Good Timber

It's been a while since we visited the Firehall Arts Centre, and last night's performance of Good Timber made us happy to be back. We've come to expect multi-talented ensemble casts at Firehall shows, and Good Timber fits that mold to a tree. The show features six actor/singer/musicians from The Other Guys Theatre Company performing Robert E. Swanson's logger poetry mostly set to music.

There isn't really a sustained narrative, but each song and poem tells its own story, all against a backdrop of wonderfully curated archival photos and video. Sometimes it was difficult to decide whether to watch the cast or the screen, especially when said screen featured images of handsome, strapping young lads from days gone by.

You might think this production has a fairly limited target audience, and certainly those with any kind of connection to forestry will find it especially gratifying. That being said, anyone with a penchant for rousing folk harmonies will enjoy the show. A caveat for the logging lay people: read the glossary before the show starts, lest all of the jargon sail over your head like a falling widow-maker.

Fat Dragon

With a gloriously open summer evening on our hands, we decided to check out something new to both of us and walkable. Enter Fat Dragon. As a reformed vegetarian, I had been hesitant to check this place out, but a quick perusal of their menu online assured me that, barring anyone ordering the half pig's head, I should be fine.

We arrived to see a gorgeous space, which was disappointingly empty. After tasting the food and experiencing the service, we concluded that many people must still be apprehensive about venturing to these parts. There are other relatively new signs of life on this strip of Powell, but this place is certainly a longer term investment. Now, on to the food and drink!

I started with a delicately sweet Junmai Sour, which was so delicious that only my budget stopped me from ordering at least three more. There are several beers available on tap and by bottle, both local and otherwise. M enjoyed his SpeedSpitter from Parallel 49 Brewing Company.

We ordered a selection of dishes to share, and were only disappointed by the crispy cauliflower. Unlike other bloggers, I enjoyed the method of cooking, but the lemon flavour was too dominant, and made it far less delicious than say Najib's Special at Nuba. The lightly smoked tuna was fantastic, as were the complimentary noodles the kitchen sent us (thanks!). We thought we might have to order additional Bao Buns at the end of the meal, but we were suitably stuffed with no room for dessert, savoury or otherwise.

Fat Dragon deserves more of an audience than it seems to have, (at least based on last night), and I hope the hungry masses start coming!

Ubuntu (The Cape Town Project)

Last night we enjoyed the opening night performance of Ubuntu (The Capetown Project) at our favourite little theatre, the Firehall Arts Centre. Somewhat uncharacteristically, I didn't do much research before the show, so all I knew going in was how much I liked to yell the word "Ubuntu!" As it turned out, I liked the play itself just as much, if not more.

The stage boasts three walls made from very cleverly deployed old trunks, which had M and I marveling at the set designer's ingenuity throughout the play. The excellent choreography similarly managed to get the point across and keep the action moving (across the Atlantic and back!) without resorting to elaborate props or extended scenes.

I am not one to (try to) figure out the story before it's finished being told, so I enjoyed the plot's twists and eventual tying up of loose ends. The talented cast mostly refrains from overacting, which must be difficult when dealing with such big themes and emotions.

Produced in partnership with Kamloops' Western Canada Theatre and Toronto's Theatrefront, Ubuntu runs evenings with some matinees until April 21, and tickets are still available!

Goodness

Last night M and I headed to the Firehall Arts Centre to check out the premiere of Goodness, which runs until March 11. It's not exactly the feel-good production of the year, but nonetheless, we both enjoyed it thoroughly.

Weaving together themes of genocide in an unnamed country, the Holocaust, and good old fashioned divorce-induced heartbreak, Goodness certainly packs an emotional punch. At times, the set up of the theatre brings the action a little too close for comfort, but this is by design. Goodness is a play written to make you question what you would do in similarly intense circumstances.

The acting is uniformly focused and crisp, which kept the audience glued to the proceedings. I purposely maintained a bit of distance because the subject matter was so horrific, and I feared making a scene of my own. I especially enjoyed the hauntingly beautiful songs sung by the cast throughout the play.

Goodness has been brought from Toronto as part of the Chutzpah! Festival, which showcases and celebrates Jewish performing arts of all kinds. There are only five performances left, and very reasonably priced tickets are still available!

Chelsea Hotel

Librarians citywide must be noticing an uptick in requests for Leonard Cohen CDs. After seeing Chelsea Hotel at the Firehall Arts Centre on Friday night, I've certainly placed more than a few holds myself! My Cohen knowledge used to be (rather pathetically) limited to the much covered "Hallelujah," and "I Can't Forget" (the latter only because of a Pixies rendition). I'm excited to explore the rest of his oeuvre.

I'm guessing this will sound obvious to many people, but I just didn't realize how deeply sad, sexy and romantic Cohen's songs are. They're all the better when used brilliantly here to form an emotional and stunning-in-every-sense-of-the-word performance piece. The cast is amazingly multi-talented, and the set, costumes and props are gorgeously evocative of the words and music. 

It goes without saying that Chelsea Hotel is not to be missed by Cohen fans, but I'd bet any music lover would enjoy it immensely as we did. The play runs nightly until March 3, with Wednesday and weekend matinees. There are even three more talkback performances where you can share your questions and feedback with the cast. Tickets are reasonably priced, and the Firehall Arts Centre has no bad seats!

Save-on-Meats

It's no secret that I think Mark Brand is the second coming, and his latest outing has proven to be another safe bet for dining on the East Side. Happily, Save-on-Meats is a lot easier on the wallet than my favourite arm of his multi-pronged business. After two visits, I now feel qualified to comment on the diner side of things. I can't speak to the other aspects of the reborn Save-on-Meats, but my trust in Brand runs deep, so I'm sure they're great.

For reasons I can't quite pinpoint, the food here is almost secondary. It's certainly good enough, and you simply can't argue with the prices. Save-on-Meats is more about the experience and the atmosphere, and they've nailed both. A, E and I had a collective girl crush on our server Kelcie, and we would have been happy to have her hang up her metaphorical apron and sit a spell with us. A friendly fellow behind the counter let us sample a bacon chocolate chip cookie before we committed our dessert calories elsewhere. The space is airy and spare, save for the many charming old-timey posters by local artist Dan Climan.

Biking there and back to work off the large portions topped off a truly perfect summer evening. I hadn't been to the original, but I think this incarnation deserves at least as long of a run.

East End Blues & All That Jazz

February is Black History Month, which I think is a much more worthwhile cause for celebration than Valentine's Day. But I digress...

If you're looking for a way to mark this special month, I can't think of anything better than a performance of East End Blues & All That Jazz. This "musical tribute to Vancouver's historic East End black community" is running three shows this weekend at the Firehall Arts Centre. Tickets are very reasonably priced ($15 students/seniors, $20 everyone else). If I weren't headed to sunnier climes on Saturday morning, I would definitely check this out. Thanks to my awesome neighbour/new friend Travis for the tip!

Canada Screens: Small Town Murder Songs

The next Canada Screens is happening this Thursday, February 17 at District 319. Buy your tickets here before it's too late! The movie is Small Town Murder Songs, which sounds positively riveting. Same deal: pre-party at 6:30, and the show starts at 7:30, and a post film Skype rehash with the director. I have a contingent of friends attending, but sadly, as it's on a Thursday again, I won't be able to make it. Enjoy!

Year of the Rabbit

As you've probably heard, last Thursday marked the beginning of a new year in the Chinese calendar. Walking down Hastings near Nanaimo today, I chanced upon a miniature version of the parade planned for tomorrow through Chinatown and the DTES. Billed as Chinatown's signature event, the Chinese New Year Parade began in 1974 and has been organized by the Chinese Benevolent Association since 1979. This year's parade route is a little over a kilometre, beginning at noon tomorrow, February 6, at the Millennium Gate on Pender.

I managed to finagle my way into the parade, (in a capacity which I will not reveal here!), along with my friend who is visiting from Calgary for the weekend. Aside from Little League opening day festivities in my younger days, I've never marched in a parade. Said friend hasn't been in one since a Santa Claus parade in Regina circa 1989. You can imagine our collective excitement.

The parade is just one aspect of the planned celebrations; there is also a free festival with family activities, and a post-parade ticketed banquet at the Floata restaurant. It should be a great time, as long we manage not to celebrate too hard tonight in our planned rockout downtown!

DTES Delight

This past weekend my mom was visiting from Calgary, and we embarked on an eating out bonanza, the likes of which hasn’t been seen in my life since the last time my parents visited in August. First stop: Acme Café for a cozy dinner on a chilly evening. My mom is one of those out-of-towners (and they are legion) who hear East Vancouver and think Downtown Eastside. In my time living here, I’ve been able to show her that there’s more to East Van than just the DTES, and it was finally time to demonstrate that this particular area has its own charms.

A short walk from our parking spot took us to the Acme Cafe. Much virtual ink has been spilled debating the wisdom and sensitivity of opening a café at this pricepoint in this particular location, but I don’t see any harm in a warm, welcoming and thriving business of any kind. Plus, I don’t think $12 dinner entrees homemade from quality ingredients are stratospherically expensive. Every time I’ve eaten at the Acme, I’ve been among people from all walks of life, which is part of what make East Van (including the DTES) so appealing. I guess it’s outside of some people’s comfort zones, but cookie cutter suburbs are waaaay out of my comfort zone, so there you go.

On this particular night, I overheard one of our fellow diners ask “Cocoa what?” when the server told him the daily crock pot special, which was coq au vin. I’m fairly certain another patron was a local character actor who I keep running across (at the Cultch’s Burlesque New Year’s Eve party, and then again at Canada Screen Casino Jack). It’s a small world, after all. A would-be customer tried to pass a counterfeit twenty, and he too was treated with respect.

But on to the food! I always have a cookie as an appetizer when I come here, simply because they’re so nicely on display and I can’t help myself. This time it was an incredible peanut butter sandwich cookie with chocolate chips.

For the main course, I went out on a limb and tried the High Falutin’ Grilled Cheese with the chicken noodle soup. The sandwich was good, but I think I would have enjoyed the classic grilled cheese more. I kept expecting non-existent turkey, since the High Falutin’ version comes includes some kind of cranberry spread. I usually order the chicken pot pie with salad, which is consistently perfect. My mom loved her shrimp guacamole sandwich with potato chips and broccoli slaw. The real stars of the show here are the desserts. I’ve tried the lemon meringue pie and countless varieties of cookies, but this time we split a slice of key lime pie. It was absolutely delicious: not too sweet, with a golden brown graham crust. Heaven.

Canada Screens : A Drummer's Dream

The next Canada Screens event has been announced for Thursday February 3, and tickets are now available. I saw the trailer for this film at the last event, and it looked rather heartwarming, if somewhat ironically slow-paced.

The pre-show entertainment will feature drummer "Jon Morrison." I'm not sure if they mean this John Morrison, or if it's someone else. As an added bonus, there will be an in person Q&A session with the director, John Walker.

Unfortunately, I won't be there this time, because it conflicts with the first week of the new dodgeball season. More to come on that, don't worry!

Canada Screens

When is a night at the movies more than just a night at the movies? When it's Canada Screens. I used to refer to it as Vancouver's best kept secret, but the cat has long since gotten out of the bag, and these monthly events routinely sell out in advance.

The most recent incarnation was held this past Thursday, as always at District 319, a very discreet, very posh event facility in the heart of the DTES. This go 'round, I brought along a friend who thought we were just plain going to see Casino Jack. Imagine his delight when he realized the tickets come with a complimentary glass of wine, and much, much more!

Canada Screens is a program of First Weekend Club, which aims to promote and raise awareness of the very best in Canadian film. The pre-party for every Canada Screens film offers up a bar (which you're free to patronize beyond that first free glass of vino), live music (this time, courtesy of Jim Byrnes, legendary bluesman), and appetizers (more finger foods than canapes, but still). You view the film itself from your very own red leather club chair. Very often, (perhaps every time?), there's a post film discussion with a cast member or the director either in the flesh or through Skype on the big screen.

All this for only $18 in advance. That's a great deal itself, but they also have gift cards available online or at the door (10 tickets for $100 or 5 for $60), which are almost too good to be true. I'm told the prices are going up a bit very soon, so act quickly to get the very best value.

A quick tip: arrive early and stake out your seats with your coat before hitting the pre-party, otherwise you'll be stuck in the very front row!