WE Vancouver, March 29, 2012 by Black Press - issuu
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MAR. 29 - APR. 4, 2012
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Angela Meier • 604-742-8679
Shawna Kisell • 604-742-8680
Editorial submissions are welcome but
Submissions may be edited for brevity and
legality. Opinions in columns are not necessarily
shared by the publisher. Copyright and/or
and other material appearing in WE. If, in the
publisher’s judgment, an error is made that
materially affects the value of the advertisement
to the advertiser, a corrected advertisement
will be inserted upon demand without further
charge. “Make-good” insertions are not granted
on minor errors which do not lessen the value
of the advertisement. Notice of error required
Vancouverites, this is your mission: on
Thursday, March 29, go out for breakfast.
Then go out for lunch. And then, even if
you’re full, go out for dinner. But not just
anywhere. Support the 225 restaurants
which are taking part in the annual
one-day fundraising feast called Dining
Out for Life (DiningOutForLife.com). A
portion of the proceeds from each meal
is donated to A Loving Spoonful and
Friends for Life, two organizations which
are dedicated to improving the lives of
people living with HIV/AIDS. Raising
a glass to the restaurants and diners
who together raise tens of thousands of
dollars every year are Sheena Sargeant,
executive director of Friends For Life,
honourary chef Ned Bell of Yew Restaurant, centre, and Lisa Martella, executive
director of A Loving Spoonful.
Photo courtesy Wink Photography
Live at Squamish goes on sale
On April 4, the line-up for the 2012 Live at Squamish Music and Arts Festival (August 24 to 26) will be unveiled
at a launch party at the Commodore Ballroom. Last year’s
musicfest attracted crowds of 10,000 people a day — and
that was before event organizers brand.LIVE got Live Nation to sign on as additional partner. (Virgin Mobile returns
as a presenting partner, offering its members special ticket
pricing, priority access and a VIP viewing deck.) The launch
party will feature recent Peak Performance winner Current
Swell (left), coming back from performances at this year’s
South by South West, and runner up The Matinee, recently
showcased at the 2012 Canadian Music Week. Tickets are
$10 each and go on sale March 30 through Ticketmaster.
Vancouver painter Angela Grossman is intrigued by
the ways girls and women are shaped by both deeply
personal experience and socially prescribed notions
of female status, sexuality, femininity and conventional beauty. She explores the struggle for identity,
security and self-acceptance in a new exhibit at the
Winsor Gallery (3025 Granville). Thirty years after being
introduced as a “Young Romantic” by the Vancouver
Art Gallery, Grossman has devoted much of her career
to examining themes of displacement and social
margins through the use of collaged and transferred
discarded materials. Her new exhibit, The Future is
Female, runs from April 4 – May 6. Grossman will be at
the opening reception on April 4 from 6 to 8.
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HootSuite has helped bring down presidents but Barack Obama uses it, too. Even still,
Vancouver’s Ryan Holmes, founder of the social media tool, has a bigger picture in mind.
ootSuite founder Ryan Holmes, one
of the most tapped-in men on the
planet — the man whose professional mission to revolutionize
social communication is on pace to connect
six million users this year — is actually waiting to hear from someone.
In Grade 5 he scrawled a fan letter to
a video game developer, sealed it in an
envelope and sent his praises off the only
way possible — by mail. The hero? Richard
Garriott, aka Lord British. Garriott created
a video game called Ultima in the early 80s
and the young Holmes was in love with
computers and Garriott’s work.
“Actually, he didn’t. The big jerk,” Holmes
So much time has passed that Holmes has
lost track of exactly what he is expecting in
“He owes me an email. No, he owes me
a letter,” the Vernon export amends with a
laugh. “What’s worse, I can’t imagine back
in the day he was getting very many letters.”
Honing his passion on his first computer,
an Apple IIc that he won in a school districtwide programming contest, Holmes’ future
impact on the internet would be charted
around that time — long before his wise
old owl came to roost. Despite the detours
of starting a paintball company, dropping
out of university and opening a restaurant,
Holmes was ultimately drawn back to something very similar to his childhood passion.
Arriving in Vancouver in 1999, Holmes
founded Invoke Media a year later. The
still-thriving web services company had its
biggest breakthrough in 2008, when Holmes
and Invoke staff realized they needed a
more effective way to handle the torrents of
information flowing in and out via burgeoning social media sites.
HootSuite came from needing a better
tool, but as they worked on the product,
Holmes quickly developed a deeper understanding of how much opportunity and
appetite there was for what they were doing.
The free service quickly became a communication platform so pervasive it was used
by Barack Obama and the Occupy movement.
It’s called positive K factor, a scientific
term for having a product so popular the
marketing takes care of itself.
The social media dashboard took two
years to rack up a million users, eight more
months to reach a deuce, and only six
months after that to hit the three-million
mark, where it currently perches. Holmes
is confident they’ll cross six million by the
All that spells greater profit for a Vancouver company that refuses to sell out.
Breaking the revenue bubble over a year ago
with the release of a premium version of the
product that hauls in well over $1-million a
month, Holmes won’t rest until his company is worth a billion dollars. But not for
the reason you might think.
“If we exit say at $100-million, I personally will do very well. My team will also
have some money, but they won’t have a
life-changing financial outcome.”
Exits, IPOs, acquisitions — call it what
you will, things get more interesting for
everybody after they cross the billion-dollar
Working towards that goal is not only
good for Holmes and his staff, but it’s good
Seated in a busy coffee shop near his
Eastside office, where staff and patrons greet
him by name, Holmes lifts the curtain on
why Canada has failed to generate tech-sector success stories to match the past decade
of Silicon Valley start-up fury.
The Silicon Valley Cerberus of military,
university and finance attracted a critical
mass of brainpower to the San Francisco
region in the 90s. As the internet gained
in popularity, these three ingredients
supernova’d and Silicon Valley became a
centre of innovation and development.
There is now a growing shift towards
decentralization but SF continues to have
a stranglehold on tech for one playfully
nefarious reason: the PayPal mafia.
This syndicate of American business
people and investors who were founders or
early employees of the e-commerce company aren’t feeding rivals to the fishes to
maintain their monopoly, they are using
their payout to propel new start-ups into
household names. LinkedIn anyone?
“PayPal had an amazing acquisition.
There was a group of people who got in
early on who all took a ton of money off
the table. Those guys are called the PayPal
Mafia and what they continue to do is work
together to co-invest in different start-ups.”
One member does the diligence and looks
into a company. Once he decides to invest,
he talks to the others and they kick in
“Those guys basically got into every big
start-up that you’ve heard about over the
last 10 years. It just blew up and these guys
kept doubling down in what they were doing.”
So while Canadian equivalents exit, and
have good exits (see Fredericton’s Radian6 at
$326-million), they simply aren’t superstars
in the incestuous, self-fulfilling universe of
technology. And, according to Holmes, there
haven’t been enough IPOs or acquisitions
where the whole team does amazingly
enough to re-invest in new ideas.
what it can to support start-ups with
programs like SR&ED (Scientific
Research and Experimental Development) and IRAP (Industrial
Research Assistance Program), but
their finances and foresight are
Holmes sums it up bluntly.
“The government (isn’t) going to
sit in rooms and come up with
great ideas. It’s the entrepreneurs
who drive it, but it takes some
success to get people excited. Angel
investors will come out of the
woodwork if they see that [success] happening and they’re not
getting in on it. Greed is a big
So while the PayPal
mafia picks its next lucky
“victim,” Holmes makes
his pilgrimage from
Vancouver to SF for
partnership meetings with Facebook,
and the like. After
all, there’s nowhere
three in the same
day. But the innovator remains wary of an
independence-killing phenomenon known
as groupthink, or social agreement on viewpoints that are incorrect or uninformed — a
psychological mass steamrolling of ideas
and alternatives commonly seen in hubs
In contrast, remote outposts like New
York, Austin, Boulder, Montreal and Holmes’
own “crystal cave of solitude” are emerging
as start-up incubators.
As to why he refers to Vancouver with
such reverence, he gets down to the business
of talent retention.
“There’s always a new shiny ball in SF.
First there’s Google and then the next thing
that comes along is Facebook and then Twitter. People are always moving and there’s a
lot of talent churn.”
“It’s an amazing place, but here we’ve
been able to keep our team focused and
building out a big product and a big prize.
We’ve been able to attract some of the
brightest and best and that’s been a huge
benefit to us.”
Vancouver wins as well. HootSuite
currently employs hundreds of talented
engineers, salespeople and creative minds.
And the HootSuite team, which sat at 25
people last year, has increased tenfold and is
expanding into a new, adjacent office space.
Iain Black, president and CEO of the Vancouver Board of Trade, isn’t surprised. “It’s a
trend towards recognizing Vancouver as one
of the three or four top locations in world in
terms of talent in the area of digital animation and new media, of wireless innovation,
of basic handleheld application development, and broader technology
HootSuite as a
global force is
that has and
of a city like
Vancouver. (It) puts us, in my opinion, in
same leagues as traditional technology giants like Creo and Electronic Arts.”
Black also expects to see interest surrounding companies from Metro Vancouver
and emerging pockets like Kelowna, translate into investment.
“It reinforces the message that Vancouver
is increasingly being seen by the venture
capital community as a place they should
investigate for creative business plans, smart
well-trained entrepreneurs and unbridled
So while home base builds here, Holmes’
idea spreads worldwide. He smiles at seeing the beloved HootSuite mascot take on
themes of hundreds of other countries, from
the Japanese geish-owl to a Brazilian soccerplaying bird — one for every language his
program is localized for. There was even
a Steve Jobs owl in honour of the man he
Their reach still staggers the soft-spoken
man, who has helped disrupt long-standing
reigns, ranging from email to Hosni Mubarak.
“It’s given us some pretty amazing insight
into the times we live in. In Japan, during
the tsunami, we were heavily used. We had
some of our biggest days through that, and
through the Egyptian revolution. In Egypt,
one day, we had a 16,000 per cent increase
in registration. When they shut down Twitter and Facebook people were using us to
indirectly access those. And then they shut
down the internet to stop all communication.
“It is really interesting to see how
disruptive and how core what
we’re working on can be to the
Ryan Holmes’ love of
yoga isn’t the only
thing keeping him
in Vancouver. From
the PayPal Mafia to
takes WE behind
the scenes of our
growing tech sector.
For more on Vancouver’s growing tech
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April 4, 1917: Women
could now vote in
BC... unless they were
aboriginal or Asian.
— from Chuck Davis
Milano café in Gastown is the first coffee shop to sign up with Reward
Loop, a new technology that replaces the need for a wallet full of loyalty cards. After buying a coffee, customers scan the QR code on their
receipt and record it on their smartphone. After $40 worth of purchases, they get a free coffee — and Milano owner Linda Turko (right) gets
an easy way to earn customers’ loyalty. RewardLoop is the brainchild
of Nigel Malkin (right) and Jeff LaPorte. Martha Perkins photos
IGNITE SMOKE SHOP offers
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RewardLoop starts in Vancouver, but
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Tech start-up uses QR
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YOUR NEIGHBOURHOOD AUTO CENTRE
G O L D W I NN E R
igel Malkin knows that if there’s
one thing most urbanites won’t
leave home without, it’s our
smartphone. We’ll tuck a bank
card or $20 bill in our pocket and walk
out the door clutching our lifeline to both
the outside world and our network of
But let’s say our destination is the Milano café in Gastown. We’ll get there and
then curse that in our quest for travelling
light we left our reward card in our wallet.
Curse no more, Malkin says. Simply take
out your smartphone and scan the QR
code that’s printed on your receipt for a
soy latte. It will record your purchase and
put it towards the tally that eventually
leads to a free cup of coffee.
The idea seems so simple that a few
years from now, when QR codes on receipts are ubiquitous, we’ll think they’ve
always been there. We’ll forget that someone had to come up with the brilliant
idea. And that then they had to find a
way to make it work, brand it and sell the
idea to all those stores and coffee shops
that want to earn our loyalty.
That someone was Malkin and his
partner Jeff La Porte, the founders of RewardLoop which, in 2011, won the BCIT
Most Promising Startup award as well as
$57,000 for coming in second in the BCIC
“It’s starting to percolate all over Vancouver,” says Malkin. “We have inquiries
from all over the planet because finally
there’s a critical mass of smartphones [to
make the technology appealing to companies.] I wouldn’t be surprised if we opened
offices in Europe and Asia.”
RewardLoop is currently in negotiations
with a multinational hardware manufacturer that will make their goal of going
global seem less than a pipe dream of two
entrepreneurs who wanted to develop the
next big thing and more like their natural
Malkin was born in Vancouver but
moved to Santa Barbara with his parents.
He stayed to go to university there and
started working in the film industry. It
was fun when there was work, worrying
when there wasn’t and pretty hard all the
time when it came to building meaningful
relationships. He moved back to Canada
and built a film studio on the North
Shore that was home to two $100-million
feature films. At the same time he started
The Specialty Gourmet (which later became Licious), which delivered diet meals
to people’s homes. (Think of it as Weight
Watchers on wheels.) After he sold both
he founded Brand2hand Media which…
better leave the description for tech geeks.
Geek-speak is also what you get when
you describe LaPorte’s earlier career. He
led the technical direction of the VX 2010
Showcase of wireless, new media and digital industries during the 2010 Olympic
games. Prior to that he was a whole bunch
of acronyms: CEO of EQO which helped
pioneer VOIP at something called DEMO.
(Don’t ask for a translation.) But one acronym that does matter is the TR35 award
he got from MIT Technology Review in
2006 for being one of the top 35 innovators under 35.
The two of them started talking about
the fact that everyone forgets to carry their
reward cards with them. If their smartphones could read QR codes why not find
a way to store all those points in their
smartphone? It would solve a problem for
consumers but also for merchants who
would no longer have to worry about
printing and distributing the reward cards.
Malkin and LaPorte both knew how expensive and time-consuming it is to open
a new office so they applied for one of the
spaces at WaveFront, an amazing technology incubator found in one of downtown
Vancouver’s office towers. Funded by
with support from the City of Vancouver,
WaveFront offers start-up wireless companies free office space (with fabulous views)
for a year. Better yet, in one of the glasswalled cubicles there are shelves filled
with 350 different kinds of smartphones
so if you want to test your new technology on one of them, you don’t have to
go out and buy it. Right now, Rogers is
currently building a new innovations
program as part of WaveFront’s facilities.
And where else can budding tech entrepreneurs have face-to-face meetings with
Sony executives who can help take their
product to the next level?
WaveFront gave Malkin and LaPorte the
financial breathing room they needed to
develop RewardLoop. Since they lived off
their savings for the first year, it meant
a lot not to have to worry about buying
desks or paying rent. “It really sent us on
our way,” Malkin says. Now that the business is becoming successful, RewardLoop
has five staff members and is hiring more.
It’s also started paying rent at WaveFront.
“The provincial government is really
investing in creating a digital knowledge
base,” says Malkin of Vancouver’s growing reputation as a tech hub. Colleges
and universities support the demand for
trained staff by setting up tech programs
that produce talented and innovative
graduates. WaveFront then adds its resources to the mix to make it a “national
centre of excellence accelerating the
growth and success of wireless companies
in Canada by connecting them with critical resources, partners and opportunities.”
It’s little wonder that Vancouver is earning the loyalty of so many tech firms.
nonetheless honed in on the one
thing he could help with — coins for
parking. It was inspiring to see this
man identify a problem he could fix
and go about fixing it. The agitated
refugee in question was thoroughly
relieved that at least one of his problems would go away. Well done CIC
security man! We salute you!
All rants are the opinion of the individual
and do not reflect the opinions of WE. The
editor reserves the right to edit for clarity
and brevity, so please keep it short and
To my beloved city of Vancouver, you
are ripping off West End residents by
having two permit zones in our small
area (north and south of Robson).
This is an unscrupulous cash grab. I
am disgusted by how greedy you are.
P. Pavotti, via email
A West End business owner was fined
$250 for having his dog unleashed.
This dog has been walking the same
block unleashed for more than 10
years. In all the years his dog has
walked the block, never ever has she
even so much as growled. Hundreds
of people including children, elderly
with walkers have walked past this
store without any problems. I just
cannot believe what this city has become. For those who have already left
be glad you are gone — it sucks! I hate
this city so much. It has changed and
I dislike all the political correctness
this whole city has become. What a
waste of taxpayers’ dollars! They can’t
get rid of the meth heads so they
make themselves feel important by
doing this shit?
A kudo to a kind
I visited the Citizen and Immigration
Canada office downtown last week
and am very, very, very impressed
with security officers and staff in
general. Many of the customers were
confused about what documentation
and processes were required and how
to go about having their respective
immigration issues resolved. The
staff behind the glass remained cool,
calm and collected the whole time
and repeated instructions clearly and
patiently with each customer, sometimes several times to the same customer. One particularly memorable
customer appeared very agitated and
tried to plead his case to the security
guard. The security guard, who could
obviously do nothing to resolve the
tax issues this guy was upset about,
the West End better!
Having thought that we West Enders
were way too cool to have one of
those inane “Baby on Board” stickers on our cars, spotting a couple of
them in our neighbourhood recently
leads me to ask the owners this simple
question: Do you honestly believe
that putting one of these stickers
on the back of your car will make
me any more careful about avoiding
rear-ending you than I already am?
Or, in some kind of smug way, do you
just want to let everyone know that
you’ve actually had sex on a couple of
occasions and managed to conceive
a child? Becoming a father is the best
thing that ever happened to me but I
have never felt the need to advertise
I find it strange that Christy
Clark has no money for teachers or
children with special needs but she
has $1.3 million for her propaganda.
All those ads about ‘selfish teachers’,
I’m totally insulted they’re spending
taxpayers’ money to insult teachers.
Our children are too important to be
played with. What you’re looking at,
Christy Clark, is solidarity. You want
to push? We’ll push back.
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rooftop deck & pool.
Give hockey fans a
Have you noticed how Rogers
Arena does not play hardly any heavy
metal or hard rock during Canucks
Games. I just realized why. Because
they’re concerned that sort of music
will instigate rowdiness and we just
had our second Stanley Cup riot in
17 years. But you know what? That
doesn’t stop any of the other cities
from playing Twisted Sister. We need
that music to get the crowds into it.
Otherwise we’re at a bit of a disadvantage. It’s pathetic we have to be
oh so concerned that we can’t play
Can taller buildings set new standards in
beauty and sustainability in Vancouver? Learn
more about this discussion and hear experts
weigh in on the topic.
Join us for this free event featuring worldrenowned architects Stefan Behnisch
(Stuttgart) and Peter Clewes (Toronto).
Tuesday, April 10, 2012 from 7:30 to 9:30 pm
515 West Hastings Street, 1400 Segal Room
1500 Pendrell #323
West End 844 sf 2 bdrm
with a sunny 98 sf patio
deck in the heart of the
West End. Pet friendly
solid strata with recent
exterior upgrades. Roof
URBAN DESIGN PANEL - SPECIAL SESSION
The panel, which provides recommendations to
City Council on creating buildings that achieve the
highest sustainability and architectural standards,
will hold a technical review of a proposed highrise
development at 1400 Howe Street. Architects
Stefan Behnisch, Peter Clewes, Walter Francl and
Mark Ostry will join the panel for this session.
Wednesday, April 11, 2012 from 11:30 am to 4:30 pm
1st Floor, Town Hall Meeting Room
604.873.7716 or 604.871.6403
Yuk Yuk’s seeks
city’s funniest voices
ou don’t spend three-anda-half decades building Yuk
Yuk’s into the world’s largest chain of comedy clubs
without enduring a few disastrous
openings along the way. Just one of
the war stories in founder Mark Breslin’s arsenal of anecdotes concerns a
last-minute paint job of a new club’s
furniture. When the opening night
audience found themselves wearing the finishing coat home, he was
forced to buy everyone new clothes.
However, with only hours to go before Vancouver’s fourth incarnation
of Yuk Yuk’s opens its doors, Breslin
couldn’t be calmer. As liquor bottles
are shelved, tables wiped clean, and
sound levels tweaked, the transformation of the rustic Jolly Alderman Pub
(at 2837 Cambie) into a modern com-
edy club is all but complete. There’s
a palpable sense of relief that the end
of a protracted metamorphosis is in
“It was rubble when we took it
over. I mean, real rubble,” recalls
Breslin of his first visit to the venue
a year earlier. Add some convoluted
negotiations with the Hotel Indigo
that houses the club (and whose signage still tellingly promises “Opening in Spring 2011”) and you can
understand why Breslin suggests, “It’s
quite amazing, actually, that this has
During Yuk Yuk’s two-year absence,
Vancouver’s alt-comedy scene has
flourished in non-traditional venues
such as restaurants and art spaces.
However, Breslin argues that Yuk
Yuk’s — “where the alternative meets
the mainstream” — offers a unique
opportunity for stand-ups. “We have
the infrastructure to be able to take
over. I mean real rubble,” Mark
Breslin says of new Cambie
Street location for Yuk Yuk’s.
“It’s quite amazing, actually,
people all across the country,” he explains. “What
comics in Vancouver need is, maybe to some
degree, a new comedy club like ours. But what they
really need is a comedy club in Calgary and Edmonton and Halifax and Toronto where they can
play. Otherwise, the scene becomes ghettoized.”
Having already taken locals such as storyteller
Damonde Tschritter and satirist Brett Martin under
Yuk Yuk’s management wing, Breslin is now seeking out new voices through Wednesday open mic
“That’s part of the mandate. You want to find
people who are going to become real stars,” he
explains. “The fact I can brag about Howie Mandel,
Jim Carrey, Russell Peters, Harland Williams, Norm
MacDonald and a lot of other people who started
at Yuk Yuk’s and really cut their teeth here, it gives
credence to the idea that we may know how to
spot some talent.”
One night later, the 200-seat club’s packed
opening night saw former Vancouverite Jay Brown
and current resident Sam Easton share the stage
with Torontonian Bryan O’Gorman and venerable
American eccentric Emo Philips. And while a
smattering of dick jokes and Brown’s unfortunate
jabs at Asian drivers back Breslin’s contention that
comedy hasn’t changed dramatically in the past
three decades, the laughter from a notably diverse
crowd (some in attendance weren’t legal age when
the last Yuk Yuk’s shut its doors) suggest that the
grand opening has fulfilled another of Breslin’s
mandates: “We want to take as broad an audience
as possible and expose them to our cult. The cult of
Why do you love Kits?
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hat is it about Kitsilano that makes it a
It’s a question residents of the Vancouver community are being encouraged to answer in the first
ever “Kits Me… Love the
‘Hood’ You’re In!” contest.
There’s a call out for story
submissions from Kitsilano residents passionate
about their home. Ninety
will be chosen to decorate
street banners along W.
4th Avenue between Burrard and Balsam. A picture
of each storyteller will accompany their reason why they love Kits.
The deadline is April 5. You can enter online
(KitsHouse.org) or drop off your entry at Kitsilano
Neighbourhood House at 3683 W. 4th.
1. OIL, LUBE & FILTER: Change the oil, install a new oil filter and lubricate the chassis
2. BRAKES: check front & rear brake systems
3. FRONT END: check shock absorbers, struts, & steering components
4. EXHAUST SYSTEM: visual inspection of catalytic converter, muffler,
5. ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: check battery, lights, horn & wipers
6. TIRES: rotate all tires, check tread depth, & adjust tire pressure
8. BELTS: check all belts & hoses
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Synthetic Oil Extra. Coupon expires April 30, 2012.
Offer may not be combined with other coupons or promotions.
*Buffet only. Offer excludes alcohol.
Expires April 12, 2012.
Lunch Buffet: MON-FRI $12.95 / SAT & SUN $14.95
Incl. Chai, Coffee and Juice 11:30-4
Expires April 12, 2012
40 items to choose from!
Room for Groups up to 70 people
Alexander Ludwig is
no longer hungering
for fame — he’s got it
Vancouver actor has it
thrust upon him given huge
success of Hunger Games
s Alexander Ludwig fields questions from WE and other local
media outlets in a downtown Vancouver hotel, The Hunger Games’
colossal $152-million opening weekend is
still two days in the future. However, no
one would be foolish enough to call this
The previous day, hordes of teenaged fans
queued for upwards of 12 hours to score his
autograph at a Chapters bookstore. Earlier
this morning, he needed to evade another
throng of girls who’d staked out his appearance at a local radio station. “I wouldn’t
wait five minutes for me,” marvels the
19-year-old Vancouver native. “I don’t really
understand what’s happening.”
What’s happened, of course, is that
Ludwig has scored a coveted role in the
highly-anticipated adaptation of Suzanne
Collins’ popular young adult novel. In a
dystopian future, a totalitarian regime has
established a televised bloodsport/showof-power in which 24 teenagers enter and
only one survives. (With the contestants
required to curry favour with the audience
by establishing backstories and subplots for
themselves, the parallels to reality television are easily spotted.) At the centre of the
tale is good-hearted Katniss Everdeen (Jen-
nifer Lawrence), who must survive more
merciless competitors like Ludwig’s Cato.
Having previously enjoyed prominent
roles in lower profile movies like The Seeker
and Race to Witch Mountain, The Hunger
Games presented Ludwig a new challenge:
breathing life into a major character who
isn’t blessed with a wealth of dialogue.
“A lot of it was creating backstory. Suzanne, (director) Gary Ross and I sat down
and talked about the character. Luckily,
Suzanne is such a great writer that part of
it was already mapped out for me in the
novel,” he recalls of the process. “The interesting part was trying to justify what Cato
was doing. As an actor, if you’re playing
someone like that, you have to fully believe
that everything that character is doing
is for the right reasons. And you have to
come up with reasons why that is okay. It
was a very dark and intense but fulfilling
“The reason I took the role was because
of one scene near the end of the movie.
You really see, just for a second, a glimpse
of humanity in Cato,” he continues.
“At that very last second, people kind of
sympathize with him. Even though what
he’s doing is horrible and unforgivable, you
kind of see where he’s coming from.”
A graduate of West Vancouver’s Collingwood School, Ludwig is now a theatre major at the University of Southern California.
As he tells it, his time on set only furthered
“One of my favourite scenes was getting
to work opposite Stanley Tucci [who plays
flamboyant media darling Caesar Flickerman],” shares Ludwig. “I learned so much
“I don’t really understand what’s happening,” Alexander Ludwig says of excited fan
reaction to the movie adaptation of Suzanne Collins’ popular book.
from him just in the five minutes that we
talked. When we first met, I was already
taking down mental notes. ‘Remember
everything Tucci says.’”
While Ludwig admits that he was occasionally starstruck in the presence of Tucci
and Lenny Kravitz, he and younger costars such as Josh Hutcherson established
some immediate rivalries. “We were all
duking it out right from the time we got
to training. It was all in good fun but I’m
a very competitive person at heart. That’s
one thing I did relate to in my character.”
Showing that he knows his way around
a metaphor, he surmises, “I like to think of
my career as the arena that Cato’s in. I
have to duke it out with everyone else and
hopefully come out on top.” He laughs
before adding, “And hopefully not die.”
Strike ‘write book’ off Bucket List: Buried Life
MTV’s Buried Life stars will be in Vancouver next week.
hey’ve played basketball with
Obama, cut a lock from Robert
Pattinson’s head and helped
deliver a baby, now the boys from
MTV’s Buried Life — Ben Nemtin, Dave
Lingwood, Duncan Penn and Jonnie
Penn — are to launch a picture book.
is about real people’s dreams — in fact
200 of them, selected from millions of
responses that Buried Life received from
their Facebook fans (over 1.25 million),
Twitter followers (150,000) and people
they met along the road.
The book also reveals what motivated
the boys from Victoria to start this project
“Something amazing happened to each
of us individually, and this brought about
a self-belief that we could do anything,”
Ends April 15th, 2012
• Almost NEW & USED Paperbacks
• Collectors Magazines • Graphic Novels at US Prices
• Artsy Art Books • Vintage Children’s Books
• Extensive Movie Book Selection
• 10,000 “Out Of This World” Sci-Fi Fantasy Books
• Comic Back Issues at 1/2 PRICE
• Prodigious Array of Mainstream & Alternative
• Thousands of VHS & DVD Movies
No wonder they’ve been labelled
the social conscious of the Jersey Shore
generation. Mind you, helping a young
girl combat her fear of heights on Oprah,
donating $1 million to charity and capturing a fugitive could only have helped that
Buried Life will be at Kidsbooks (2550
Camsun at 10th) on April 4 from 7 – 10pm.
A signed copy of the book and a ticket to
the event cost $25.
And just because the book is out, don’t
think you have to stop posting your Bucket
List ideas on the boys’ Facebook wall.
1539 W. Broadway (near Granville)
Monday-Friday 11-7; Saturdays 10-7; Sundays 12-7
hot dog a
Ah, the luck of the draw... Stephen
“Dawg” Milne won WE’s contest to enjoy
“the world’s most expensive hot dog” at
DougieDogs on Granville. Milne gives us a
review of the cognac-and-lobster hot dog
experience: “It was fantastic. You can taste
everything that’s been put on it. The garlic
smell with the lobster goes right up your
nose as your mouth fills with kobe beef and
bratwurst. Just watching while Dougieluv
put it together was making me weak in the
knees. My friends have asked me if I had
the money would I buy another one, YES!
It is definitely worth the $100. I was nearly
in tears when I saw I was down to the last
bite.I spent the rest of the night walking it
off ‘cause I didn’t want to spoil it by going
out drinking and wasting that foot long of
The largest tasting tour of California wines
comes to Vancouver as a fundraiser for the
Arts Club. West restaurant is hosting the
California Dreaming Dinner on April 17
but, alas, that event is already sold out. On
April 18 at the convention centre ballroom,
700 wine enthusiasts will be able to meet
with 120 vintners from family-run boutique
brands to large-scale benchmark wineries.
Tickets are $75 each or $65 each for groups
of six or more. Then, on April 30, the Francis
Ford Coppola Winery stars in the Food,
Wine, Adventure Dinner at Q4 restaurant. Hosted by the winery’s Lise Asimont,
the evening features an Italian four-course
dinner and highlights from the Rosso &
Bianco, Diamond Collection, Director’s Cut
and Sofia labels. Tickets are $185 each. To order call 604-687-1644 or visit ArtsClub.com.
To get a taste of some rare wines from the
Clos Du Val Winery, and to celebrate the
Napa Valley institution’s 40th anniversary,
16th Street Liquor Store (220 16th St. in
West Vancouver) is hosting a wine tasting
on April 11 from 7 to 9pm. This is to whet
your appetite for the California Wine Fair
(above) and a special dinner at the Fairmont
Chateau Whistler on April 21. The unique
Twitter hashtag, #classof72, will be used for
all of these signature events. (ClosDuVal.
Seven of Vancouver’s rising stars in the pastry making business are highlighting their
creations at the first Indulge n’ Dance
on April 14. This after-dinner event at W2
Media Café features a special dessert tasting
and entertainment to support these young
entrepreneurs who do not yet have a brickand-mortar presence. Participating artisans
include Jenell Parsons of The Pie Hole. “Pie
shops have taken off in the U.S. and we are
only slowly warming up to the idea in this
city. Being part of Indulge n’ Dance allows
me to show Vancouverites what good pie is
all about,” she says. Tickets are $18 and are
available through IndulgeNDance.com.
She’s taught navy cadets how to cook,
competed with the stunning view of Jasper
for diners’ attention and cooked in Fairmont
Hotel kitchens from Bermuda to Toronto.
And now East Coaster Dana Hauser is the
hotel chain’s first female executive chef. She
takes the lead role at the Fairmont Waterfront’s Heron’s West Coast Kitchen + Bar
and will oversee banquets, in-room dining
and all food and beverage operations at
the hotel. “British Columbia provides an
abundance of the finest ingredients,” she
says in a press release. “Combine this with
being the first female executive chef in the
company and it’s a dream come true.” She
was studying psychology at Memorial University in Newfoundland when she started
to crave a career that combined her love for
food and travel and a desire to be part of a
team. She enrolled in Canadore College’s
culinary program and an apprenticeship at
Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge turned into a
career with the company. She also studied at
professional cooking program.
Starting April 2, Truffles Café at VanDusen
Botanical Garden will be serving a ‘proper’
Afternoon Tea complete with three-tier
tray of goodies, ceramic tea pots and cups,
organic and private label teas. It’s $28 for
two people or $50 for four and includes
a three-tiered tray loaded with sweet and
savoury goodies plus an extensive selection
of teas. The first tray tier contains a choice
of daily sandwich which has been cut into
smaller portions. The middle tier contains a
large croissant (divided into two portions),
coconut macaroons and shortbread cookies while the top tier features jewel-toned
French macarons and petit-fours.Selections
change on a daily basis. Tea selections
include VanDusen’s own private label black
tea (blended by The Secret Garden Tea
Company in honour of the visit of HRH The
Duchess of Cornwall in 2010) and a dozen
different organic teas produced by MoTeas
from Kelowna. Truffles Café is open daily
During a visit to Barcelona, Cocoa West’s
Joanne Mogridge was captivated by the
sculptural qualities of Enric Rovira’s
exquisite chocolates. The Bowen Island
chocolatier was inspired to create her own
egg. The sunsculpted eggs,
fair-trade chocolate, come in
4-inch and 6-inch
sizes, adorned with
a nest of chocolate
twigs, an Unbelievably Good Egg — soft
caramel and chocolate centre truffle rolled
with toasted almonds — and solid dark
chocolate eggs. You can win one by going to
WEVancouver.com/contests by April 2.
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Prices in this ad good through March 30th.
Exorcising DB’s ghost,
Nu beginnings, Oyster
Express and Vicino
t’s not every week that I get to
update our readers about four
new interesting restaurants
under construction, but such was
the one just passed.
The first that I’d like to talk about
is the new project from Alex Tsakumis and Patrick Corsi of the
Mediterranean-themed Q4 Ristorante on 4th and Q4 al Centro
It’s actually two-in-one, a wine bar
and a restaurant. The wine bar will
be where chef Rob Feenie’s career
skyrocketed a decade ago at 2551 W.
Broadway. I’m referring, of course,
to Lumiere, a restaurant that, for
several years, was arguably the finest
in Vancouver. Its success begat the
more casual, much larger “Feenie’s”
next door, which will soon house the
When Feenie fell out quite publicly
(it was ugly) with partners Manjy and
David Sidoo back in 2007, in came
superstar international chef Daniel
Boulud, who turned Feenie’s into
DB Bistro and left Lumiere much the
same as before. Sunlit uplands, right?
Wrong. After a good first few months,
Vancouver diners abandoned them
both (as if the restaurants were
cursed). For want of customers, they
barely lasted two years, closing exactly one year to the day before Corsi
confirmed to me last week that he
and Tsakumis had taken them over.
Spooky? Not particularly. But why
did it take so long for a new tenant
to come along? I asked a few restaurateurs this in confidence and the
answers ran the gamut. “It’s not a
good location.” “It’s too expensive.”
“Dealing with strata and residential
neighbours would be a headache,” et
cetera. No surprises there. The most
interesting response? “Bad voodoo.”
While I’ve never known restaura-
Harry Kambolis is opening the third incanation of Nu at 332 Water. The
decor is much improved but the focus remains on souvlakis.
Over 60 items to choose
3 Hot Items: Fresh Oysters, Peking Duck,
Dungeness Crab (add $5/person)
• Soups • Dim Sum • Signature Entree Dishes
• Desserts • and many more
Following the success of Nicli Antica Pizzeria, Bill McCaig is opening
Vicino next door. Andrew Morrison photos
teurs to be a superstitious lot, all the
soap operas that took place at this
address were clearly still fresh in the
minds of many of them. “I wouldn’t
take either place over if I had free
rent for a year,” said one, and that’s
despite the fact that — according to
Corsi — the famed million-dollar
kitchens are still intact. I’m not suggesting that he and Tsakumis hire an
exorcist to clean the places out. I’m
merely pointing out that some salt
over the shoulder might do the trick.
Opening: six weeks.
Moving on to the western edge
of Gastown, we find that Harry
Kambolis of “C” and Raincity Grill
is opening the third location of Nu,
his Greek take-out, day-only chainlet.
The 16-seat location is the old butcher/sandwich shop (So.cial, MacLean’s)
at the rear of 332 Water (facing out
to Cordova). This Nu is going to be
a little different than the ones on
Robson and West Broadway, and five
times better looking (lots of wood,
chalkboards, old architectural bones).
The focus will remain on souvlakis,
though Kambolis will be serving
them open-faced for a change. He’s
also looking to make a splash with
his line of flavoured pitas (the long
hope is to have them on supermarket shelves, too), and possibly score
a liquor licence for weekend dinner
services. Opening: one week.
Meanwhile, in Chinatown, former
Rodney’s Oyster House hand Shawn
Chesney is getting set to open Oyster
Express at the southwest corner of
Keefer and Gore (296 Keefer). The
shucker will be omnipresent, busting
bivalves from a five-foot-wide oyster
bed in a small room that has been
And last, an update on Vicino at
68 East Cordova. I made mention of
the coming DTES eatery in the Fresh
Sheet a moon or two ago, and
construction is now well underway.
Owner Bill McCaig (who owns the
popular Nicli Antica Pizzeria next
door) and his team have taken the
2,000 sq.ft. empty space — which has
never been a restaurant before — and
created the skeleton of a kitchen, the
shape of a delicatessen counter, and
marked out both where the pasta
drying cabinet will go and where
they’ll be making their own gelato.
This will be a mostly take-out,
counter-service operation with only
16 seats — all communal — at the
front of the space (the rest being
taken up by retail and back of house.)
In addition to the many fresh pastas
and house-made sauces on offer, we’ll
see a panini press put through the
works, lots of meat and cheese, plus
plenty of antipasti items. McCaig has
hired on Calgary’s Craig Picek
(ex-Capo, Il Sogno) to be the chef.
Opening: eight weeks.
Featuring the Dockside’s famous
Chef’s Grand Holiday Brunch and
$45.95 per person & $21.95 for kids
10am-3pm on Easter Sunday
arrived, we were
given a small,
tea bud. It was
placed in a clear
... these beautiful
in our cup. It was
the flowers unfurl themselves,
in China who
such a creation.
completely wrapped in raw wood a
la Aurora Bistro, circa 2003. (It will
also boast two Hobbit-ish circular
windows). We can expect anywhere
from four to 10 types of fresh oysters
in the offing at any given time, plus
an addendum menu of salad, cornbread, and so on. There will only be
espresso, tea, smoothies and juices for
liquids to begin with, but Chesney is
aiming to get a liquor licence once
he’s up and running. That’s my only
doubt about the place, really, as
oysters and smoothies aren’t as natural bedfellows as, say... oysters and
Prosecco. Here’s hoping he can start
pouring quick! Opening: one week.
the WE went
to discover for
ourselves why it
won gold in our
poll for Chinese
• Voted best patio in Vancouver
• Award winning in-house brewery
• Legendary Sunday Blues Brunch
• Open 7 days a week for breakfast,
Ten Fu’s Tea and
1668 West Broadway • 604.734.1668
Lunch: 10:30am–3:00pm • Dinner: 5:00pm–11:00pm
For more details go to www.docksidevancouver.com. Reservations 604-685-7070
In the Granville Island Hotel, 1253 Jonston St, Granville Island. Valet parking available
who know a
lot about food
ever, ever say that Les Dames d’Escoffier are women
who do lunch.
Unless you mean that they grow the food, cook it,
choose the wine, hire the staff, host the meal and then
critique and promote the entire experience.
“It’s about the love of food, the depth of knowledge and the
excitement we get talking about food,” says Nancy Wong over
lunch — a working lunch — at Shaughnessy Restaurant.
“We want to give back and be with like-minded people,”
agrees Pam Williams.
Mary Mackay takes a bite of her Nicoise salad — the slightly
seared tuna is a West Coast touch — and adds, “as a collective,
the networking opens us up to new things and exposes us to different trends.”
Wong owns Culinary Communications, a media relations
company that specializes in food and restaurants. Her business
card says MBA but really she has a Master’s in multi-tasking —
she’s also the director of marketing and communications for
Williams is the owner of Ecole Chocolat and if ever there was
a Master’s of Chocolate, she’d have it. Her professional school of
chocolate arts complements her website, ChocoMap.com, which
is an exploration of all things chocolate.
Mackay is the head baker at Terra Breads. She must have one of
the best-smelling jobs in the entire city, in charge of what comes
out of the hearth ovens at the city’s popular artisan bakery.
Each woman is an expert in her own field but can also talk
knowingly about all aspects of food and wine. This is partly
due to aptitude, partly due to what they learn from the other
members of Les Dames. Their passion for the arts of the table is
naturally infectious but there’s also a deep commitment to supporting excellence and the women who make it happen.
“It’s a sense we all have when we know we’ve tapped into
something good,” says Mackay.
When she started out as a chef 25 years ago, Vancouver’s food
award-winning food • widescreen TVs
Nancy Wong, Mary Mackay and Pam Williams are Vancouver members of Les Dames d’Escoffier.
scene was fairly receptive to women but she remembers moving
to Quebec and being the only woman in the kitchen. Although
she had the skill level to do much more, she was relegated to
making salads for eight hours a day. Eventually “I snuck my way
into pastries. Maybe they thought it was a little ‘softer’,” she says
Indeed, Les Dames d’Escoffier was formed because women
weren’t allowed into the prestigious Les Amis d’Escoffier.
And now, having achieved so much in their own careers, the
Vancouver members of Les Dames want to help women entering
the field, whether they are 17 years old and starting a vegan bakery or a woman whose mid-life epiphany is a desire to become a
professional sommelier. The scholarship fund often provides that
extra bit of help that makes following the dream possible.
To find out more about Les Dames, its opportunities and its
scholarships, visit LesDames.ca.
International wines get their day in the sun
t’s springtime in Vancouver, the time
of year when we start to see an increase of cruise ships in the harbour,
parking at Granville Island becomes
impossible, and I’m more than likely to
slip on a pile of mucky cherry blossoms
after a good rain. It’s also a busy time of
year for local wine enthusiasts, with many
seminars, events and fairs filling up the
calendar. Since the best way to learn about
wine is to get out there and taste as much
as possible, hitting these upcoming events
will both turn you into a social butterfly
and increase your personal inventory of
Malbec World Day | Tues. April 17 | Various
Locations | Free! | MalbecWorldDay.com
The price is right with this one! Celebrating
the charismatic, ultra-purple grape grown
from France to Argentina and all points in
between, there are plenty of free tastings
going on beforehand to get you prepared
and on the day of so you can celebrate! On
Saturday, April 14, Marquis Wine Cellar
will be busting open at least a half-dozen
different bottles for your sampling pleasure,
with Legacy Liquor Store doing the same
the following Sunday. On Malbec World
Day itself, Tuesday, April 17, the BC Liquor
Store at 39th and Cambie will have a dozen
different Malbecs and blends pouring freely
with the added bonus of empanadas from
House of Empanadas as the perfect pairing. Follow the #MalbecWorldDay hashtag
on Twitter to share in the day’s festivities
California Wine Fair | Weds. April 18 at 7
pm | VCC East | $75 | CalWine.ca
An annual fundraiser for Vancouver’s
beloved Arts Club Theatre Company, the
swanky affair offers wines from over 100
wineries across the Golden State, including
those from both Napa and Sonoma Valleys,
the Central Coast and more. They break out
the good stuff at this one year after year,
and not only is it added fun to go with a big
group, buying six or more tickets at once
knocks ten bucks off of the price!
wine-style differences across such a wide
array of regions made it well worth the
endless hours on the highway. The girls at
HouseWine.ca are doing the same journey
virtually, for your drinking pleasure, sharing their favourite Clare Valley Rieslings,
Coonawarra Cabernets and more. Tired of
Barossa Shiraz? With over 75 wines in the
room, you can try dozens and dozens of
wines without going near the stuff! Grabbing your tickets before April 10 gets you
a $10 discount from the regular $49 price.
POWER that could not be DENIED
DESIRE that could not be RESISTED
at The Centre in Vancouver
New Zealand Wine Fair | Tues. May 1
at 7 pm | Roundhouse
Community Centre | $60 | NZWine.com
New Zealand’s really been floatin’
my boat these days, and not just
because of their citrusy, lively
Sauvignon Blancs. Sure, the Syrahs out of Hawkes Bay carry some
lovely, bright complexity but it’s
the Rieslings and Pinot Noirs of
Central Otago where you’ll find
yourself bumping elbows with
the most excitable wine geeks
of the room. A chance to meet
many of the globally respected,
progressively minded winemakers
of the country without dropping
a couple grand on a flight!
Regional Crush | Fri. May 11 at 7
pm | Harrison Galleries | $39/$49
Back in November, I spent nine
days touring almost 40 Australian wineries in eight different
regions stretched out over 2,500
kilometres. A tough slog, but the
reward of experiencing the vast
Get more details and links for all of the
above at KurtisKolt.com.
Amanda Green in Svengali | photo: David Cooper
Enter at wevancouver.com by April 12
Lamb Dinner Special $12.95
Sunday Brunch Buffet $15.95
DUO @ 6PM
in the BEST WESTERN PLUS Sands Hotel
Trevor Linden’s healthy approach
to fitness coming to Canada Place
hirty pounds ago, Becky Edwards signed
up with Trevor Linden’s She’s Fit club in
Abbotsford. She’d been a chronic dieter
who thought the path to losing weight was
eating only two meals a day.
Today, she’s the nutrition and fitness manager
for Linden’s Club 16, which is opening its new
Canada Place location — with gorgeous views of
Coal Harbour and the coastal mountains — on
April 16. She’s glowing with wellness and packs a
Rolﬁng is Manual
pretty hefty lunch bag when she heads off to work.
“We have to change the way people look at
food,” she says. “Instead of being about deprivafunctional resources.
tion, it’s fuel.”
Her advice: eat breakfast within half an hour
injury, Rolﬁng works on the adaptive and
of waking up and eat every three hours after that.
Eighty per cent of the time you should be conscienor be the result of—an injury.
tious about what you eat by following a healthy reRolﬁng can help you move again.
gime, but for the other 20 per cent, have a little fun.
Edwards says, “More people are under-eating
rather than over-eating and then they wonder why
they are tired and relying on Red Bull or coffee to
keep them going. I’ve lost 30 pounds going from a
low-carb, two-meals-a-day diet to eating all day.”
Advanced Certiﬁed Rolfer
Her involvement with Club 16 and its womenRegistered Massage Practitioner
only offshoot, She’s Fit, has been “life changing.”
She’d never been a member of a fitness club and
what she found was a place that welcomed and
supported her, rather than intimidated her. She lost
her fear of feeling she needed to be perfect and,
in doing so, became a role model for her young
daughter and women of
Sometimes a fitness
centre can make you
feel like you have to
be fit and buff before
you even walk through
the door. Linden is
of all ages and fitness
levels. His goal is to
him that exercise is an
important way to make
“It’s important from a
physical state as well as
a mental state,” he says
during a recent BreakPlease see customer service in-store for product returns or for more
fast TV segment at the
Coal Harbour facility.
Becky Edwards is a believer in Trevor Linden’s approach to fitness and
health. She went from constant dieting to being 30 pounds lighter and
packing a pretty hefty lunch bag. The former Canucks star is opening
his new Club 16/She’s Fit fitness centre at Canada Place on April 16.
“When I’m exercising, I think better
and I’m a better friend and husband.”
To further his goal of making everyone feel comfortable in his clubs,
he created She’s Fit. Some women
might be intimidated walking into
the co-ed Club 16, or not want to exercise with men for religious reasons.
As Edwards says, “it ups the nonintimidating factor. We want there to
be no barriers so if being intimidated
is a barrier, take away the barrier.”
She admires Linden’s approach.
“Fitness is part of his life and it wants
it to make it part of everyone’s life.”
Linden rejects the idea of exclu-
sivity and his prices reflect that.
Although the downtown club membership fee is $19.99 a month (up
from the usual $14.99), for $24.99
you get access to any Club 16 in the
Lower Mainland, including the Club
16 in the LuluLemon headquarters in
Kitsilano. Another factor that makes
the Canada Place location ideal, he
says, is that it has lots of free parking
16 and She’s Fit at Canada Place, call
604-558-1600 or go to TrevorLinden
Dr. Ashley Dykun &
*Patients are required to have new patient dental exam, xrays and cleaning. You can receive a FREE Electronic Toothbrush or Zoom In-Ofﬁce Whitening for $ 99.00. Offer expires March 31, 2012.
Rick Hansen comes home to celebrate
wenty-five years after the Man in
Motion World Tour ended, Rick
Hansen is still working to change
the lives of people with spinal cord
injuries. On May 22, the Rick Hansen 25th
Anniversary Relay will complete its crossCanada journey here, in Vancouver.
To celebrate, Canadian difference-makers
and entertainers will gather at Pacific
Coliseum for Rick Hansen Celebration 25,
a spectacular live show that will also serve
to launch the first annual Rick Hansen Day
of Possibilities — a national public fundraising campaign, which sets the stage for
the next 25 years of progress in the areas of
spinal cord injury research, accessibility and
Notables including environmentalist David Suzuki, Free The Children founder Craig
Kielburger, and Paralympic gold-medalist
Lauren Woolstencroft will participate in the
show as part of a group of outstanding Canadians who serve as inspiring reminders of
what can be done to bring positive change
Vancouver is one of the most wheelchair-
accessible cities in the world thanks to the
transformative efforts of the Rick Hansen
Foundation and thousands of champions,
“It hasn’t happened overnight. A lot
of amazing things helped us think about
being accessible: the Man In Motion Tour;
having 3,000 people close out the Decade
of Disabled Persons in ‘92; a good friend of
mine, Sam Sullivan being mayor of the city,
and hosting the Olympic and Paralympic
games,” he told WE.
“But we have a long way to go. It’s
encouraging to see Mayor Gregor and the
City of Vancouver continue to set goals and
challenge other communities.”
For Hansen, who was confined to a
wheelchair at the age of 15 after a caraccident left him paralyzed from the waist
down, his continued motivation comes
from seeing the progress already made, and
envisioning the potential.
“I’ve seen some unbelievable examples.
Michael Harcourt, the former premier of
the province of BC — he was injured and received best practice treatment and care and
he’s walking today with much less permanent paralysis than what would have ever
happened before the Man In Motion Tour.
“May 22nd was the day I concluded my
journey 25 years earlier. The difference
between then and now — I know now this
The two-hour special event will also
feature performances by award-winning Canadian artists, including David Foster, Sarah
McLachlan, Jann Arden, The Canadian
Tenors, Marianas Trench and Johnny Reid.
Tickets went on sale Mar. 27 and are available through Ticketmaster at TicketMaster.
ca for $25, $55 and $95.
Information on the Rick Hansen Day of
Possibilities can be found by visiting
Shannon O’Brian needs
your help to Screw
he founder of Karma Exchange,
Shannon O’Brian, was stunned to
receive a personal invitation from
Sir Richard Branson to enter his
latest contest. His Virgin Unite charity
is looking “for those who, at the same
time as wanting to develop a business
and make a living, also want to do more
to help people and the planet.” And he
thought the Vancouver-based social enterprise was a perfect candidate.
Karma Exchange partners with local businesses such as Bel Café in the Rosewood Hotel
Georgia, the Sutton Place Hotel, Vida Spas,
Sala Thai, Red Tree Wellness, and the American
Cheesesteak Company to harness the power of
the consumer to fund water projects and girls’
education in Northern Ghana. To date, over
24,000 people have been given access to clean
water and 1,000 girls are given high school and
university scholarships every year.
If you could help her reach the Top 10 by
voting online before March 31, a little good
karma could come your way. Go to http://
tinyurl.com/6q9tdad to vote and see her
for more listings and rentals at
702 - 1818 WEST 6TH
202 - 1675 HORNBY
408 - 1820 EAST KENT
1606 - 1500 HOWE
3 bedroom Penthouse with unlimited views.
Concrete building. Parking & storage,
2 bedroom, 2 bath & 2 parking on seawall.
Balcony plus 450 sf garden terrace.
Exceptional top floor one bedroom. Spacious open
plan, clubhouse. Pet friendly & rentable.
2106 - 909 MAINLAND
1510 - 1050 BURRARD
1818 WEST 6TH AVE
South facing one bedroom and den with balcony.
Parking, storage, gym and concierge.
2 bedroom, 2 bath. Hardwood floors, balcony.
Parking. Furnished and leased.
Furnished suite in financial district.
Furnished 2 bedroom, 2 bath, 2 parking.
Balcony and water view.
2 bdrm, 2 bath with parking and storage. Steps to
seawall and Aqua Bus. Health Club. Rentals allowed.
MONTE HANNAH, Associate Broker
604.261.9311 (24 hrs.) 604.261.6648 (fax) info@montehannah.com
March 29 on WE
100 years of Shopping & Services and Counting
For shopping & services, one place
is more gifted than the others.
Just steps from Waterfront Station
7 5 7 W e s t H a s t i n g s S t r e e t | w w w. s i n c l a i r c e n t r e . c o m
A sales pitch for fate worse than death
Starring Gilbert Sicotte
Sébastien Pilote’s debut feature commences with two
striking visions of death. In the first, a moose has
become grisly roadkill. As it’s cleared from a frozen
highway, we can almost convince ourselves that the
creature didn’t suffer. There are no such assurances
with the second death scene, which transports us to
an isolated Quebec town. The local pulp and paper
plant has been closed for months and the community is enduring a torturously slow demise.
Enter Marcel (Gilbert Sicotte), a 67-year-old car
salesman who’s been his dealership’s reigning employee of the month since the Mulroney era. Even so,
he still endeavours to perfect his craft, surreptitiously
recording every transaction so that he might review it
With sales his sole purpose in life (and the soft-sell
his primary weapon), he’s fixated on presentation
and, perhaps more importantly, keeping up appearances. It’s this latter concern that allows him to
convince a laid-off factory worker that an expensive
new truck is a perfectly feasible purchase.
Thanks to Sicotte’s eloquent performance, we’re
keenly aware that Marcel is more misguided than manipulative. Pilote’s unhurried approach to storytelling
also serves this character study well, allowing every
minor detail to fully resonate. Many of these then
return to the fore (and often with a vengeance) once
a cruel twist of fate confirms just how treacherous the
Canadian winter can be.
The film’s incisive final passages boldly assert that
there are fates worse than death. For instance: outliving your own self-delusion. In this snow-swept tale,
nothing is more chilling than when Marcel finally
accepts the truth about himself. — Curtis Woloschuk
Starring Lior Ashkenazi, Shlomo Bar-Aba
From its opening salvo, Footnote’s bombastic score
not only alerts us to the swirling drama and suspenseful twists that await us, but also the idiosyncratic
comedy that writer-director Joseph Cedar derives
from the most unlikely of sources: Talmudic studies.
At the centre of this comedy of errors are two
Professor Shkolniks. A wonderfully orchestrated flashback sequence details how luckless Eliezer (Shlomo
Bar-Aba) saw 30 years of diligent research rendered
unnecessary by another scholar’s chance discovery.
His simmering resentment is further fuelled by the
rampant success enjoyed by his son Uriel (Lior Ashkenazi), whose more accessible Talmud-related writing
he considers to be frivolous.
When a clerical error sees Eliezer awarded the
prestigious Israel Prize intended for Uriel, the younger
Shkolnik must decide whether to let the spotlight
shine on a man who seemingly has nothing but
disdain for him.
It’s precisely the sort of “impossible decision” that
characters are required to make in all finely crafted
screenplays, knowing that, regardless of their choice,
not everyone gets to live happily ever after. As the
drama escalates, Cedar skilfully entwines his characters’ arcs: Uriel discovers his inner resolve while the
newly-emboldened Eliezer succumbs to petulance
The filmmaker’s gift for wry humour and clever visuals is never more apparent than when Uriel confers
with the Israel Prize committee. As a small army of
intellectuals cram into a miniscule office like clowns
into an undersized car, the scene never lapses into
cartoonishness. Instead, it sublimely illustrates the utter absurdity of Uriel’s predicament and certifies that
Footnote holds equal appeal for admirers of either
Franz Kafka or the Coen Brothers. — C.W.
> Hundreds of displays and activities
> Test-drive interactive projects
> Your chance to win $5,000 in tuition
Come see how BCIT works for you.
Friday, April 13, 9 am – 4 pm
Saturday, April 14, 9 am – 3 pm
A Main Street story
bend to fashion trends
p a narrow set of stairs,
amidst bins of overflowing fabric and lace, filtered attic light and dust
fairies dancing in the warm air, a
little girl learned to sew.
Jessica Vaira, 31, is the continuation of many family traditions, from musical expression to
sustainable lifestyle, but it was the
making of garments that she has
spun into a career.
Both her grandmothers were
seamstresses, and some of her
fondest memories were of creating
outfits for her dolls in her Grandma Barbaraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s attic sewing room.
â&#x20AC;&#x153;I was always nosing around the
great vats of fabric. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d make outfits
for Barbies that always looked
really good from the front,â&#x20AC;? she
says with a laugh from behind the
front counter of her clothing store,
Island, Vaira always expected to
be a music teacher. Adrift after an
unsatisfying stint in the Malaspina
Jocal Jazz program, Vaira ended up
moving to Vancouver to live with
her brother, Mario â&#x20AC;&#x201D; an up-andcoming music producer.
The singer stumbled upon the
now defunct Helen Lefeaux School
of Fashion Design and realized the
new direction was a perfect fit.
â&#x20AC;&#x153;I hadnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t sewn from a pattern
until I went to school, but my family always pushed us to do creative
things that we were interested in.
For me fashion is still such a cre-
ative thing, but itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a creative thing
I can put borders around.â&#x20AC;?
During the 10-month intensive
program, covering all aspects of
the fashion world, Vaira met future
business partners Glencora Twigg
and Christine Hotton.
Shortly before graduation in
2003, Twigg and Hotton linked
up to buy a vintage consignment
store on Main Street. After running
it as-is for a short time, the two
fashion grads started incorporating
locally-made fashions, including
their own designs, into the selection. The offerings initially leaned
towards avant-garde â&#x20AC;&#x201D; or super
out-there, depending on who you
ask â&#x20AC;&#x201D; but Twigg & Hottie (3671
Main at 21st) has mellowed with
time and found its niche in the
â&#x20AC;&#x153;The physical product in Twigg
& Hottie is varied but what ties
everything together is that one
step must be taken out of the regular production process: made in
Vancouver, made elsewhere but of
sustainable fibre, or the underlying
quality is a bit special. We want to
connect people to the garments
and to the reason weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve chosen
them for the store. Things donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t
come from a store, thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a huge
backstory to every product.
â&#x20AC;&#x153;Up Main thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s so much
interesting stuff to check out and
interesting perspectives. We each
have our own little thing going
on. Some people might have the
misconception that all local design
is Thing A, but really thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a lot
of variance in that. The Two of
Hearts shop does a great job with
their one particular aesthetic.
Smoking Lily, an amazing shop
with beautiful things, is another.
â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re a little bit more on the
Fashion and style news from across the city
Eco-conscious swimwear line La Isla Brand is going to be at this
yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Vancouver Eco Fashion Week presenting its 2012 collection.
Recently featured in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition, La Isla
Brand maintains an environmental and social responsibility in its
every day business practices. It employs head-of-household women
in Colombia who hand-embroider La Islaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unique bold prints. In
addition to having their 2012 womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s swimwear collection on the
runway for Eco Fashion Week, La Isla will also debut its first-ever
menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s board short collection. The menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s collection will feature
Jessica Vaira, Glencora Twigg and Christine Hotton of Twigg&Hottie
eclectic side, so our one thing is
the eclectic-ness,â&#x20AC;? she concludes.
Vaira joined the team as a coowner in 2006 and says one the
rewards of being in business together for so long is that the three
women have gotten to watch each
othersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; lives unfold. Twigg and
Hotton have both started families
and Vaira has continued to pursue
her musical passions, performing
regularly around Vancouver.
Eight years in, Twigg & Hottie sits
proudly alongside Eugene Choo,
Smoking Lily, Barefoot Contessa
and Front as one of the longest-running clothing retailers on a street
that has seen some change.
â&#x20AC;&#x153;Recently Life of Reilly on the
corner closed. Hum â&#x20AC;&#x201D; another
example of local and Canadian â&#x20AC;&#x201D;
â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been a lot of emptiness,
but where the Hum space was, the
new soap store [The Soap Dispensa-
ry] is super cool, all refillable soaps
and lovely little bits and pieces.
Sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a wonderful addition to the
street â&#x20AC;&#x201D; along the same mindset
but not diluting it.â&#x20AC;?
But despite their longevity, there
have been frustrations for the sustainable lifestyle proponents.
â&#x20AC;&#x153;It can be hard to sway a lot of
people that paying $10 for something crummy that falls apart and
having to pay that $10 over and
over again is just the same as paying $60 for quality that youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll have
â&#x20AC;&#x153;There was a really big boom a
couple years ago. It felt like people
were super on the local train, but
the economy has really been trickling down. It has been all over the
map last couple of years. People are
holding their cards very tight, and
that mentality too, is â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Oh, I want
to buy something,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; and they pick
that cheaper thing to satiate that
Mario Vaira photo
urge rather than making a good
â&#x20AC;&#x153;People who shop along sustainable principles always will â&#x20AC;&#x201D;
theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re doing that because they
feel good about it and its a good
product â&#x20AC;&#x201D; but some people canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t
see past the bottom line of (price).â&#x20AC;?
The economy seems to be thawing and the women are optimistic
that things will level off. As more
restaurants like Last Crumb Bakery
and Cafe (coming July) round out
the area, Main Street can only
become more of a destination.
The girls plan to keep up with
the resurgence by offering Trunk
Shows, where entire collections are
brought to the store by the
designer and offered at 15% off;
deals of the week through their
Facebook page; and a late night
shopping event with other retailers
along the street coming this
design aesthetics including 80s neon and bold stripes
using classic menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s board short silhouettes. La Isla has
partnered with Canadian company, Mala Imports, for
the featured accessories of the show. The Balinese
handmade jewelry collection incorporates spiritual
numbers with authentic beads by Aum Rudraksha
Designs. Worn by Julia Roberts in the film Eat, Pray,
Love, the natural tone beads are enhanced with bold
colored gems and tassels selected as a reminder of the
consciousness within. This collaboration will prove to
be a union of authentic style and eco friendly practices.
Catch the show April 11 at 7pm in Vancouverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s historic
Got Shop Talk? Email kelsey@wevancouver.com
Showtimes Fri-Sun 6:30 & 9:15. Sat/Sun Matinee 4:00. : DIGITAL SOUND
Rob Brezsny • Week of March 29
ARIES (MARCH 21-APRIL 19): A few months
after America invaded Iraq in 2003, soldier
Brian Wheeler wrote the following to help
us imagine what it was like over there: “Go
to the worst crime-infested place you can
find. Go heavily armed, wearing a flak jacket
and a Kevlar helmet. Set up shop in a vacant
lot. Announce to the residents that you are
there to help them, and in the loudest voice
possible yell that every Crip and Blood within
hearing distance is a PANSY.” As a characterbuilding exercise, Aries, I highly recommend
you try something like this yourself. APRIL
FOOL! I was just kidding. What I just said is
not an accurate reading of the astrological
omens. But this is: Get out of your comfort
zone, yes, but with a smart gamble, not a
TAURUS (APRIL 20-MAY 20): According to a
recent poll, God’s approval rating has dipped
below 40 per cent for the first time on record.
My research suggests the new low is due in
part to a disproportionate amount of dissatisfaction by those born under the sign of Taurus. Can you fix this please? If you’re one of
the discontent, please see if you can talk yourself into restoring some of your faith in the
Divine Wow. APRIL FOOL! The real truth is,
I encourage you to be skeptical in regards to
all authorities, experts, and topdogs, including God. It’s an excellent time in your cycle
to go rogue, to scream “I defy you, stars!” Be a
rabble-rousing, boat-rocking doubter.
GEMINI (MAY 21-JUNE 20): Photographer Darrin
Harris Frisby doesn’t think people should
smile in photographs. He regards it as “superficial and misleading.” In the greatest portraits
ever painted, he says, the subject’s gaze is
almost always neutral, “neither inviting nor
forbidding.” Did Rembrandt ever show people
grinning from ear to ear? No. Did Vermeer,
Goya, Titian, Sargent, or Velasquez? Nope.
Make that your guiding thought in the
coming week, Gemini. Be a connoisseur of the poker face. APRIL FOOL! I
lied. The truth is, in the coming week
you will have more than ample reasons
to be of good cheer. You should therefore express delight extravagantly.
CANCER (JUNE 21-JULY 22): Back in 1835,
a newspaper known as The New York
Sun resorted to an extreme measure in
order to boost readership: It ran a story
about how the renowned astronomer
Sir John Herschel had perfected a telescope that allowed him to see life forms
on the moon, including unicorns,
two-legged beavers that had harnessed
fire, and sexually liberated “manbats.”
If I’m reading the astrological omens
correctly, Cancerian, you temporarily
have license to try something almost
equally as wild and experimental to
“boost your readership.” APRIL FOOL!
I lied about the unicorns. Don’t refer to
cliched chimeras like them. But it’s fine
to invoke more unexpected curiosities
like fire-using beavers and sexually liberated
LEO (JULY 23-AUG. 22): In his documentary
film Prohibition, Ken Burns reports on the
extreme popularity of alcohol in 19th-century
America. He says that the typical person over
15 years of age drank 88 bottles of whiskey
a year. In light of the current astrological
omens, Leo, I suggest you increase your intake
to that level and even beyond. APRIL FOOL! I
lied. It’s not literal alcoholic spirits you should
be ingesting in more abundance, but rather
big ideas that open your mind, inspirational
sights and sounds that dissolve your inhibitions, and intriguing people who expand your
VIRGO (AUG. 23-SEPT. 22): A woman in Euclid,
Ohio claims her house is haunted by randy
ghosts. “They have sex in my living room,”
Dianne Carlisle told a TV news reporter.
“You can see the lady’s high-heeled shoes.”
I suspect you may soon be dealing with a
similar problem, Virgo. So consider the possibility of hiring an X-rated exorcist. APRIL
FOOL! The naked truth is that you will not
be visited by spooks of any kind, let alone
horny ones. However, you would be smart to
purify and neutralize old karma that might
still be haunting your love life or your sex life.
Consider performing a do-it-yourself exorcism
of your own memories.
LIBRA (SEPT. 23-OCT. 22): In Karley Sciortino’s
NSFW blog Slutever.com, she announces that
“this blog is intended to trick strangers into
thinking my life is more exciting than it actually is.” I highly recommend you adopt that
approach, Libra. Do whatever it takes — lying,
deceiving, exaggerating, bragging — to fool
everyone into believing that you are a fascinating character who is in the midst of marvelous, high-drama adventures. APRIL FOOL!
I wasn’t totally sincere about what I just said.
The truth is, your life is likely to be a rousing
adventure in the coming days. There’ll be no
need to pretend it is, and therefore no need to
cajole or trick others into thinking it is.
self-esteem,” said author William Gibson,
“first make sure you are not, in fact, just
surrounded by a--holes.” This is a good time
to check in with yourself, Scorpio, and see
if Gibson’s advice applies to you. Lately, the
jackass quotient seems to have been rising in
your vicinity. APRIL FOOL! I was half-joking.
It’s true that you should focus aggressively on
reducing the influence of jerks in your life. At
the same time, you should also ask yourself
rather pointedly how you could reduce your
problems by changing something about
SAGITTARIUS (NOV. 22-DEC. 21): Do not under
any circumstances put on a frog costume,
go to a shopping mall, and ride around on a
unicycle while reciting erotic poetry in German through a megaphone. APRIL FOOL! I
lied. That wouldn’t be such a terrible use of
your time. The astrological omens suggest
that you will be visited by rather unusual creative surges that may border on being wacky.
Personally, though, I would prefer it if you
channeled your effervescent fertility in more
highly constructive directions, like dreaming
up new approaches to love that will have a
very practical impact on your romantic life.
CAPRICORN (DEC. 22-JAN. 19): In F. Scott
Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby, Daisy
Buchanan is stirred to the point of rapture by
Jay Gatsby’s silk shirts. “I’ve never seen such
beautiful shirts before,” she sobs, burying
her face in one as she sits in his bedroom. I
sincerely hope you will have an equivalent
brush with this kind of resplendence sometime soon, Capricorn. For the sake of your
mental and even physical health, you need
direct contact with the sublime. APRIL FOOL!
I half-lied. It’s true that you would profoundly
benefit from a brush with resplendence. But I
can assure you that plain old material objects,
no matter how lush and expensive, won’t do
AQUARIUS (JAN. 20-FEB. 18): Last December a
woman in Tulsa, Oklahoma made creative use
of a Wal-Mart. She gathered various ingrediSCORPIO (OCT. 23-NOV. 21): “Before you
ents from around the shelves, including lightdiagnose yourself with depression or low
er fluid, lithium, and drain
cleaner, and set up a meth
lab right there in the back
of the store. She’s your
role model for the coming
week, Aquarius. APRIL
FOOL! I lied, kind of. The
woman I mentioned got
arrested for illegal activity,
which I don’t advise you
to do. But I do hope you
will ascend to her levels
of ingenuity and audacity as you gather all the
resources you need for a
A Filipino man named
Herbert Chavez has had
done to make himself
resemble Superman. Consider making him your
role model, Pisces. I hope
he inspires you to begin
your own quest to rework
your body and soul in the
image of your favorite
celebrity or cartoon hero.
APRIL FOOL! I lied. In
fact, you’d be wise to
to anyone else or remolding yourself to be like
anyone else. The best use
of the current cosmic tendencies would be to brainstorm about what exactly
are, and swear a blood
oath to become that riper
A couple weeks ago we discovered this pretty manic band
from Belgium! They are a mix of raging party rock and
psychedelic freak-out. The good news is that we discovered
them just in time for them to hit North America on tour they are going to take this continent by storm! For fans of
Gogol Bordello, The Hellacopters, Queens of the Stoneage...
7 SLEIGH BELLS
Go to www.wevancouver.com by Wed. Apr. 4 at noon
Life is a bitch and then
you die. APRIL FOOL!
Here’s the truth: Life is
conspiring to give you
Tickets for many events are available from one or more of the following
outlets, unless otherwise indicated. See individual listings.
TICKETMASTER Ticketmaster.ca, 604 280-4444
TICKETS TONIGHT TicketsTonight.ca, 604 684-2787
SCRATCH 1 E. Hastings, 604 687-6355
HIGHLIFE 1317 Commercial, 604 251-6964
BROWN PAPER TICKETS BrownPaperTickets.com
VANCOUVER RECITAL SOCIETY Tickets: 604-602-0363
GOOD OLD WAR Indie-folk
band plays in support of its third
release, Come Back as Rain. Mar.
29 at Media Club, 8pm. $15 (Z, RC,
THE BOOM BOOM’S Live at
Venue, 881 Granville St. $15 at
DANIEL WESLEY Vancouverbased reggae rocker with guest
Kim Churchill. Mar. 30 at Commodore, 8pm. $25 (TM).
TREASA LEVASSEUR AND
CORIN RAYMOND Accomplished performing musician and
session vocalist Treasa Levasseur
debuts her new single “Not a
Straight Line” and new CD “Broad.”
Mar. 30, 8pm. Doors 7:30pm. St.
James Hall, 3214 West 10 Ave. $20
($16 members). 604-736-3022
or roguefolk.bc.ca or at Highlife
Records and Rufus’ Guitar Shop.
GLADYS KNIGHT Grammy
Award-winning R&B legend. Mar. 31
at River Rock, 7pm. $74.50-$89.50
At Vancouver Academy of Music
(1270 Chestnut), 10:30am. Tickets
$16-$35 from MusicInThe
All events at 8pm at Christ Church
Cathedral unless otherwise
indicated. $32-$35 from EarlyMusic.
L CAPULETI E I MONTECCHI Opera Pro Cantanti presents
Bellini’s rendition of the Romeo and
Juliet legend. Apr. 1, 7pm at Cambrian Hall, 215 E. 17th. $12-$18. Info:
604-340-8545 or procantanti.com.
LA LISTE Jennifer Tremblay’s
award-winning drama about
a woman consumed by guilt
attempting to reconstruct the
order of events that led to her
neighbour’s death. Mar. 28-31
at Studio 16, 8pm. $24-$27 from
THE LIFE GAME VANCOUVER
HILLTOP HOODS and guests
HELLO DOLLY! Capilano College
presents the beloved award-winning musical about a matchmaker’s
adventures in turn-of-the-century
New York. Mar. 29-Apr. 7 at Capilano
University. $8-$22 from Tickets.
ROCOCODE Local indie-pop/
rock band launches its debut
album, Guns, Sex, and Glory. Apr. 4 at
Electric Owl, 8pm. $10 (NT).
AWOLNATION Alt-rock solo
project from multi-instrumentalist
Aaron Bruno. Apr. 5 at Commodore,
8pm. $25 (Z, TM).
HOUSSE DE RACKET Parisian
pop-rock duo plays in support of its
new release, Alesia. Apr. 5 at Electric
Owl, 8pm. $13 (NT, RC, Z).
MIKE DOUGHTY The former
Soul Coughing lead singer reads
from his new memoir, The Book of
Drugs, performs songs and participates in an audience Q&A. Apr. 5
at Media Club, 8pm. $22-$25 from
Free. Tickets available at Chan Centre
ticket office at noon on day of
• Mar. 29, noon: Special matinee
performance of AVE EVA, university
• Mar. 30, 8pm: AVE EVA university
singers, full program
• Mar. 31, 8pm: Canadian conductor
Raffi Armenian will lead the UBC
Symphony Orchestra, featuring
percussionist Jeremy Lawi, winner
of the 2012 UBC Concerto Competition.
• Apr. 5, 8pm: Postcard from the
Americas. UBC Symphonic Winds
Ensemble, UBC Concert Winds, and
featuring UBC Opera Ensemble.
JOHANNES MÖLLER CLASSICAL GUITAR RECITAL
The Vancouver Classic Guitar Society
presents Swedish guitarist and 2010
GFA International prize winner performing works by Albeniz, Barrios,
Craeyvanger and Johannes Möller.
Mar. 31, 7pm at St. James Community Hall, 3214 West 10 Ave. $5-$20.
ORCHESTRA The VSO presents
its 2012 series of concerts. All shows
at Orpheum Theatre, 8pm, unless
otherwise indicated. Info: 604-8763434 • Tickets from VancouverSymphony.ca.
• Apr. 2: Wizard of Oz Come in
costume to watch this classic,
remastered in all its glory.
Forget the sexiness of all those sleek luxury cars that will
be strutting their stuff on the Vancouver International Auto
Show runway (VancouverInternationalAutoShow.com). This
2012 i-MiEV (Mitsubishi Innovative Electric Vehicle) is bound
to be a media darling when the 2012 celebration of new
designs and innovations comes to BC Place April 3-8. It’s a
five-door, four-passenger, subcompact hatchback designed
and packaged to be efficient, ecological and fun to drive.
It makes its regional debut as one of the most affordable
mass-produced, all-electric vehicles in the Canadian marketplace. You can win two free tickets to the show by going to
WEVancouver.com/contests. Contest closes April 2.
Percussion legend and tabla
virtuoso Zakir Hussain and Masters
of Percussion offer a mesmerizing
exploration of Indian music. Apr. 1,
7pm at Chan Centre, UBC. $47-$53
(student/senior discounts available). Tickets at: Chan Centre box
office, chancentre.com, (TM).
live at Venue, 881 Granville St. on
Apr. 3, $24.50 at Unionevents.com,
Beat Street Records, (TM).
The Life Game shows us a side of
improv, and ourselves, that you may
not expect. Last Sunday of every
month (Apr. 29, May 27, June 24) at
8pm. Studio 1398, 1398 Cartwright
St., Granville Island. $10 at door.
BURNT BY THE SUN Passion
and politics collide in this chilling
tale of betrayal, intrigue and love
gone wrong during the chaos of
Stalinist Russia. Presented by United
Players. Thurs. through Sun. at 8pm.
Mar. 30 - Apr. 22 at Jericho Arts
Centre, 1675 Discovery St. $16-$20.
Preview Show: Mar. 29 $10.
HEDDA GABLER Osimous Theatre presents Ibsen’s classic staged
inside the Roedde House Museum.
To Mar. 31 at Roedde House Museum, 8pm. $ from 604-689-0926.
named Ernest. To Apr. 15 at Stanley
Industrial Alliance Stage, 8pm
(Wed-Sat), 7:30pm (Tues). Matinees:
Wed, Sat-Sun, 2pm. $29-$65 from
• Leigh Kotsilidis (Hypotheticals)
• Steven Price (Omens in the Year
of the Ox)
sculpture competition using
canned goods runs Mar. 26-Apr. 4
at four different locations. For info
Mar. 29-31: Ari Shaffir; Apr. 5-7:
• Scared Scriptless: Fri-Sat 11:15pm
• Theatre Sports: Thur-Sat 7:30pm;
• Rookie Night: Sun 7:30pm
• The Improv Challenge: Tues Apr.
BLIND PANTHER STAND-UP
(1636 Venables), 9pm. $5 cover.
QUEER IMPROV SHOW Tops
THE $100 WINNER TAKES
MACBETH Shakespeare’s tragedy
about a couple’s greedy, ambitious
and bloody attempt to seize the
Scottish throne. To Mar. 31 at Frederic Wood Theatre. $10-$22 from
FLOP! Delinquent Theatre pres-
DIRTY DANCING BURLESQUE! Movie-inspired
ents Anton Lipovetsky’s solo musical about a theatre director eluded
by success. To Apr. 1 at Studio 1398,
burlesque show, featuring hit songs
from Dirty Dancing. Apr. 5, doors:
8pm, show: 9pm at The Rio Theatre.
FOURPLAY: NEW WORK BY
EXCITED WRITERS Popular one-
act play festival returns. To Apr. 1 at
Studio 58, 8pm. $12-22 (TT).
SCAR TISSUE Based on the novel
by Michael Ignatieff; directed by
Dennis Foon. Apr. 5-28, Revue Stage,
8pm. (Wed.-Sat.), Tues. 7:30pm, Matinees: Wed. & Sat. 2pm. $25-$35 from
604-687-1644 or artsclub.com.
VICTOR/VICTORIA Tony Awardwinning musical about the Parisian
entertainer who finds success disguised as a man impersonating a
woman, and unexpectedly attracts
the attention of a mobster. To Apr.
7 at Metro Theatre, 8pm. $19-$28
TOAD Return engagement of the
popular Jessie Award-winning adaptation of Arnold Lobel’s beloved
books. To Apr. 8 at Carousel Theatre.
$12-$29. Ages 3+. Select all-ages
performances Apr. 3-8. Times, tickets
and info: CarouselTheatre.ca.
EARNEST Oscar Wilde’s brilliantly
witty satire about two wealthy
men, one in the city and one in the
country, both pretending to be
Series of monthly Sunday recitals
at the Roundhouse Community
Centre, 2pm and 4pm. $5-$15 in
advance from NewWorks.ca.
Pay-what-you-can at the door (suggested $5-$20).
DANCE CENTRE All events at
the Scotiabank Dance Centre unless
otherwise indicated. 604-606-6400
• Mar. 29, 12pm: Vancouver Tap
Ensemble Pays homage to Vancouver’s iconic The Cave Supper Club
with its show, Heyday. Part of the
Discover Dance! series. $8-$10 (TT).
VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL READERS AND WRITERS
FESTIVAL PRESENTS All readings are free at Vancouver Public
Library’s Alice MacKay room at
7:30pm unless otherwise indicated.
All readings are free at the UBC Bookstore at Robson Square, 7pm, and
Apr. 3: National Poetry Month
• Margaret Christakos (Welling)
‘PORTABLE WALLS’ EXHIBIT
Featuring artists Christian Nicolay
and Ya-chu Kang at the Elliott Louis
Gallery, 258 East 1 Ave. Show runs
Mar. 29-Apr. 21. Opening reception
Mar. 29, 6:30-9:30pm.
THE FUTURE IS FEMALE Vancouver painter Angela Grossman
explores the struggle for identity,
security and self-acceptance in a
new exhibit at Winsor Gallery, 3025
Granville St., running Apr. 4-May 6.
Opening reception with artist Apr. 4
AUNT LEAH’S 10TH ANNUAL
Music benefit with performances
by Van Django, Rich Hope, Sarah
Wheeler and Reid Jamieson. Mar. 31
at Polish Community Centre, 4015
Fraser St. $40 at clubzone.com, Aunt
Leah’s Urban Thrift Store, 177 East
Broadway; or from Theresa Frazao,
604-525-1204 (ext. 224)
Featuring more than 25 Canadian
vocalists backed by a 12-piece
band performing classics from the
Motown songbook, benefitting the
31 at Commodore, 7pm. $30 (H, TM).
UNIQUE LIVES AND EXPERIENCES 18th annual series featuring noteworthy women. All shows
at the Centre for Performing Arts,
7:30pm. $35-$85 from UniqueLives.
CRAZY8S Gala screening event
for the winners of the 13th annual
Crazy8s short film competition. Mar.
30 at The Centre for Performing
Arts. Doors: 6pm; Screening: 7pm.
After-party at Science World. $30
from crazy8s.cc, Highlife, Zulu or
BARBARA JO’S BOOKS TO
COOKS Culinary author book
• Martin Picard, Mar. 29 from 4-6pm.
Sample traditional sugar shack fare
and receive a signed copy of Sugar
• Food Network Celebrity Chef Lynn
Crawford, Mar. 30 at 6pm. Listen to
her food adventures while enjoying
from her latest book. $52 (includes
signed copy of Lynn Crawford’s
445 Terminal Ave
of Cost or Loss!
LEATHER BEDROOM from$
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Furniture for BRAND NAME
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PERFECT PAIRINGS AT THE
SCHOOL Join chef David Robertson and house wine oenophiles
Michaela Morris and Michelle Bouffard for a class that will uncover
what makes for a perfect match.
Mar. 30, 5:30-9:30pm at The Dirty
Apron Cooking School, 540 Beatty
St. $150. 604-879-8588.
Thursday, Mar. 29 Thursday, Apr. 5
OUT AFTER DARK: Got
an upcoming event you
think WE should attend?
E-mail us at editor@
The Market Parkade provides 2 Hours FREE Parking.
On evenings and weekends, Lonsdale Quay Market also
provides FREE parking at the ICBC Parkade.
1 Photographer Rebecca Rawlinson and â&#x20AC;&#x153;My Fat
Little Rule Bookâ&#x20AC;? author Jacquie Sommerville (left to
right) held court at the pre-launch party on March 21
at the Penthouse Rosewood Suite at the Rosewood
Hotel Georgia. 2 Style Nine to Five founder Christie
Lohr and friend Tonia Mattau (left to right) struck
a stylish pose at the opening party for Vancouver
Fashion Week at Opus on March 20. 3 Managing
director at oy & co. Ovey Yeung (left) and KENTON
magazine editor-in-chief Alex Liang took in the
Harricana Par Mariouche show from the front row
on March 25 at the Chinese Cultural Centre. (Ric
Kemp photo) 4 KENTON magazine editor-in-chief
Alex Liang interviewing a Harricana Par Mariouche
designer at Vancouver Fashion Week at the Chinese
Cultural Centre on March 25. (Ric Kemp photo)
5 Bruno Marti (right) of LaBelle Auberge invited
renowned Ontario Chef Michael Stadtlander of
Eigensinn Farm (centre) and Paul Harber (left) of
Ravine Vineyards to the Taste of Talent fundraising
dinner at Hotel Rosewood Georgia on March 24.
Stadtlander is back in Vancouver for Cooking for a
Cause on May 11 with David Suzuki, Vicki Gabereau,
Matthew Good and Taâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Kaiya Blaney, who are joining
forces at the Gulf of Georgia Cannery in Richmond
to protest the Northern Gateway pipeline project.
(GuardingTheGifts.org) 6 Days after returning from
a scouting mission to Brussels, Vancouver chef Alex
Chen, whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s representing Canada in the Bocuse competition next January, was back in the kitchen with his
apprentice Jack Beers of Hawksworth to raise money
at Tastes of Talent for the chefs who are going for
gold in culinary competitions. 7 Lampworking glass
artist Braden Hammond next to his $28,000 chandelier â&#x20AC;&#x201D;on display in the lobby of the Four Seasons (791
W. Georgia) until March 30 as part of Lampadario.
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Debbie Boudreau, Crystal Demonston.