiography and plans to return next year to That '70s Show and his recurring role as Leo, the aging hippie.

Now, he said, is the time to reunite the peace loving Pedro and Man and restore them to their former glory as symbols of the stoner generation. Chong said he has started writing his next movie.

"Cheech is going to be in it whether he wants to be or not. It's going to be the same old story, because that's what we all want to hear again."

The Marijuana-Logues is set to blow back across the border to Toronto on April 30, the show's only other Canadian date.

Chong, who was born in Edmonton and owns a home in Vancouver, said coming back to the land of the Maple Leaf is like hauling on fresh air.

"It's like freedom, man."

Inspiration! Fashion & Dance Show 2005

Advancing Canadian Entrepreneurship UBC and Phreshvibe present Inspiration! Fashion & Dance Show 2005. Benefit fashion show featuring local, independent fashion designers such as Sheri Rose, Manganese, Right On Apparel, jewelry designer Vancouver Fashion Week winner Sherry Haddow. With performances by P.O.S and many dance groups. Proceeds go to BC Children's Hospital. Come support your local designers!

Date: March 12
Time: 8pm
Venue: Wild Coyote (1312 SW Marine Dr)
Tickets: $10/$12

For more information, please contact Wenda @ 604-218-9818

www.phreshvibe.com

4TH ANNUAL SNAP! GALA EVENT

Thursday March 3, 2005
The Berkeley Church
315 Queen St. East
6pm - 11pm

Now entering its fourth fabulous year, SNAP! is a photographic fundraiser for the AIDS Committee of Toronto. Consisting of a live auction, a photo competition, a silent auction and a reception, SNAP! is one of the largest one-day photography events in Canada, with nearly 300 participating photographers and 700 in attendance last year and more expected this year! Net proceeds from the event will support ACT's programs and services for people living with, affected by, or at risk for HIV/AIDS.

Renowned and exciting emerging photographers were invited by the SNAP! curatorial team to donate original work for auction. The 2005 Live Auction Collection is expected to be the dramatic highlight of the SNAP! gala. This year's collection represents the work of over 40 photographers and photo-based artists at all career levels.

To purchase tickets for SNAP! 2005, please visit our website at http://www.snap-toronto.com , or call us at 416-340-8484 x263

Thank you, and we look forward to seeing you at SNAP! on Thursday, March 3rd, 2005 - fast becoming Toronto's hottest ticket!

Being Osama on CBC-TV

Mon - 28 Feb - 9 pm

Fellow artists, friends, and cheriched supporters

"Being Osama" has been a risky project for its makers, funders and its broadcaster. Requiring a double- sized budget, 3 years of work, and an enduring perseverance to realize a concept that was too cutesy to many, Being Osama will finally air on The Passionate Eye, Monday the 28th of Feb at 9pm on CBC-TV.

This documentary won "Best Doc" at the University Film and Video conference this year. It has been nominated for the "Best Practice" in fighting racism in Canada. And it is being hosted for a special screening at the Harvard Film Archive in March. But it is the ratings that will decide whether a film like this one could ever be made again. Your tuning in to CBC TV next Monday will decide whether ethnic stories are worthy of prime-time. It will also help endorse pushing the aesthetic of television documentaries which is what we fought hard to do in this film. We invite you to enjoy this film and encourage everyone you know to watch it.

This film is well worth seeing.

BEING OSAMA is a one-hour television documentary which opens a window into the lives of six Montrealers named Osama. The film connects the experiences of these individual Arab-Canadians to those of their own larger cultural community and to Canadian society as a whole in the post-9/11 world, seen against continuing suspicions between the West and the Arab/Islamic world.

Shot against the cultural backdrop of Montreal, the film follows the subjects beginning with the launching of the American invasion of Iraq in March 2003 to the anti-WTO demonstrations in late July of that year, then again fourteen months later during the hostage crisis in Iraq. Touching on subjects as diverse as Arab names, rock and roll, religion, Middle East politics, weddings, funerals, and the meaning of identity, BEING OSAMA is a sensitive and thoughtful portrait of six unique individuals, and of the new Canada they inhabit.

BEING OSAMA was directed by Mahmoud Kaabour and Tim Schwab. It was produced by Diversus Productions in association with CBC/SRC.

Margaret Cho's Assassin tour

Out On Screen is proud to present an exclusive offer for 100 members and supporters:

See Margaret Cho live in Vancouver - and have a drink with her afterwards!

This special offer is only available offer through Out On Screen:
Be up front at Margaret Cho's Assassin tour, April 15
VIP seating in the best seats at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre
Exclusive invitation to a post-show reception with... Margaret Cho!
Tickets are $85, on sale at Little Sister's Bookstore. Tickets available on a first-come first-served basis.

We wish to thank Margaret Cho and Amanda Harrison at Silva Touring for extending us this generous invitation. Thanks also to House of Blues Concerts.

For House of Blues Concerts and general Assassin Tour tickets, visit www.hob.com. General admission tickets (excluding the reception and VIP seating) are $43.25/$27.75 plus service charges.

B.C. immigrant groups hail more money for programs

(CBC) - The new federal budget includes $398 million during the next five years on programs to help immigrants settle and integrate into the workforce. Immigrant organizations in B.C. say they've been lobbying for this funding for a long time.

Eyob Naizghi, the executive director of the group Mosaic, says language training and support programs for newcomers to Canada are in desperate need of more money. He says immigrants need access to more advanced English-language training and programs to help them adapt their foreign job skills and credentials into the Canadian labour market.

"The benefit is here we have a skilled labour force, that with a small investment, could be adequately integrated into the labour market," he says.

Most of the funding will go to programs for immigrants already in the country. But the government is also setting aside $100 million to help prospective immigrants - including a website that will provide information they would need about integrating into Canadian society.

15th Annual Bacchanalian Wine Festival

7pm - 10pm, Friday, February 25th
Sinclair Centre
757 West Hastings Street

Tickets are $90 + GST.

The Canadian International Dragon Boat Festival Society is producing the 15th Annual Bacchanalian Wine Festival. This is a fundraiser for us and the Burnaby Association for Community Inclusion featuring over 40 wineries and 10 restaurants all in celebration of the Pacific Northwest. It will be a blast!

For more information go to www.bacchanalian.ca

Canadian Exporters Showcase

The 2005 Canadian Exporters' Showcase is your link to the $4.8 billion Chinese market and each year, more and more Canadian companies are tapping into this lucrative market. There is an especially strong demand for Canadian goods in China, which boasts a consumer market of 1.3 billion people.

Canadian companies are highly regarded internationally for the quality and reliability of their products and services. With the right contacts, your company can flourish overseas through this 3rd Annual Showcase.

The Canadian Exporters Showcase (CES) is the only Canadian-Asian Exhibition of it's kind in Canada to connect Canadian companies interested in exporting their products or services to companies in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea or India that are looking for new products.

CES will be held at the Vancouver Convention and Exhibition Centre on March 5, 2005. More than 85 Canadian companies will be exhibiting their products. Over 3,000 qualified local and international delegates will be in attendance.

http://www.canadianexportersshowcase.com/

Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden needs Marketing Coordinator

The Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden, the first full-scale Ming Dynasty style garden built outside of China using traditional materials and techniques, is seeking a full-time Marketing Coordinator. In addition to being one of the top ten attractions in Vancouver and welcoming over 90,000 visitors annually, the Garden is engaged in activities that connect with the community and bridges East and West. We have just successfully completed a $1.9 million expansion and looking to “grow” to our full potential and reach out to a wider market. This little "gem" of a Garden has a big "can do" attitude and will be a “treasure” to promote!

Reporting to the Executive Director, the Marketing Coordinator plays a vital role in our operations team and is responsible for identifying, developing and evaluating marketing opportunities and media activities (English & Chinese) to meet current and long-range objectives of the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden. In this key position, you will develop, implement and coordinate the Garden’s strategic marketing plan and budget, promote the Garden to the tourism industry through tour operators, hotels, travel agents and other avenues, identify newsworthy events to underscore the Garden’s cultural and educational messages, and prepare news releases and public service announcements. You will serve on local and regional tourism and Chinatown/DTES community committees. Working closely with other Garden staff, you will identify marketing, promotional, rental and advertising opportunities and coordinate trade/consumer shows. In addition, you will explore and support fund development opportunities from media and corporations through sponsorships and donations. Some travel is required along with working weekends and evenings for special events, functions and meetings.

The ideal candidate will be energetic, organized, works well independently in a team environment, holds an interest in Chinese culture, excellent oral & written communications skills (fluent in English), diploma/degree in communications or tourism program, some experience working in arts/culture/non-profit environment and sales/tourism industry, good knowledge of computer programs (Word, Excel, PageMaker/QuarkExpress), ability to manage several projects at one time, possess a solid understanding of print and electronic media including websites, some Chinese is an asset but not mandatory. Equivalencies may be considered.

Position starts immediately.

Please send your resume and cover letter no later than March 11, 2005 to:

Executive Director
Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden
578 Carrall Street, Vancouver, BC V6B 5K2.
Fax: (604) 682-4008

We thank all applicants, however only those selected will be contacted. No calls please.

VANCOUVER CHINATOWN REVITALIZATION MOVES AHEAD

Chinatown community leaders were on hand Feb. 15 to see council approve the second phase of the Chinatown Revitalization Plan. Last year, Mayor Larry Campbell and Councillor Raymond Louie won council support to accelerate the planning process to open the door for private sector investment in Chinatown.

Read the report at http:// vancouver.ca/ctyclerk/cclerk/20050215/p3-full.pdf

Counter Impressions Art Auction 2005

On Sunday February 27, 2005, the Chinese Canadian National Council Toronto Chapter (CCNCTO) and its youth committee the Monkey King Collective (MKC) will be having a silent art auction fundraiser for the Homeworkers' Association (HWA).

This auspicious event will be held at XEXE Gallery located at 624 Richmond St. West from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. Guest auctioneer City Councillor Olivia Chow will be doing a live auction at 2:45 p.m.

It will showcase the diverse talents of Canadian artists such as Alfred Ng,
Doris Ha Lin Sung, Gellien Lai, Jai Wax, Katyuska Doleatto, Keith Sheppard,
Kyla Brown, Lik Fong Ng, Lulu Tam, Marisa Swangha, Michael Bing Chu Lai,
Nataliya Studenikin, Paul Portelli, Pui Tam, Robert Howieson, Sam Chow,
Shirley Wang, Shlomit Segal, Kira Wu, Micky Chuang, Nigel Nolan.

What: Counter Impressions Art Auction 2005

Where: XEXE Gallery, 624 Richmond Street West

When: Sunday February 27, 2005 from 2 to 4 p.m.

CCNCTO is an organization of Chinese Canadians in the City of Toronto that
promotes equity, social justice, inclusive civic participation, and respect
for diversity. We achieve the above by conducting activities in the areas of
public education, systemic advocacy, community development, coalition
building as well as providing assistance to individuals facing
discrimination. 2005 will be the 25th anniversary of CCNCTO.

HWA was formed in May 1992 as an organization for immigrant women who sew
garments in their home. HWA was part of the Union of Needletrades,
Industrial and Textile Employees (UNITE) and is now housed under the CCNCTO.

MKC is the youth branch of the CCNCTO and is a group of young Chinese
Canadians who want to make a difference in the community while having a
little fun. MKC organizes exciting events to promote equity, social justice,
volunteerism, and works with Chinese Canadian youth in advocacy, community
development and fundraising.

For more information:
Kristyn Wong-Tam, kristynwongtam@rogers.com (416) 579-3621 Barnett Chow,
barnett@ccnctorontoc.ca (416) 596-0833 ext. 2

www.ccnctoronto.ca
www.xexegallery.com

Lakeside: Art Looks at Toronto Beaches

Call for Submissions

Co-curated by David Liss (Director of the Museum of Canadian Contemporary Art), Phil Anderson (Director of Gallery 1313), Elaine Whittaker (visual artist), and Shelley Petrie (Executive Director of the Toronto Environmental Alliance).

Gallery 1313 and the Toronto Environmental Alliance are collaborating on a curated art exhibit. We are interested in presenting an exhibit that examines and explores the impact of Toronto's beaches on its community. Over the past century local beaches have transformed from being a hub of community life to polluted spaces, empty and cut off by major roads. Some of our original beaches have even been closed. But things are about to change. This summer a number of Toronto's beaches will be flying the Blue Flag, an internationally recognized eco-label awarded to beaches that achieve high standards in areas such as water quality and safety. We invite artists to submit work that regards any aspect of experiencing Toronto's beaches, from fun at the beach to dismay at the pollution.

The exhibit will run from July 6th to 24th, at Gallery 1313, with the possibility of touring to other locations. Your submission should include the following:

- One page project description.
- One page artist statement.
- C.V.
- Support material: max. 10 slides or CD. You may submit VHS/ DVD if work is time based.
- Slide list (title, medium, size and date)
- SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope). Please ensure correct postage.

All media, including performance, will be considered. Do not send original slides, artwork or master tapes. Proposals for new work to be created will be considered.

Deadline is March 31st (postmarked).
Successful submissions will be contacted at end of April. CARFAC fees apply.

For more information and submission details see www.torontoenvironment.org.

Send your submission to:
Beaches Exhibit
Toronto Environmental Alliance
30 Duncan St. Ste.201
Toronto, Ont. M5V 2C3
Attention: Elaine Whittaker
416-596-0660

Out On Screen

That’s right… it’s time to hire on seasonal contract staff to help plan and present the festival.

We are seeking creative team players to fill the following positions:

Volunteer Coordinator
Media Relations Coordinator
Event Marketing & Communications Coordinator
Junior Designer
Community Relations & Box Office Coordinator

Visit our website http://www.outonscreen.com for more details.

Deadline to apply is March 1.
Please note: until funding is secured, these positions are tentative.

Feel free to pass this along to anyone you know who might be interested.
Thanks!

PRE SHOW CHAT WITH CHOREOGRAPHER ALLEN KAEJA

- OPENING NIGHT - MARCH 1 - 7 PM -

Kaeja d'Dance
in co-production with the Canada Dance Festival proudly presents
Asylum of Spoons
March 1, 3-5 at 8pm (no performance March 2)

Harbourfront Centre's Premiere Dance Theatre, 207 Queens' Quay W.
Tickets $22 & $28 (Students/Seniors/CADA $18)

For tickets call the Harbourfront Centre Box Office at 416-973-4000
OR book online at www.harbourfront.com
For more information visit www.kaeja.org

Kaeja d'Dance, is pleased to present the Toronto premiere of its highly acclaimed Asylum of Spoons. One of Allen Kaeja's most explosive and cutting-edge choreographies to date, Asylum of Spoons is a full-evening contemporary dance work that verges on Theatre of the Absurd as it journeys through the lives of a truly eccentric family, exploring the dynamics between individuals in the asylum of a family gathering and chronicling the underlying absurdity, passion, unspoken desires and impulsive acts that drive typical and not-so-typical families.

Set in a turn-of-the-century atmosphere and filled with layered narratives, Asylum of Spoons features Karen Kaeja in a stunning performance as the domineering matriarch. Kaeja d'Dance company members Allen Kaeja, Piotr Biernat, Tanya Crowder, Susan Lee, Blake Martin, Tim Spronk and Teena Walker round out the other members of this dysfunctional household. Music is composed by Edgardo Moreno, lighting is by Roelof Peter Snippe, and costumes are by Cheryl Lalonde. The company apprentice is Kate Franklin, and stage management is by Janelle Rainville.

"Allen Kaeja's choreography was brilliantly creepy.." Ottawa Citizen

"Karen Kaeja..is one of the city's most watchable performers." Glenn Sumi, Now Magazine

"Sexy, dangerous and totally compelling." Jason Sherman, Playwright

The Goh Ballet Academy

Business and Non-Profit Society form Cultural Link partnership for Vancouver children

RBC (Royal Bank of Canada) Foundation, Goh Ballet Vancouver Society and The Goh Ballet Academy will conclude Phase 2 of their Free Ballet Program on February 27, 2005. The program commenced on January 23, 2005 and consists of six Sunday classes for four age groups.

This program offers ballet training to boys and girls from 6 – 14 years old to create a cultural link between Academic Education and Art Education. The program is aimed at public school children who would not otherwise have access to ballet training. At the completion of the program, one child from each age group will receive a scholarship to attend the Academy until the end of August, including summer school.

On Sunday February 27, 2005 from 12:30pm – 1:30pm, there will be a Presentation from the Phase 2 classes and the Goh Ballet Youth Ensemble. The Phase 2 classes will have their first opportunity to present what they have learned while gaining inspiration from the older youth who are training to become the next generation of professional dancers.

Family and friends are invited to attend.

For further information contact:
Karen Seraphim or Paul Lee, 604-872-4014
admin@gohballet.com

The Opera Project

BC’s Charitable Organization The Opera Project
Premieres with
“Sounds That Change the World”

About The Opera Project

The Opera Project is an established professional company which originated in Winnipeg in 1997. It has recently relocated to Vancouver along with the company’s Founder and Director, Canadian Soprano, Heidi Klassen and is presenting its face for the first time to local audiences through this concert. We are a charitable organization, whose mandate includes presenting young professionals to the public with a professional fee, raising funds for other charities, as well as performing with seasoned artists and mentors.

Featuring

International Soprano Heidi Klassen
International Piano Collaborator Gordon Gerrard

The Opera Project presents VANCOUVER’s young professionals

Veera Devi Khare (“A touch of opera, a touch of India”)
Kelly Crook (Vancouver-based Soprano)
Frédérik Robert (“Gifted in the grand manner of legendary tenor Leopold Simoneau” Nico Castel-Metropolitan Opera)
Rachel Landrecht (Metropolitan Opera Competition District Winner 2001)
Leanne Koch (A Western Concert Opera Competition Winner)
Chad Louwerse (CBC Competition Winner 2004, Baritone for Atélier Lyrique Montréal 2005/06)
Paula MacNeil (UBC Under-Graduate- Soprano)
Julia Raphael Morgan (Metropolitan Opera Competition District Winner 2004)
Katherine Landry (UBC Graduate)
Joel Klein (Vancouver-based Baritone)

Performance At: Canadian Memorial United Church (West 15th and Burrard)
Sunday, February 27th 2005, 7:00 p.m.
Admission by Donation

Tax receipt provided by The Canadian Red Cross for a minimum donation of $10.00
100% of all donations go to Red Cross BC Flood Appeal

POETRY WITH A PULSE

PEN Canada presents POETRY WITH A PULSE
Friday, February 25, 2005
Metro Reference Library (north of Yonge and Bloor) Toronto
2nd floor

Cost: suggested $10 donation
Host: Moses Znaimer
Music: Muhtadi

Readings and performances by:
Ken Babstock
Belladonna
Aaron Berhane
Karen Connelly
Bill Kennedy
Jay MillAr
Sheng Xue

Freedom to read means a great deal to young people. This is why PEN Canada through its Readers & Writers programme is gearing its annual event to youth by integrating poetry with hip-hop, performance and a percussionist.

"We are profoundly committed to supporting writers who have had their freedom of expression restricted," said co-ordinator Philip Adams. "Young people are motivated to champion this cause because often, when they express themselves, they are told that it is not appropriate. We hope to inspire them to protect their right to freely express themselves," he said.

More info available at www.pencanada.ca

HEMA AND KRITHIKA RAJAGOPALAN

Kala Nidhi Fine Arts of Canada Presents
HEMA AND KRITHIKA RAJAGOPALAN
with their troupe of eight dancers, Natya Dance Theatre, Chicago, USA
in a programme of

BHARATNATYAM
—both traditional and contemporary—

HER LAST JOURNEY
Pushpanjali , Varnamalika , Shaktichakra ( The Energy Cycle),
Meera ( Violence Toward Woman) , Avasanithe Yatra( Her Last Journey) &

INSIDE – OUTSIDE
Followed by Dance Talk—A Dialogue with choreographers

Time and Date: 7.30 PM , Saturday, March 26, 2005
Venue: Premiere Dance Theatre, Harbourfront Centre
207 Queen’s Quay west, 3rd Floor
Toronto, Ontario M5J 1A7
Tickets: $25 and $20
20% off for students, seniors and groups of ten or more

For tickets: call Harbourfront Centre box office 416 973 4000
Open Tuesday through Saturday from 1pm to 8pm

For information: Sudha Khandwani, Kala Nidhi Fine Arts of Canada, 416 229 0369
email: kalanidhi@kalanidhifinearts.org

Video Pool Media Arts Centre

Call For Submissions - 2005/2006 Programming
Theme - Story
Deadline: March 31, 2005

"We can hardly manage our lives without a powerful ongoing narrative. And underneath all these edited, inspired, self-serving or entertaining stories there is, we suppose, some big bulging awful mysterious entity called THE TRUTH, which our fictional stories are supposed to be poking at and grabbing pieces of." Alice Munro

Video Pool Media Art Centre invites submissions for our 2005/2006 programming season. Media artworks that investigate experimental approaches to narrative, pacing, plot, parable, autobiography and/or documentary are strongly encouraged.

We Invite Submissions Of:
New Media
Experimental Electronics
Video
Video/Film Hybrids
Performance (with media components)
Installation (with media components)
Audio
Curatorial packages (with media components)

-Artists and curators submitting single-channeled work are strongly encouraged to package work into screenings of approx.40-120 minutes in length.

-Artists and curators are also encouraged to consider, but are not limited to,
Video Pool's new space the Pool Room when submitting proposals. Please visit http://videopool.typepad.com/video_pool_news/2005/01/video_pool_call.html
for Pool Room floor plan and more information.

Submission Requirements:

All submissions must include:
1. C.V. or artist resumé including current contact information (address, telephone# and email) for the artist/curator.
2. A short description of the project or video(s) including an outline of the project's curatorial and/or critical objectives.
3. The project and/or video title(s).
4. Artist Name(s).
5. Project/Video year(s) of completion and city(s) of origin.
6. Project's exhibition history and any other contexts in which the work will be presented in the coming year.
7. A statement indicating if the artist(s)/curator(s) plan to be in attendance with the work and if so in what capacity they would expect to participate in the screening/exhibition.
8. Support Material: Please do not send originals. Video Pool will not accept responsibility for the loss of or damage to, support material.
- Slides, videotapes/dvd, audio cd or written work.
- Video support material should be NTSC and submitted on either, VHS, Mini DV or DVD.
- Audio support material should be submitted on CD.
- Slides should be sleeved, numbered and include the name of the artist and work on each slide.
9. Audio, Video, and or Slide list (detailing all accompanying work).
10. Please include a SASE if you want Support Material returned.

Please Send Submissions To:

Programming Committee
c/o Video Pool Inc.
#300 - 100 Arthur St.
Winnipeg, MB R3B 1H3 Canada

Queries:
Please Contact Cam Hutchison, Programming Coordinator, at vpprogramming@videopool.org or 204.949.9134 ext.1

HARU MATSURI - Spring Festival

Saturday, March 5 & Sunday, March 6

Come to the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre (JCCC) and experience a weekend of activities, entertainment and exhibits! We welcome everyone to a Japanese spring weekend at Haru Matsuri 2005!!

The theme of this year’s festival is “Tako – Japanese Kites” The JCCC and Kobayashi Hall will be decorated with colorful and elaborate kites to welcome the spring and the long-awaited close of the winter season.

Haru Matsuri will feature Japanese arts and crafts demonstrations such as Ikebana (flower arranging), Bunka Shishu (embroidery), Sumi-e (brush painting), and Shodo (calligraphy). The JCCC offers classes in all of these areas and you can sign up for our Spring programmes. Special demonstrations of Japanese kite-making will illustrate the craftsmanship and artistry behind the tako. There will be various booths of origami, doll-making, and more.

The JCCC’s martial artists will demonstrate the techniques of “The Way of the Warrior” through Aikido, Iaido, Judo, Karate, Iaido, Naginata, Shorinji Kempo and Kendo. We will also feature an exhibition of antique swords presented by the Japanese Sword Society of Toronto.

For entertainment, there will be odori (traditional Japanese dancing ) by JCCC traditional dance groups Ayame-Kai and Sakura-Kai, Taiko (Japanese drumming) and you can also enjoy the “tranquil” moments of a tea ceremony demonstration. Japanese cuisine will also be available in the food court.

Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre
6 Garamond Court, Toronto, ON M3C 1Z5
tel: 416.441.2345
www.jccc.on.ca

Steppin' Out Thursdays at the Bata Shoe Museum

Warm Your Soul Right Down to your Toes

Enjoy a unique musical experience as pianist Philip Chiu performs classical works from 6-7pm. Philip is widely acclaimed for the brilliance and sensitivity of his playing, as well as for his ability to communicate with audiences. The beautiful sounds of the piano will warm your soul as you enjoy complimentary hot chocolate and marshmallows. Then feel toasty in the toes as you view an exclusive display of winter footwear from the Museum's collections. Warm fuzzy feeling guaranteed!

This performance is the first of series of concerts staged at the Bata Shoe Museum in partnership with the Glenn Gould School at the Royal Conservatory of Music. It's also one of a number of Steppin' Out Thursday evening events at the Bata Shoe Museum. Check www.batashoemuseum.ca for more information.

Piano provided by southern Ontario's sole Authorized Steinway dealer, Remenyi House of Music .

WHEN: Thursday February 24th, 6-8pm
WHERE: Bata Shoe Museum, 327 Bloor Street West at St. George
COST: Free

FOR MORE INFORMATION: call 416.979.7799 x242 or e-mail programs@batashoemuseum.ca

CBC Radio Drama Proposal Call

Cities Confidential

Toronto the Good? Winnipeg the Pure? Edmonton the Innocent? We think not.

CBC Radio Arts & Entertainment is issuing a call for proposals for a new anthology of radio plays entitled 'Cities Confidential'. We want to explore the seamy underbelly of urban Canada - the guns and gangs and wayward guys and gals who populate the big cities of our fair domain. The dramas must be contemporary and use a Canadian city (or two) as a backdrop or - better yet - as a character. They can be traditional dramas, docudramas, a blend of both or a whole new genre. Surprise us.

They must be original dramas; no adaptations of plays or screenplays or novels, please.

Four dramas will be chosen, to be written and produced this year, for broadcast early in 2006. Sunday Showcase dramas are 54 minutes in length and are broadcast on Sunday Showcase and Monday Night Playhouse, for a huge national audience. (For more on both programs, visit our website at www.cbc.ca/showcase

SUBMISSIONS:
· Only original proposals geared to the medium of radio will be considered.
· Proposals should be a maximum of three pages and outline the general story and characters.
· All proposals must be e mailed to our address at sunshowcase@cbc.ca.
· Please title your proposal clearly: "Proposal Call - Conspiracy Theories".
· The proposal should be pasted in the body of the e mail; no attachments please!
· Receipt of proposals will not be acknowledged.
· Writers may submit more than one proposal. A CV is unnecessary.

All proposals must be received by 5 pm Friday, March 4. There will be no extensions. The selection process will be quick and the four writers whose projects are being commissioned will be notified by Monday, March 14. Unsuccessful applicants will also be notified by a form e mail at that time.

CBC's Radio A & E Department commissions dozens of writers each year from across Canada. Past proposal calls have focused on themed series as well as more general "genre" calls. Production of radio dramas and payment are in accordance with the CBC-Writers Guild of Canada standard contract agreement. As with its past proposal calls, we hope to commission a mix of established writers and those who are new to radio drama.

The deadlines again:
Issue date of this proposal call: Thursday, February 17, 2005
Deadline for submission of proposals: Friday, March 4, 2005
Notification of winning proposals: Monday, March 14, 2005.

Rotary Club of Vancouver Chinatown Donates Scholar’s Studio furnishings

To commemorate the 100 years of service of Rotary International the Rotary Club of Vancouver Chinatown will make a donation to the permanent collection of the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden, a museum, garden, and cultural attraction. The Rotary Club’s generous donation will create a fully furnished Scholar’s Study; one of the Garden’s exhibition halls will be transformed with furnishings befitting a Ming dynasty Scholar’s Studio. Furnishings will include a Scholar’s table, chairs, bookcases, dream stone plaques and scholarly implements. The works in this collection are valued at $10,000 and will be made in China. We anticipate the official unveiling of this permanent exhibition in mid to late May.

Michael Ng, Garden’s President states, “This is a significant donation to the Garden as it will further enhance our visitor’s experience, complete this exhibition space and add to cross-cultural understanding and learning opportunities. We are very fortunate to be the recipient of the Rotary Club of Vancouver Chinatown’s centennial project and delighted to be working with such great community minded and spirited Rotarians.” It is the second major project that the Garden and Chinatown Rotary have undertaken together in the last five years.

The object of Rotary is to encourage and foster the ideal of service as a basis of worthy enterprise. The Rotarian’s 4-way test includes the following 4 objectives:

Is it the truth?
Is it Fair to all concerned?
Will it build Goodwill and better friendships?
Will it be beneficial to all concerned?

Henry Fetigan, Past President of the Chinatown Rotary Club and Chair for their Centennial Project states, “The permanent collection for the Scholar’s Study at the Garden will be a lasting legacy for the community and for all national and international audiences to enjoy. It embodies Rotary’s objectives and we can share this with people of all ages and from all parts of the world.”

The Rotary celebration will officially kick off on Wednesday, Feb. 23 at 12 noon at the Floata Chinese Seafood Restaurant (400-1880 Keefer St, at Quebec/Columbia), Vancouver’s Chinatown.

Media interviews, inquiries and photos welcome.

For more information or images please contact:
Yvonne Chui at 604-662-3207 ext. 201 or www.vancouverchinesegarden.com
Henry Fetigan at 604 263-1320 or email hfetigan@shaw.ca

Worldwide Short Film Festival 2005

Final Call for Entries to the Canadian Film Centre's Worldwide Short Film Festival 2005

Submission Deadline February 28, 2005

The submission deadline for the 2005 Worldwide Short Film Festival is fast approaching so get your pencils sharpened and your preview tapes packaged up! We want your submissions and we want you to send them to us before the 28th of February 2005.

The Worldwide Short Film Festival (WSFF) is one of the world's premiere short film festivals, presenting a superb collection of over 200 short films and videos from Canada and around the world. The Festival also hosts the BIG IDEAS Symposium, which offers a series of informative seminars, panels and workshops on the art and commerce of short filmmaking. You can also win a Festival prize package worth over $60,000 and possible eligibility for the Academy Awards by submitting your entry now.

The Worldwide Short Film Festival is the best place to showcase your short films. For entry forms and additional information please visit www.worldwideshortfilmfest.com.

For online submissions please visit www.withoutabox.com

Sekoya has been nominated for a Juno award

Sekoya has been nominated for a Juno award for Contemporary Jazz Album of the Year. The Junos air on CTV at 8:00 pm, April 3.

http://www.sekoya.ca/index.html

PINK LUDOOS

"PINK LUDOOS", a new comedy-drama starring Shaheen Khan
("BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM") will be playing at the Kingston Canadian Film Festival.

Screening dates:
Friday, March 11, 2005 - 7:10PM
Tuesday, March 12, 2005 - 12:00PM
THE SCREENING ROOM

Tickets info: www.kingcanfilmfest.com
Film info: www.PinkLudoos.com

THE 5 ELEMENTS has been nominated for a Juno Award

Rick Scott and Harry Wong - THE 5 ELEMENTS - has been nominated for a Juno Award for Children's Album of the Year.

THE 5 ELEMENTS has already been honoured with 2004 Parents' Choice Approved and North American Parenting Publications (NAPPA) Gold Awards in the U.S. and is being excerpted in textbooks in Canada and Hong Kong.

Harry Wong will return to Canada in May 2005 to perform a one man show, THE RED BALLOON, at the Nanaimo, Vancouver and Penticton children's Festivals.

For more information contact Valley Hennell, producer
vhennell@island.net 250-740-0047

THE LOST CARAVAN . . . HAS ARRIVED!

Centre A Bazaar

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 19
10am – 4pm

Wandering the desert for years, presumed lost to bandits, the legendary Lost Caravan has finally, miraculously, arrived, with a dazzling cargo of exotic goods.

Crates will be unpacked and treasures offered up for one very special day only, Saturday, February 19, in the galleries of Centre A.

Be among the first to choose from the stunning array and bargain your best price with the merchants. Good luck – they are a tough bunch!

Maryon Adelaar and Anne Harkema will have cultured fresh water pearls from China. Persian arabesques by Pari Azarm Motamedi will festoon the walls. There will be fine jewelry in crystal, coral and semi-precious stones by Patricia Healey (sold out in the Barbados!). Jan Ballard will be on hand to sell a small number of exquisite bird houses by the distinguished Dr. Stuart MacNeill. Don’t miss Michele Cardey’s collection of home décor from Vietnam and Gailan Ngan’s gorgeous ceramics. Kazuko Honjo and friends will be there with contemporary objets d’art and prints from Japan, and Joanna Staniszkis, with the finest silk quilts from Shanghai.

There will be music and food, colourful costumes and of course, a White Elephant Table sponsored by Centre A board members – where you can really get down and haggle on wonders the Silk Road, brought back personally by Joanne Louie Mah.

It all adds up to a most delightful Saturday afternoon’s entertainment, with interesting people mingling among beautiful art works in a fun atmosphere. Tell your friends. Don’t miss this rare opportunity, before the caravan embarks once again on another far flung trade mission.

Centre A
849 Homer Street
Vancouver

Tel 604 683 8326
www.centrea.org

Vancouver International Centre for Contemporary Asian Art

UBC International Week 2005 - Pathways

Spearheaded by the Global Student Leadership Group at International House, UBC International Week 2005 - Pathways is the biggest UBC multicultural celebration of the year. This awesome week of events consists of dance, drama, film, cultural displays, global chats, delectable foods, and impressive programs. Pathways, this year's theme, represents ventures, journeys taken in a global world, the road least trodden, stepping outside of oneself, expanding, experiencing, and learning. UBC International Week 2005 - Pathways will broaden your multicultural community, increase intercultural partnerships and friendships, and engage you in a heightened sense of global citizenship.

http://students.ubc.ca/international/involved.cfm?page=week

Casting Call - Toronto

We are currently casting a commercial in which we are looking for the following characters:

-Son, 10-14: Filipino Background, Outgoing and charismatic.
-Mom, 28-38: Filipino or Chinese Background, Attractive and charismatic.
-Dad, 28-38: Middle Eastern/ Arabic Background, Attractive and charismatic.
-Daughter, 3-4: Filipino Background. Cute and lively.

If selected, you will receive $1500 to $3000 to include shoot day & residuals buyout.

We are casting Sunday, February 20th between 11am-3pm at Powerhouse Casting, 93 Berkeley Street in Toronto

If you require additional information, please contact Aleysa at: 416.616.3063

Thanks!
Powerhouse Casting
www.powerhousecasting.com

Writing Dance

A Workshop with Kaija Pepper - March 2005

What are the creative and practical possibilities for writing about dance? The Dance Centre presents a dance writing workshop, led by journalist and author Kaija Pepper, in collaboration with the Vancouver International Dance Festival.

The workshop will explore:

· objectivity and ethics as they apply to writing about the art of dance;
· how to pay reflective, creative attention to dance and the act of writing about it;
· the possibilities and limitations of words about dance;
· the nuts-and-bolts of putting words about dance on paper.

Participants will be inspired to deepen their own and the public understanding and respect for the art form through well-written, intelligent prose and in-depth discussion. A selection of workshop writing will be published later in the spring in a special supplement, produced in conjunction with The Dance Centre's monthly member newsletter, Dance Central.

Course fee: Dance Centre members (all categories except Supporting), $150 plus GST; Dance Centre Supporting members and non-members, $200 plus GST. The fee includes tickets to three VIDF shows at the Roundhouse (additional tickets may be available), and four workshops at Scotiabank Dance Centre, totaling 9 hours.

To apply, please send a sample of writing (any topic, up to 1000 words in length) or a letter outlining why you are interested in writing about dance, to Kaija Pepper at kaija@shaw.ca or c/o The Dance Centre, Level 6, 677 Davie Street, Vancouver V6B 2G6, tel 604 606 6400 fax 604 606 6401. Please note that places are limited, and early application is advised.

Kaija Pepper has written two books, The Dance Teacher: A Biography of Kay Armstrong and Theatrical Dance in Vancouver: 1880's-1920's (Dance Collection Danse Press/es). Her essay, "Championing the Individual, Believing in the Dance: Human Rights in the Work of Paula Ross, Jay Hirabayashi and Judith Marcuse" is published in Right to Dance/Dancing for Rights (Banff Centre Press 2004). "Lola MacLaughlin: Working the Idea, Revealing the Moment" is in The Responsive Body: A Language of Contemporary Dance, edited by Brian Webb for the 2002 Canada Dance Festival. Kaija contributes to the Globe & Mail, The Dance Current, Dance Magazine and other publications. Her quarterly View from Vancouver has run in Dance International for a decade. As well as lecturing on dance history and critical thinking at MainDance, Arts Umbrella and SFU, Kaija has led writing workshops at Dancing on the Edge and Nanaimo's Infringing Dance Festival. She edited The Dance Centre's publication, Dance Central, from 1995 to 2003, and holds an MA in Liberal Studies from SFU.

Second annual Humour in the Workplace Awards

calls for nominations by Apr. 1

Event produced by Rock.Paper.Scissors celebrates the innovative and effective uses
of humour that enhances an organization’s success

The first 20 people to nominate an organization or individual by going to www.rpsinc.ca
receive two complimentary tickets to the awards show,
May 24th at Yuk Yuk's Comedy Club.

Side-splitting humour can do more than liven up an office – it can add to teamwork, productivity, employee retention, customer service, competitive advantage, innovation, sales performance and the bottom line, among other organizational challenges.

The Second Annual Humour in the Workplace Award is looking for applications and nominees for this year’s trophies that recognize the Lower Mainland businesses and organizations that strategically use humour to build business.

Lower Mainland businesses, associations, non-profits, government offices and other organizations have until April 1 to enter or nominate candidates for the Humour in the Workplace Award, created by Rock.Paper.Scissors (RPS), a Vancouver-based corporate training and entertainment company.

Eligible nominees can describe a humour-related strategy implemented to meet a specific business challenge in the past year and the results. The winners, celebrated at an Awards Ceremony May 24 at Yuk Yuks Comedy Club in The Century Plaza Hotel, will demonstrate strategic, innovative, creative, positive and constructive uses of humour. Entry details, examples entries and nomination forms are at www.rpsinc.ca.

“Last year’s winners prove that humour makes good business,” says Lee-Anne Ragan, a partner in RPS with Diana Frances. “And we are looking for more Lower Mainland organizations that use their funny bone to grow, attract employees, close contracts and build sound organizations that are healthy.”

There are three Humour in the Workplace award categories:
• Best use of humour in a large organization (with 50-plus employees)
• Best use of humour in a small organization (with fewer than 50 employees)
• Best use of humour by an individual in an organization

The winners will get a specially designed Humour in the Workplace Award trophy, plus non-cash prizes including a complimentary entertainment or corporate training session from RPS for their use and a second RPS entertainment or corporate training session to donate to their favorite non-profit organization (supporting RPS’s commitment to social responsibility).

Tickets to the May 24 Awards Ceremony at Yuk Yuks Comedy Club are $20 and can be reserved by calling 604 730 9596. The first 20 nominations each get two free tickets to the Awards Ceremony. Visit www.rpsinc.ca for more information. Five dollars from each ticket sale will be donated to the YWCA’s Crabtree Corner, located in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside.

Humour in the Workplace Award sponsors include Yuk Yuks Comedy Club in the Century Plaza Hotel, Pacific Show Productions and Reputations Corporation.

About Rock Paper Scissors
Rock.Paper.Scissors brings passion, play, and a personal touch to all of their extraordinary shows and engaging workshops through three divisions:

• Comedy Creations - corporate entertainment.
• Laughing Matters - customized corporate training and team building.
• Community Works - community-based training with a humorous touch

The company, with its four founding principles; creativity and innovation, the improv edge, diversity and social responsibility, has recently reorganized and has launched its new website at www.rpsinc.ca. Clients include VanCity, Telus, Coca Cola and the YWCA. RPS partners Lee-Anne Ragan and Diana Frances are among the winners for Business in Vancouver’s Top 40 under 40 business awards.

PLAYING HARD

CBC RADIO ANNOUNCES THE FOURTH ANNUAL
NATIONAL POETRY FACE-OFF EVENT IN VANCOUVER
FEBRUARY 21 AT 8 PM AT CAFÉ DEUX SOLEILS

Poetic punches will fly during CBC Radio's fourth annual POETRY FACE-OFF. This popular Canada-wide competition brings together 65 primed poets in 13 cities stretching from Vancouver to St. John's.

From January to March, five poets in each locale will face off before a live audience and deliver their words on this year's theme - "Play". The poets are commissioned by CBC producers to reflect local voices. At each poetry event, the spectators vote for a favourite, and the winner goes on to compete in the national final on CBC Radio.

Vancouver's finest poets go word-to-word Monday February 21 at 8 pm at the Café Deux Soleils, 2096 Commercial Drive. Margaret Gallagher of CBC Radio's The Early Edition hosts as poets Barbara Adler, Fiona Tinwei Lam, Kuldip Gill, C.R. Avery and Ms. Spelt present their work. The audience chooses the winner. Admission is $5 and is part of the regular Monday night Vancouver poetry slam with slam master Graham Olds. The Face-Off will be broadcast February 26 on CBC Radio One's North by Northwest between 8:30 and 9 am.

April is National Poetry Month, so the final round of this poetic competition will air April 4 to 7 on CBC Radio One's The Roundup. Listeners across the country will have a chance to hear all of the 13 finalists and then vote for their favourite performance by calling a toll-free telephone number (to be announced) or by logging onto our website. The grand champion will be announced on April 14 on The Roundup.

CBC TV's Artspots will create short films of poems by some of the regional winners.

From its inception four years ago, CBC Radio's POETRY FACE-OFF has been a cross-country event. This year, face-offs are being held in Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Regina, Winnipeg, Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal, Halifax, Charlottetown, Moncton, St. John's and Yellowknife.

Listeners are invited to visit www.cbc.ca/poetryfaceoff for detailed information about each of the local poetry face-offs. The site will include interviews with participants as the events unfold.

Call For Emerging, Asian World Music Artists

Caravan World Rhythms and Britannia Centre are hosting the Global Discoveries Showcase of Emerging World Music Artists, from April 29th until May 1st.

The Showcase is an excellent opportunity for emerging musicians to
perform for industry professionals and participate in free, professional
development workshops. This year¹s Showcase will also feature spotlights on
live, electronic and Latin world music artists. For more information call:
604.684.5535 or visit www.caravanbc.org .

Deadline for applications is March 4th.

Sara Dent
Outreach Coordinator

Caravan World Rhythms Society
#557-1917 West 4th Ave.
Vancouver, BC
V6J 1M7

T: (604) 684-5535
E: caravanoutreach@telus.net
W: www.caravanbc.org

"Asian Heritage Month" at the Crafthouse Gallery

CALL FOR ENTRY
New Deadline: Friday February 25

Vancouver is blessed in being a hub for cultural trading, especially
from Asia. From sari cloths to Chinese New Year to the sushi bars
found at every street corner, Asian cultures have permeated this
province such that it has become almost invisible, a remarkable yet
normal way of life.

In honour of Asian Heritage Month, Crafthouse Gallery is holding its
annual an exhibition focusing on craftspeople of Asian descent. The
focus in 2005 is on young, emerging artisans, individuals under the
age of 30 by May 2005, who have recently graduated or are self-taught,
and are just beginning to gain professionalexposure.Theirworkscan
fuse Asian and Western crafts, celebrate a revival of an ancient
practice, or introduce an innovative way of producing traditional
crafts. Our goal is to provide these artisans with the space to
present their pieces to a wide audience and the opportunity to
exchange ideas with more established craftspeople.

If you know a young emerging artisan or if you are one yourself, we invite you to apply to the Asian Heritage Month exhibition. Craftspeople working in wood, glass, textiles, or ceramics may submit up to three pieces (actual works or slides and photographs of previous work that falls within this theme) for consideration for the exhibit. Please include a CV/resume or biography, artist statement, and process
statement. Send this submission by Friday, February 25, 2005 at 5 pm to

KC Solano, Exhibition Coordinator, c/o CABC, 1386 Cartwright St.,
Granville Island, Vancouver, BC V6H 3R8.

All craftspeople must be members of the Crafts Association of BC prior to submission. For inquiries about the exhibit or becoming a member, please call Jen Hiebert at 604-687-6511 or toll-free in BC at 1-888-687-6511. For more information about the CABC's programs and services, please visit www.cabc.net.

Crafthouse Gallery (Crafts Association of BC)
1386 Cartwright St. (Granville Island)
Vancouver, BC V6H 3R8 Canada
T. (604) 687-6511, Toll Free (888) 687-6511 (in BC),
F. (604) 687-6711
cabc@telus.net, www.cabc.net
Office Hours: Mon. - Fri., 10am - 5:00pm PST

The Crafts Association of British Columbia is a network of craft
professionals dedicated to the development of excellence in crafts.

SAFE STUDIO PRACTICES FOR VISUAL ARTISTS

Or "How to be an artist and not kill yourself in the process"

with Ted Rickard, MLS, MEd, CRSP
Kathleen Kerr, MD
and Mimi Gellman

Sunday, February 27, 2005, 1:00-4:30 p.m.

at the The Al and Malka Green Artists' Health Centre
Toronto Western Hospital
399 Bathurst Street (at Dundas) in Toronto

For information call the Artists' Health Centre Foundation at 416.351.0239, or send an e-mail to: info@ahcf.ca

This seminar is sponsored in part by
CARFAC Ontario - the association of professional visual artists*

Visual artists and craftsmen work with a wide variety of materials and processes, many of which can be harmful to one's health over a long career.

This workshop has been designed to help artists develop safe and healthy professional practices and will focus on awareness of hazardous materials in artists' studios, strategies for exposure reduction and risk management in art practices.

The workshop will cover the relevant material through audiovisual presentations and audience participation and discussion with the presenters.

Among the topics covered will be:

developing awareness of the materials in your studio that may be toxic or hazardous to your health or the health of others
keeping a clean studio/what does this mean?
understanding routes of entry (how chemicals can enter the body with examples of common problems)
storage of materials and chemicals
using personal protective equipment
strategies for exposure reduction
importance of risk management in your art practices
how do chemicals detoxify in the body/ importance of food and supplements
helpful resources and links

For your comfort, this is a scent-free workshop. Please refrain from wearing any perfume, cologne, aftershave or scented products. Thank you.

Registration: 12:30 p.m. Seminar: 1:00 to 4:30 p.m.
For participants pre-registered by February 24th: $25 / Students & Seniors: $15. Registration at the door: $30. Pre-registration is recommended, as space is limited.

To register, please call 416.351.0239, e-mail info@ahcf.ca, or download and mail in the registration form on our web site www.ahcf.ca

Canadian Art Film Series

Take part in a stimulating weekend of film and discussion about the visual arts. The second annual Canadian Art Film Series features important documentaries and shorts on contemporary visual artists. Organized by Ann Webb.

Imaging the Artist: The Role of the Artist in Contemporary Culture. Genius, sage, joker, subversive, madman, outsider, aesthete, avant gardist, intellectual-the image of the artist in contemporary culture is an amalgam of types from history, literature, film and academia, each offering its own role to be played, its own art to be made.

Are artists held prisoner by these images? Do audiences misplace expectations because of them? What is the role of the artist? The as-yet-unwritten identities? Can we separate Pop from Warhol cool? Abstract Expressionism from Pollock intensity? The Vancouver School from Jeff Wall's aloof clarity?
All screenings and the symposium at the ROYAL CINEMA, 608 College Street (six blocks west of Bathurst Street), Toronto.

TO ORDER TICKETS PLEASE CALL TICKETKING AT 1-800-461-3333 or 416-872-1212 or visit http://www.ticketking.com

Film and Symposium Pass - $40
Individual Film Screenings - $8

*Please note all phone orders are by credit card only. There is a $1.50 service charge on all telephone orders. All ticket sales are final.

Canadian Art Foundation
51 Front Street East, Suite 210, Toronto, ON M5E 1B3 P (416) 368-8854 ext. 307
project@canadianart.ca www.canadianart.ca

"Citizen: Imagination and Agency"

SFU Writer-in-Residence Colloquium and Reading

Is the growing interest in the citizen as a potential agent of change
more of the same, or can the turn to the citizen make a difference?

What could this turn mean for writers and artists?

A one-day colloquium sponsored by the Writer-in-Residence Program,
English Department, Simon Fraser University

March 9, 2004
Harbour Centre
Room 7000 (7th Floor)
1 pm * 4:30 pm

1 * 2:15
Keynote Address: Daphne Marlatt, SFU Writer-in-Residence
Critical Paper: Alessandra Capperdoni, "On Swells and Surges:
Pleasure-Holes and Dangerous Zones in Daphne Marlatt's Migratory Poetic"

2:15 * 2:30 Break

2:30 * 4:30
Roundtable Discussion, "Citizen: Imagination and Agency": Larissa Lai,
Fred Wah, Wayde Compton, Samir Gandesha, and Sophie McCall

Evening Reading
7:30 * 9:30, Harbour Centre, Room 7000
Wayde Compton, Larissa Lai, Rajinderpal S. Pal, Jacqueline Turner
(Seating Limited to 60)

All Events Free

All apologies, suspension lifted after student's remark on Clarkson spending

TORONTO (CP) - It's not every day the Governor General calls to apologize. But that's what happened to the 15-year-old high school student whose question about government spending resulted in his class's tour being cut short. "You can imagine ... I'm doubly embarrassed because someone asked a question - in my home - and doesn't get the answer. So I really wanted to make that right," Adrienne Clarkson told The Canadian Press minutes after she called Jeremy Patfield to apologize.

"I wanted to apologize and say this is the most, you know I really thought it was a most unfortunate - to say the least, I'm understating it - incident."

Patfield, a Grade 8 student at John Dryden Public School in Whitby, Ont., was touring the Governor General's official residence with about 60 students on Tuesday when he spotted Clarkson and asked: "Is that the woman that spends the money on the Queen when she comes?"

Clarkson didn't hear the question, however a tour guide who overheard the teen's comment immediately ended the group's visit.

Clarkson first heard about the incident Wednesday evening and then during her Thursday morning weight-lifting regime she heard it on the radio. She decided to call the boy's family to apologize but the home telephone was busy as media calls were constant. She then called the CBC radio talk show to discuss the incident.

Clarkson managed to get through to the Patfields early in the afternoon.

"I told them how sorry I am and to invite them to Rideau Hall anytime and have tea and finish up the tour," she said.

She was told the tour had been cut short because a question had been asked that had been deemed "inappropriate."

Clarkson defended the boy's - and anybody's - right to ask questions about how government money is spent.

"Of course in my opinion there is no inappropriate question, only inappropriate answers," said the one-time journalist known for getting her questions answered.

"(The question) shows, at least, an interest in what's happening in the office of the Governor General and I thought questions like that should be answered."

Padfield was calm about receiving a call from Clarkson.

"I accept the Governor General's apology and I apologize for saying what I said in her house," Patfield told CFTO-TV Thursday.

"I'm glad everything worked out for the best."

Following the Ottawa incident, Patfield was told he was to receive a three-day suspension. The school reversed that decision Thursday.

"I had a meeting with the school - the superintendent, the principal and the vice-principal," said Dan Patfield, Jeremy's father.

"After everything the media did ... the school has lifted the three-day suspension."

Parenting expert and author Barbara Coloroso said the incident is an example of "zero tolerance being zero thinking."

"How did such a comment threaten the cultured climate of Rideau Hall, create a hostile environment or in any other way interfere with the work - and stroll through the house - of the Governor General?" she wrote in an e-mail interview with The Canadian Press.

"I appreciate Adrienne Clarkson's response," she wrote, adding "The rest of the adults need to reassess their attitude toward kids and the harshness of their punitive measures - in no way to be misconstrued as healthy and appropriate discipline.

"I would also ask where our sense of humour has gone."

Clarkson was relieved when Jeremy's father told her the suspension had been lifted and that he could play in the school basketball tournament.

"The Governor General's staff has apologized to the school," said Patfield from his Whitby home where he, his wife and son were trying to get some rest after a couple of sleepless nights and a media storm.

"He was sorry for what he did say in the Governor General's home and he did say it to a second party and he said he would pick a different form if he had to do it all over again."

It had been Jeremy's first visit to Ottawa, a school trip he financed by shovelling driveways.

Since she was appointed Governor General in 1999, Clarkson has been criticized for her spending, including a bill of more than $5 million in 2003 for a three-week trip to Russia, Iceland and Finland.

In answer to Patfield's original question, she explained that actually the expenses of the Queen are paid by the Department of Canadian Heritage when she comes to the country. The Queen will be visiting Canada this year to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Saskatchewan and Alberta.

© The Canadian Press, 2005