arts& culture
A look at upcoming arts and entertainment events in the Annapolis Valley:
Port Cities performs at King’s Theatre Aug. 25
On Aug. 25 patrons at King’s Theatre in Annapolis Royal will be blown over by the power and soul of Port Cities. One of Canada’s hottest Indie bands and Nova Scotia natives, Port Cites is taking the world by storm yet have not forgotten their Maritime roots.
They are Breagh Mackinnon, Dylan Guthro, and Carleton Stone.
In the brief period of time since Port Cities unleashed its incendiary debut -- a wildly self-assured collection of sparkling, rootsy pop that showcases the Nova Scotia trio’s devotion to songwriting -- the band’s been hard at work bringing it to the masses, and now to King’s Theatre.
Their self-titled album 2017 Port Cities is a testament to their influences and their own uncanny ability to skilfully meld them, in a way that is all their own.
See them at King’s Theatre Aug. 25 at 7:30 p.m
For tickets phone the box office at 902-532-7704 or go online at www. kingstheatre.ca
Wolfville concerts Sundays at Waterfront Park
Deep Roots Music Cooperative is partnering with the Town of Wolfville to present its annual Wolfville Summer Concert Series, funded by the Mud Creek Rotary Club.
For rest of August, the live concerts are every Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m. in the gazebo at Waterfront Park in Wolfville. The concerts are free to the public and they will showcase local talent from across the Annapolis Valley.
Upcoming performances The Basin Brothers Aug. 26.
On the screen at King’s Theatre
On Aug. 23, 24, and 26. King’s Theatre offers Mamma Mia 2: Here We Go Again at 7:30 p.m.
Set on a colorful Greek island, the plot serves as a background for a wealth of ABBA songs.
Five years after the events of Mamma Mia! on the Greek island of Kalokairi, Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) is pregnant with Sky’s (Dominic Cooper) child while running her mother, Donna’s (Meryl Streep) villa. With Tanya (Christine Baranski) and Rosie’s (Julie Walters) guidance, Sophie will find out more of Donna’s past, including how she fronted The Dynamos, started her villa on the island from nothing, met each one of Sophie’s dads, Sam, Bill and Harry (Pierce Brosnan, Stellan Skarsgård, and Colin Firth), and raised a daughter, without a mother to guide her. She also has an unexpected visit from someone she has never even met: her estranged maternal grandmother, Ruby Sheridan (Cher).
Doors open 45 minutes before showtime.
Tickets are $10 adult, $9 with a film buff card, and $8 youth.
Go online: www.kingstheatre.ca
Calling all amateur photographers
Macdonald Museum, 21 School Street in Middleton is hosting a Nova Scotia Landscape Photography Contest.
There will be two age categories - up to 18 years, and 18 years and older. First place in each category will win a $100 Henry’s Camera gift card; second prize in each category is a $50 Henry’s Camera gift card; and third prize in each category is a $25 Henry’s Camera gift card.
The following are the guidelines: All photos must be mounted for hanging (not necessarily framed) and mount must be no larger than 16X24 inches. Minimum size of photo 8X12 inches, maximum size of photo 12X24 inches.
Limit of two entries per person and a $5 fee for each entry. Your name, age, address, phone number, and email must be on the back of each piece.
The subject must be Nova Scotia landscape.
Submissions can be made to the museum starting Aug. 27 and the deadline is Sept. 3 at 4 p.m. Judging will take place on Sept. 6 and winners will be announced on Sept. 7 at 7 p.m. at the public exhibit opening.
All submissions will hang in the exhibit room for one month, ending on Oct. 5.
For further information please email contact@macdonaldmuseum.ca or call 902-825-6116.
New play at Centrestage
Mix a Hitchcock masterpiece with a juicy spy novel, add a dash of Monty Python, and you have The 39 Steps, based on a book by John Buchan, adapted by Patrick Barlow.
This fast-paced comedy thriller for anyone who loves the magic of theatre hits the stage in August at Centrestage Theatre in Kentville. The two-time Tony and Drama Deck Award-winning play is packed with nonstop laughs and dozens of characters played by a talented cast of seven.
The play is based on the book by John Buchan, adapted by Patrick Barlow. and directed by Chérie Zinck. The cast includes Mike Butler, Candy O’brien, Alan Tupper, Emily Burton, Diana Bishop, Bryen Stoddard/darrell Doucette.
The featured artist is Dawn Oman. The evening dates are Aug. 24, 25, 31, and Sept. 1, with front of house opening at 6:45 p.m.
Tickets are: adults $15; seniors/ students $12; children, age 12 and under, $5. Centrestage takes cash or cheques only. Reservations are recommended and are held until 15 minutes before show time.
Call 902-678-8040 for reservations.
Go online: www.centrestagetheatre.ca
North Hills Jazz Café Aug. 30 with Idle Threats
The next Jazz Café at North Hills Museum in Granville Ferry features The Idle Threats, talented local musicians all with a lifetime of professional touring and studio experience.
The evening – from 7-9 p.m. Aug. 30 -- will feature traditional straight- ahead jazz, calypso, Latin as well as modern fusion and even a bit of reggae. Guest vocals for some classic Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald songs are provided by Rachel Edwards.
Finger foods for the evening’s entertainment will be charcuterie and fine cheeses, provided by Chef Kevin Wagner, registered nutritional consulting practitioner (RNCP) and owner of Eating With Wisdom – Nutritional Consulting & Personal Chef Services.
North Hills Museum is located at 5065 Granville Rd., Granville Ferry. The museum is managed by the Annapolis Heritage Society on behalf of Nova Scotia Museum.
Tickets are $25 and will be limited and sold in advance only. Tickets include the entertainment and food. Wine will also be available at $5 per glass. To purchase tickets, or for more information call 902-532-2168 or email northhillsmuseum@gmail.com.
Free-for-kids Acrylic Painting Workshop
Free-for-kids Acrylic Painting Workshop with Monica Forestall at the Fort Anne National Historic Site, Annapolis Royal, on Aug. 25 from 1 to 4:30 p.m.
This is for all kids/tweens/teens (ranges in age from six to 17), all skill levels, who love to make art!
All needed art materials – paint brushes, acrylic paint, canvasses, pencils, erasers – will be provided for workshop participants to use.
Email mforrestall@earthlink.net if you have a child who would like to attend. The workshop is limited to 20 participants. Rain date is Aug. 26.
Lisa-maj Roos exhibit at Sissiboo
Sissiboo Coffee Roaster presents the work of oil, encaustic, and pastel artist Lisa-maj Roos at their Annapolis Royal location until Aug. 30.
With a painterly technique that includes an element of realism, Lisamaj Roos focuses on expressiveness, lush colour, and thick, juicy brushwork — playing with colour, surface, design and simplified form.
Drop in during regular hours at 262 St. George St., Annapolis Royal or visit www.lisaroosart.com
Round Hill Studio offers new exhibits
Brian Muszkie’s exhibit Annapolis Landscapes will be on display at Round Hill Studio, 280 St-george St., Annapolis Royal until Aug. 31.
Muszkie moved to Nova Scotia in 2010 and resides in the Village of Bear River. He works primarily in oils and watercolour. The theme for this exhibit is the landscapes of Annapolis, which he’s captured with his bold colours and striking brush strokes.
Coming Up: Violet Rosengarten’s ‘Some Enchanting Islands’ on exhibition from Sept. 1 to 29 with a reception on Saturday. Sept. 1. Artist Talk is Sunday, Sept. 2 at 2 p.m. at Round Hill Studio,
Contact: 902-955-0365 or Go online: www.roundhillstudio.com.
Workshop at ARTSPLACE
It’s Wellness Art Studio for Teens, with fall sessions beginning in September at Artsplace, 396 St-george St., Annapolis Royal.
Learn how to use a variety of art media, and make meaningful connections with others. Open to all Annapolis Valley youth ages 13-17. Call to register (902) 955-0365.
Playing with Clay! with Marla Benton
Explore the playful qualities of clay Sept. 9 from 1 to 5 p.m. at the KC Irving Centre on the Acadia Campus, Wolfville.
You will have the chance to play with clay and discover the amazing ability that it has to hold details and texture. Those attending will explore carving, stamping, and printing into clay pieces that they have created. Each participant will be able to create their own handbuilt masterpiece. Participants will complete their pieces, including glazing them, during the workshop. They will be able to pick up their pieces just over a week later after it has been dried and fired in a kiln. No experience is necessary. Cost is $100 and includes all materials and a light snack.
Marla Benton lives and works on the South Shore of Nova Scotia. She has a Fine Arts degree from the Nova Scotia College of Art & Design and an Education degree from Nipissing University. She creates a variety of work ranging from functional service wares to sculptural installations.
Sign up online at: http://uncommoncommonart.com/artist-workshops.html
New exhibit at Hardware Gallery
Hardware Gallery’s next exhibit, Representations, runs until Aug. 29 and features Cape Breton artist Alison Grapes and Halifax artist Erin Hollingshead.
Grapes, now based in Cape Breton, has also lived and worked in Saskatchewan and Nova Scotia, and delights in bringing colour and life to the ordinary.
“My wish is for viewers to become aware of the mundane beauty that exists in front of them, should they choose to stop and take a moment to witness it,” she says. “It is easy to passively drive along a known roadway looking forward, eyes unseeing, thoughts on the day ahead. But, it is enriching to be present in the moment, appreciating the beauty of everyday objects outside the window.”
In this exhibit, Grapes says she has focused on the familiar, everyday landscape, such as an abandoned late-1940s Ford truck, as well as including a hint of “man versus nature” in the work.
Hollingshead is an Ontario-born artist who now lives and works in Halifax. Her love of art and the landscape of this province has made this place her home. As an artist, she has always made the figure integral to her work, and has titled her work for this show “Summer”.
“Summer is a series of realistically painted portraits of women surrounded by the summer season. The figures are posed and their environment is built around them through collage and imaginative manipulation of reality. Flowers, sunshine, wildlife, parties and stargazing are among the themes of the paintings. Each figure stands alone, wrapped up in its own little part of summer on the canvas,” she says.
Go online: www.hardwaregallery.ca
Exhibits at ARTSPLACE Gallery
Following at current exhibits at ARTSPLACE Gallery in Annapolis Royal:
Until Aug. 26 ARC: Living Room Amanda Mccavour
Until Aug. 26 ARC: As Seen on Tumblr Ambivalently Yours
Until Aug. 26 Plein Air Art Group: Chapel (rental)
Until Aug. 26 Maria Longmire, 2017 Scholarship Recipient: Mym
ARTSPLACE is located at 396 St. George Street.
Open hours are Tuesday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Weekends 1 to 4 p.m. (by volunteer, call ahead).
Goto: https://arcac-artsplace.weebly.com/
Phone: 532-7069.
Bogs and Blooms at Jack’s Gallery
On exhibit at Jack’s Gallery in Wolfville is Bogs and Blooms, paintings by Simone Labuschagne and Leslie Fraser, until Sept. 16.
Jack’s Gallery, located at 450 Main St., is always looking for new work to display. For submission forms, please email jacksgallerywolfville@gmail.com
Call for submissions
Jack’s Gallery Wolfville is calling for submissions of 2-D artwork for Fem-fest: Freedom Then and Now a multidisciplinary arts festival celebrating the pioneering spirit of suffragettes.
Fem-fest: Freedom Then and Now examines and articulates the societal changes, advances, and present day challenges that define women’s lives.
The exhibition will run from Sept. 16 to Nov. 4.
For more information about Fem Fest: Freedom Then and Now go to www.caravantheatre.ca
Please contact jacksgallerywolfville@gmail.com to request a submission form.
Jacks Gallery is located at 450 Main St., Wolfville in the Justus! Café.