April 27, 2023 edition - The loss of a giant

TOGETHER WITH

Hear ye, hear ye! We’ve got some big announcements to, well, announce about some exciting developments coming up for the Georgia Straight.

Voting for the 26th annual Golden Plates awards has closed (which is technically old news), so here’s your friendly reminder that we’ll be announcing the winners on our site and in this here newsletter on Thursday, May 4.

We’ll also have features on a few of the winners in next week’s print publication, which is also set to go out on that same Thursday, so be sure to check the black Georgia Straight newspaper box closest to you to find in-depth features from this year’s Golden Plates.

A huge thank you to everyone who took the time to nominate and vote for their favourite spots around town.

You might've missed:

• New PNE amphitheatre announcement welcome news for a city with a shortage of arts and music venues

• On Our Radar: Mary Ancheta Quartet’s “Gotta Get It” is a supercharged jazz and funk jam

• Unexpecting brings rom com sensibilities to queer parenting realities

• Weezer and Third Eye Blind to headline Ambleside Music Festival

• Vibrant and delicious: Dockside Restaurant just launched their new spring menu! Fresh and flavourful dishes surrounded by waterfront views. Reserve your table today.*

*Sponsored Listing

FEATURE

Remembering Darryl Lenox: "This is going to hurt, and I’m sorry"

Vancouver comedy, Canadian comedy, and stand-up comedy in its purest sense lost a giant on Sunday.

For anyone who knew him, or anyone who was pulled into his orbit for even a moment, whether while he was on stage or on some bar stool, Darryl Lenox was larger than life.

Chris Griffin has the story on the comedian’s nearly 30-year career.

TOGETHER WITH TOURISM WHISTLER

Spring savings are calling in Whistler

Here’s to longer days and endless ways to play in Whistler this spring. Where else can you ski, bike, and golf all in the same day? And after all that adventure cap things off with après on a sunny patio and digging into spring-inspired dining deals.

NEWS

East Van Boulevard Gardens tours plant seeds for community growth

The little scrap of city land between the sidewalk and the road may not look like much, but with some careful planting they can be home to thriving boulevard gardens.

It’s these interactions between public land and private gardening that intrigued landscape architect Saba Farmand, who in 2019 started documenting “each and every” boulevard garden in East Vancouver on his Instagram account, @eastvan_blvd_gardens.

Over the past few years, the Instagram account has steadily risen to several thousand followers—and Farmand has taken the digital project to the streets, organizing walking tours to show participants the more off-beat sights of Mount Pleasant landscaping. 

ARTS

The Identity Bureau examines identity in an absurdist bureaucracy

Imagine a world where a government agency decides who you are.

That’s the premise of Some Assembly Theatre Company’s The Identity Bureau, a youth-led theatre production set in an absurdist near future where the titular organization assigns everyone in society their identity.

Valerie Methot, director, scriptwriter and Some Assembly founder, tells the Straight the whole existentialist concept came from listening to youth expressing their frustrations with being ignored.

Featured arts listings

• Under Milk Wood: A play set in a tiny village where the inhabitants all seem a bit eccentric—if not quite mad. | To April 30 | $15-33 | Jericho Arts Centre

• Under the Table Open Mic Series: Join Massy Arts Society and a collective of brilliant poet organizers for Under The Table Open Mic Series, featuring Kyla Jamieson. | May 2 | Free | Massy Arts

• Carousel Theatre for Young People presents Alphonse, May 2-7. An "unmissable" tour-de-force solo play. One actor, more than 20 characters, a "celebration of the imagination".*

• Experience Dziga Vertov's iconic 1929 experimental silent film Man with a Movie Camera on May 3. On the big screen and with a live score performed by the band Montopolis! Get your tickets here.*

• Songs for Nobodies: This one-woman performance, starring Sheila Sharma and a live band, weaves together the music of legendary divas. | May 4 to 20 | $26 | Deep Cove Shaw Theatre

• The Dance Centre and SFU Woodward’s Cultural Programs present FakeKnot’s PIÑA, inspired by the Filipino diaspora experience. May 4-6, SFU Goldcorp Centre for the Arts. Tickets here.*

• Discover a world of art. Art Vancouver May 4-7, 2023. Connect with exhibitors showcasing art from across the world. Vancouver Convention Centre West.*

*Sponsored Listing

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH SFU WOODWARD’S CULTURAL PROGRAMS

Into the Little Hill presented by Astrolabe Musik Theatre.

This contemporary, multi-disciplinary Canadian premiere fuses the “ravishing, shimmering beauty” of UK composer George Benjamin’s chamber opera with Idan Cohen’s direction and choreography. Leslie Dala conducts a 15-piece chamber ensemble, with Emma Parkinson and Heather Pawsey singing all six characters in this lyrical tale. Get tickets.

MUSIC

CC Voltage’s “Berliner Pilsner” b/w “Bummer Party” is refreshing power pop

The first track on “Berliner Pilsner” b/w “Bummer Party”, the new 7-inch from CC Voltage, was quite literally written in the style of an ’80s beer commercial—in fact, Voltage even entered it in a songwriting competition held by his favourite beer company (you guessed it: Berliner Pilsner) while living in Berlin.

Nevermind that his submission didn’t get a response.

With tongue-in-cheek lyrics that retain the Vancouver artist’s signature sense of humour—and some serious guitar shredding, tight percussion, and stripped down, no-nonsense arrangements—“Berliner Pilsner” is another winner in Voltage’s prolific catalogue.  

Featured music events

• Ted Park: The Korean-American rapper is performing at the Cobalt as part of the Ted Ass Tour. | 7pm | April 29 | $20 | The Cobalt

• GoGo Penguin: The British jazz band will be at the Hollywood Theatre with The Giving Shapes in support. | 7pm | May 1 | $42-$55 | Hollywood Theatre

• Jordan Hart: Canadian singer-songwriter Jordan Hart is performing his music at the WISE Hall next week. | 8pm | May 4 | $15 | WISE Hall

• VanMan Summit Concert: Experience the magic, power, and beauty of choral singing as more than 200 voices join together as one. May 13.*

*Sponsored Listing

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH M&M FOOD MARKET

M&M Food Market is seeking passionate Franchise Partners to introduce the brand into new markets and local communities across the country.

For a limited time only, eligible Franchise Partners will receive up to 50 percent of the cost of construction for their new store.

For more information, contact Liz Riley at [email protected] or 905-814-2420.

THE REST

Rosie's BBQ & Smokehouse makes a season-opening return to Nat Bailey Stadium this Saturday

Heading to the mesquite-scented mecca of Central Texas, Rosie’s BBQ & Smokehouse pitmaster Karl Gregg and operations manager Mandy Gregg took notes and gathered tips at some of the Lone Star State’s best barbecue joints, stockpiling ideas for a return to the Lower Mainland.

The pilgrimage helped shape the 2023 menu for Rosie’s BBQ & Smokehouse, which is about to launch this year’s season.

The rolling barbecue outlet’s instantly recognizable big red trailer makes its first parking-lot appearance of the year this Saturday (April 29) at Nat Bailey Stadium for the Vancouver Canadians home game.

The Rest of the events

• Broadway Rave: The travelling dance party celebrating musical theatre is in Vancouver this Thursday. | April 27 | $25 | Hollywood Theatre

• Cosmic Nights: Galaxies: Dive into space exploration in this evening of science and socializing that will include a planetarium show, guest lecturer, drinks, and science demonstrations. | April 27 | $25 | H.R. MacMillan Space Centre

• Studio Ghibli Forever! Part 2: As part of the Vancouver International Film Festival’s year-round programming, some of the studio’s most iconic films will be shown starting this Friday into July. | April 28 to July 17 | $15 | Vancity Theatre

• May the fourth be with you! Celebrate Star Wars Day with Vancouver's favourite nerdlesque troupe, The Geekenders, at the Rio Theatre May 4-6. Get your tickets here.*

• Committed to cultivating curiosity and critical thought, DOXA Documentary Film Festival returns May 4-14, presenting some of the best in documentary from across the globe.*

• Saddle up May 19-22 for the Cloverdale Rodeo and Country Fair. Over 40 food trucks, performances, entertainment, and animals to enjoy with friends and family.*

*Sponsored Listing