Canada’s 157th birthday falls on Monday, July 1. In Sechelt, the day begins with pancake breakfast at 8 a.m. on Cowrie Street, courtesy of the Lions Club. The Sunshine Coast Orchestra performs at 9:30 a.m., followed by a community parade one hour later.
Musical performances take place at the Hackett Park amphitheatre all afternoon, including Dixie Honey Hula Hooping, the Knotty Dotters marimba band, Driftwood Story Theatre, and the band Brothers in Farms.
From 10 a.m. to noon and 1 until 3 p.m., Ali and Bella Casey will host an opportunity to weave cedar hearts in honour of lives lost to residential schools. The Rainbow Women host the event at the Gathering Place / Red Cedar Woman Weaving Studio at 5511 Wharf Avenue.
In Gibsons, a modest but fiercely patriotic parade kicks off at 5 p.m., wending its way downhill from the Sunshine Coast Museum and Archives to Winegarden Park. After opening remarks by Gibsons Legion branch president Wilma Jones, volunteers will serve a free pig roast barbecue in return for non-perishable food or cash donations for the food bank.
Four hours of entertainment at Winegarden Park start at 6 p.m., featuring one-man-band performances by Doug Campbell, face painting, live music by Stompin’ Ron and the Crazy Eh’s, plus live theatre by Gerardo Avila and other artists.
Books on the air
Writers Radio is a volunteer-run, biweekly internet radio broadcast from Halfmoon Bay. On May 4, the program recorded its first live program featuring author Liz Long, performer and novelist Caitlin Hicks, and multi-disciplinarian artist Gordon Halloran.
The event will be broadcast on July 1 via the website writersradio.ca. (It will also be released as a podcast.)
“We wanted to create a conversation which reached beyond a lone listener to engage a live audience,” wrote co-producer Carole Harmon.
During the hour-long event, authors Liz Long (Navigating Sh*tstorms) and Caitlin Hicks (A Theory of Expanded Love and Kennedy Girl) participated in a moderated conversation and discussed their books with audience members.
Until the July 1 release, the Writer’s Radio website also features an interview with Gibsons-based poet Atma Fras.
Recital society announces season
The Coast Recital Society has announced its six-concert season that will run from September through March, with performances at the Ravens Cry Theatre.
“I’ve worked closely with Artistic Director Emeritus Frances Wainwright to create another six-concert series of exceptional performances,” wrote artistic director Denise Ball. “You’ll have the opportunity to hear the stunning young soprano/pianist Rachel Fenlon perform Schubert. Internationally renowned pianist Roman Rabinovitch offers Debussy, Beethoven and Schumann.”
The award-winning chamber choir musica intima appears in early December for a seasonal program that includes music by Lil’wat composer and singer Russell Wallace. In February, Canadian superstars Timothy Chooi (violin) and Jane Coop (piano) will perform music by Beethoven, Saint-Saens and Prokofiev.
Couloir, the duo made up of Heidi Krutzen (harp) and Ariel Barnes (cello) performs its distinctive repertoire later that month. The season concludes with Scottish pianist Steven Osborne playing an eclectic program that ranges from Schubert to Bill Evans.
Subscriptions are on sale now ($180 for adults, $50 for students) and can be ordered by emailing [email protected].
