One of the Sunshine Coast Hospice Society’s simplest and most emotionally potent traditions, Lighting of the Memories takes place on the beach of Mission Point on Jan. 1 at 1 p.m.
Ornaments created during the society’s Lights of Life events will be released into the flames of a driftwood-fuelled bonfire. The gathering is accompanied by short readings and remarks by society director Tess Huntley, and acts as a symbolic farewell to loved ones. Musical inspiration is provided by the Threshold Choir.
Attendees should dress with the day’s weather conditions in mind.
Always in her prime
Maggie Smith, who died last year after an acting career of seven decades, plays the aging and homeless Miss Shepherd in upcoming screenings of the 2015 comedy-drama The Lady in the Van. The screenings are offered by the Sunshine Coast Film Society, and take place on two dates: Monday, Jan. 6 at 7:30 p.m. (at the Heritage Playhouse in Gibsons) and Thursday, Jan. 9 at 2 p.m. (at the Raven’s Cry Theatre in Sechelt).
The real-life Miss Shepherd parked in the driveway of London playwright Alan Bennet (played by Alex Jennings) where she remained for 15 years. Bennett eventually featured her in a memoir and stage play (which starred Smith) describing their complex relationship.
Tickets for the screening (ages 19+) are $10. Film society membership is required for entry. Details are online at scfs.ca.
Monster of a good time
Now fully recovered from October’s screening of the Rocky Horror Picture Show, the Raven’s Cry Theatre will host another monster mash on Jan. 11. National Theatre Live: Frankenstein is part of the theatre’s series of satellite broadcasts from the National Theatre in London, England.
The play stars Jonny Lee Miller as the monster and Benedict Cumberbatch as the doctor in an emotionally charged retelling of Mary Shelley’s Gothic novel, first published in 1818.
Frankenstein’s creature meets cruelty wherever he goes. Increasingly desperate and vengeful, he determines to track down his creator and strike a terrifying deal. Urgent concerns of scientific responsibility, parental neglect, cognitive development and the nature of good and evil are embedded within the deeply disturbing tale.
Tickets are for sale via the Raven’s Cry website at ravenscrytheatre.com.
Ancient tale, cutting-edge tunes
Cellist Lori Goldston (famously of Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged) will perform an original live score for the 1928 silent film The Passion of Joan of Arc during a single show at the Heritage Playhouse in Gibsons.
One of the most transcendent masterpieces of the silent era, The Passion of Joan of Arc (directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer) explores spiritual rapture and institutional hypocrisy. Goldston’s one-of-a-kind score will draw on medieval, secular, and liturgical music — and free improvisation.
“I love the process of translating visual motion into sound, and my compositions and long-form solo improvisation are deeply influenced by cinematic visual storytelling,” said Goldston, whose work has been commissioned by (or performed at) the Kennedy Center, Sydney Festival and Cineteca Nacional de México — plus dozens of other renowned festivals and venues.
Tickets ($25) are on sale via the heritageplayhouse.com website.
