arts & culture

A look at upcoming arts and enn- tertainment events in the Annapolis Valley:

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 2-4 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 include The Idle Threats Aug. 19 and The Basin Brothers Aug. 26.

On the screen at King’s Theatre

King’s Theatre presents Incredibles 2 on Aug. 16 and 17 at 7 p.m.

While the Parr family has accepted its collective calling as superheroes, the fact remains that their special heroism is still illegal. After they are arrested after unsuccessfully trying to stop the Underminer, their future seems bleak. However, the wealthy Deavor siblings of Devtech offer new hope with a bold project to rehabilitate the public image and legal status of Supers, with Elastigirl being assigned on point to be the shining example.

On Aug. 21, King’s Theatre offers The TheLei Leisure Seeker at 7:30 p.m. The film stars Academy Award-winner Helen Mirren and two-time Golden Globe-winner Donald Sutherland as a runaway couple going on an unforgettable journey in the faithful old RV they call The Leisure Seeker, traveling from Boston to The Ernest Hemingway Home in Key West. They recapture their passion for life and their love for each other on a road trip that provides revelation and surprise right up to the very end.

Watch for Mamma Mia 2: Here We Go Again Aug. 23, 24, and 26.

Doors open 45 minutes before show time.

Tickets are $10 adult, $9 with a film buff card, and $8 youth.

Go online: www.kingstheatre.ca

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 directed by Chérie Zinck. The cast includes Mike Butler, Candy O’Brien, Alan Tupper, Emily Burton, Diana Bishop, and Bryen Stoddard/Darrell Doucette.

The featured artist is Dawn Ooman.

The evening dates are Aug. 17, 18, 24, 25, 31, and Sept. 1, with front of house opening at 6:45 p.m., and a matinee Aug. 19, with doors opening at 1:15 p.m.

Tickets: $15 for adults; $12 for seniors/students; $5 for children, age 12 and under. 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

Coming up at the Al Whittle Theatre

Check out classic movies this summer at the Al Whittle Theatre in Wolfville.

Upcoming shows include:

• Titanic — Aug. 14, 8 p.m.

• Tortilla Soup — Aug. 15, 8 p.m.

• Casablanca — Aug. 16, 8 p.m.

• Alien — Aug. 17, 8 p.m.

• E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial — Aug. 18, 2 p.m., and Aug. 19, 2 p.m.

• The Matrix — Aug. 19, 8 p.m. Films are presented by the Al Whittle Theatre, Devour the Food Film Fest and Just Us Coffee Roasters. Tickets are $5 each at the door. Just Us will be staying open until 8 p.m. and selling popcorn and a specialty cocktail based on the film.

Go online: https://alwhittletheatre.ca/

Thoughts about Nova Scotia Harvest Gallery exhibit

Deanne Fitzpatrick, Laura Kenney, and Steven Rhude combine works for Canada’s Ocean Playground — a sometimes painfully beautiful place. This exhibit opened July 21 at Harvest Gallery in Wolfville. The exhibition runs until Aug. 18.

What comes to mind when you think of Canada’s Ocean Playground?

“A place that is beautiful, complicated and often on the verge of extinction … the underdog, the place always trying to find the thing that will save itself,” says Kenney. “A bit long for a license plate, but that is what I’m going with.”

“Yet, Nova Scotia remains for me one of the most painfully beautiful places I’ve ever seen or lived in,” says Rhude. “Why is that?”

The show is being held at Wolfville’s Harvest Gallery at 462 Main St.

Go online: www.harvestgallery.ca

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, Lisa-Maj Roos focuses on expressiveness, lush colour, and thick, juicy brushwork — playing with colour, surface, design and simpli- fied form.

Drop in during regular hours at 262 St. George St., Annapolis Royal or visit www.lisaroosart.com

Round Hill Studio offers new exhibit

Coming up: Brian Muszkie’s exhibit Annapolis Landscapes will be on display at Round Hill Studio, 280 St-George St., Annapolis Royal from Aug. 3-31.

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.

Contact: 902-955-0365

Go online: www.roundhillstudio.com.

Workshop at ARTsPLACE

It’s Wellness Art Studio for Teens, with fall sessions beginning in September at ARTsPlace, 396 StGeorge 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 years. Call to register: 902-955-0365.

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 realistic- ally 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 St.

Open hours are Tuesday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Weekends 1-4 p.m. (Run by volunteers, call ahead.

Call: 902-532-7069

Go online: https://arcacartsplace.weebly.com/

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 email jacksgallerywolfville@gmail.com.

Call for submissions at Jack’s Gallery

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.

Contact jacksgallerywolfville@gmail.com to request a submission form.

Jacks Gallery is located at 450 Main St., Wolfville in the JustUs! Café.