Narco Headed to the Hall

After having been tackled for a loss in the recent financial meltdown (Edmonton Journal), former Saskatchewan Roughrider wide receiver Don Narcisse, who played for the team from 1987-1999, and who still boasts a pro football record 216 consecutive-game-pass-reception streak, was inducted into the Canadian Football League Hall of Fame today. Joining Narco, as the diminutive number 80 was lovingly known by Rider faithful, are former Edmonton/Baltimore QB Tracy Ham, former Winnipeg/Montreal D-lineman Elfrid Payton, ex-Bomber punter Bob Cameron and some guy I've never heard of (Joe Pistilli).

Fundraiser Set for New Theatre Company

When it comes to live theatre, Regina's scene is generally not regarded to be as strong as the one in Saskatoon. In prairie dog we've written on this issue before. There's no magic formula for creating a vibrant theatre scene in a city. Rather, you need a mix of things. Playwrights, performers, theatre companies, quality venues, savvy promotion, critically engaged media, supportive sponsors and, finally, audiences who hunger for more than just the TV/movie experience.

Feb. 12 at 7 p.m, a fundraiser's being held in the atrium of the T.C. Douglas Building (3475 Albert St.) to raise money to help launch Regina's newest theatre company. Golden Apple Theatre Company is the brainchild of veteran local impressarios Robert Ursan and Andorlie Hillstrom who are the driving force behind Do-It-With-Class Young People's Theatre.

According to the press release, Golden Apple is a professional theatre company dedicated to delivering cutting edge Canadian and international musical theatre and drama to Regina audiences. Plans currently call for the company to launch its inaugural season in the fall. In addition to hors d'oeuvres and desserts, the fundraiser will feature a performance by former Reginan Kyle Golemba (pictured) of his well-received cabaret of Canadian musical theatre Making Love in a Canoe. Accompanying Golemba on piano will be Robert Ursan.

Tix are $35, or $250 for a table of eight, and are available at Bach & Beyond in the Golden Mile Mall and at the door.

Regina Fringe Festival

Yeah, the 2010 festival isn't going to be held until July 2-6. But applications are apparently available now for anyone interested in performing at the festival. There's fifteen spots up for grabs. They're allocated on a first-come, first-served basis until January 29. All you have to do is visit the festival website at http://www.reginafringe.com/ for all the details. And who knows, come next summer, we might find a way to review your show on what will undoubtedly be our awesome new website.

Diabolique Update

Earlier this year (July through October, to be precise), the Dunlop Art Gallery presented the two part exhibition Diabolique at its Central branch gallery. Curated by Amanda Cachia, the show featured 22 local, Canadian and international artists and explored the related themes of war and violence. We did two reviews on the show in prairie dog itself, and I did a couple or three blog posts as well. (DogBlog) If you check out the following link, you'll learn that the show made Canadian Art's top ten list of art exhibitions for 2009. So congrats to the Dunlop and to Amanda. Pictured above is a work by Scott Waters called Badlands that was in Diabolique II.

It's 1987 all over again

Mayor Pat Fiacco, on the surface, picked a real bad place to trash Brad Wall's government, but if I were Mayor Mullet, I would do the same thing (CJME). For the past two years, the Sask. Party government has conducted its financial affairs like a spoiled brat trust fund kid who has now run out of money, and much like what happened from 1987 to 2005, the senior levels of government will starve the lower levels for funds to balance their books.

I (Blank) Regina

This is my first blog post ever.

I’m the sort of person who quickly tires of the sound of my own voice (or the look of my own typing, as the case may be), so I can make you exactly one promise right off the bat – I won’t over-blog.

Two quick thoughts about blogs:

1.) Are you familiar with the term “sophomore slump”? This is the phenomenon in which an artist pours a lifetime of ideas and experiences into their first major work, and then chokes on the second because they already used up all their good stuff and now have to start from scratch. I could so easily start rambling here, riffing on all my thoughts and feelings and ideas and opinions... and then burn myself out and wonder what to talk about next time. Not gonna do it.

2.) When your editor asks you to contribute to a blog, and you already make part of your living as a freelance writer, isn’t that kind of like asking your buddy the massage therapist for a free foot rub? Well, maybe. But I don’t mean for this forum to replace my regular writing. I’ll just think of it as... sort of an open letter to a friend. Or a bunch of friends, most of whom I haven’t yet met.

My topic, for the first several posts anyway, will be the city I live in: Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. City Hall has been promoting an “I Love Regina” campaign for a while now (or maybe it’s called “I heart Regina”) which is a nice enough thought, but it’s really not specific enough for me. I want the gory details of what people love about Regina, and I want other people to know what I love about it too. It’s becoming too easy for a city to become homogenized and lose its identity – all the quirks and eccentricities and diamonds (in the rough or otherwise) that make it unique and, ultimately, liveable.

One of my pet peeves is people who wander around saying things like, “This town fuckin’ sucks,” and then don’t do anything about it. So even on a lousy day when I look around the city and don’t much like what I see, I force myself to look harder. I might look for gargoyles on the tops of old buildings downtown, or buy fresh marzipan squares at Oskar’s Deli and think about how no one else on the planet is eating anything quite like that at that particular moment.

And before I start rambling on that topic, I’m going to call it a day. See you next time.

Oh Happy Day

This is what's going on on my little bit of Albert street:

Not only a new Japanese/Korean restaurant but a Karaoke place! If it gets even a portion the lost crowd from the Plains Hotel it should be good and weird. Juba Grocery seems to be hanging in (and have very good hours, so shop there and keep it going!). The Chamber of Commerce seems to be putting more windows in. Maybe it will help them see more clearly.

Will keep you posted. Karaoke!

Former Regina Musician Wins Songwriting Award

Best-known to Regina audiences as a founding member of the local alt-rock band Rah Rah, Kyrie Kristmanson has enjoyed continued success as a musician since leaving the city a few years ago to study music and humanities at Carleton University in Ottawa. In 2007, she received the Canadian Folk Music Award for Young Performer of the Year. Today, it was announced that she had won the Colleen Peterson Songwriting Award from the Ontario Arts Council for her song "Song X". (CBC Radio)

The award (which comes with a sweet 1,000 cash prize) goes to an emerging Ontario folk, roots or country singer-songwriter. It's named after the late Juno-winning country roots artist Colleen Peterson who also made her mark along with Sylvia Tyson, Caitlin Hanford and Cindy Church in the group Quartette.

Recently returned to Ottawa after a year spent studying Medieval women troubadours in Lyon France, where she also opened concerts by Feist in Paris and Hawksley Workman in Paris and London, Kristmanson will perform at the National Arts Centre's Fourth Stage in Ottawa on Nov. 3.

So congrats to Kyrie, and best wishes for continued success.

Stuff to Do

If you're in the mood for some spoken word, Patrick Swan will be doing a half hour set prior to Metz playing at O'Hanlon's Pub tonight. Here's some YouTube footage of Patrick doing his thing at a recent Vancouver poetry slam. If I was a betting man, I'd expect Patrick to hit the stage around 10:30 p.m. But that's just a rough guess.

Also tonight, Alex Neve, the Secretary General of Amnesty International Canada will be speaking at the university on the topic Rights Denied: Canada's Failure to Sign the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The talk will be held at room 119 in the university's new Research & Innovation Centre and start time is 7 p.m.

Finally, next Thursday (Sept. 17) between 7 and 8 p.m. an information night will be held at City Hall for people who are considering being candidates in the upcoming municipal election. So if you're kicking around the idea of running for mayor, city council, or the public/separate school board, here's a chance to find out what hoops you need to jump through. You're asked to RSVP your attendance to the Election Office at 751-4479 or sfriswell@regina.ca by Sept. 15. Nominations open Sept. 21 and close Sept. 30 at 4 p.m.