The Coast Halifax Weekly

H A L I FA X ’ S W E E K L Y S U G G E S T I O N

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VOLUME 26 NUMBER 47

O L L E H CITY

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APRIL 18 - APRIL 24, 2019

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The Coast

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This week

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EMOJI SCOTIA

S(HE’S) (A) (BROKEN) WO(MAN) (ON) THE INSIDE (A HALIFAX PIER)

Issue #1,199

@m0msspaghett1. Posted on April 5.

VOLUME 26, NUMBER 47

THE NUMBER

APRIL 18 - APRIL 24, 2019

$793.7 million

On the cover: Lenny Mullins captured Hello City—identified on page 6—having a laff for The Coast.

The City Voice of the City Shoptalk Cover Story: The power of play Food+Drink

BEST OF TWITTER

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Arts Entertainment listings Love The Way We Bitch The Comic Free Will Astrology Savage Love

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Halifax, in April: A poinsettia left over from December still going strong, and a fresh spring bouquet, promising spring. This is our juxtaposition, the shoulder season, the happy sad truth. @LINDSAYCAMERONWILSON

Municipal expenditures approved and off to the races in Halifax’s 2019-20 municipal operating budget. This covers all the things that make Halifax run: Salaries, gas, building supplies, lunches, transit, fireworks and debt charges—which, btw, are $46.5 million a year.

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The Coast welcomes your thoughts on all aspects of the paper’s performance and city life.

Deliver letters to the editor to 2309 Maynard Street, Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3K 3T8 fax: 902-425-0013, email: letters@thecoast.ca. Post comments on any story at thecoast.ca

Privilege check

Save the oil jobs

Further to your recent cover story about street checks, I am a white, middle-aged guy and I got stopped by the police last month in Clayton Park (“Checks & changes,” feature by Julia Simone-Rutgers, April 4). I didn’t commit a moving violation, but the officer ran my plates and found out I hadn’t renewed my license. I apologized and told her I had been too busy to renew it for the past two months, because it would mean leaving work during the day and waiting in line. She said she understood but it was still a violation. Then she noted the cracked windshield on my van. I told her the vehicle was on its last legs. She smiled and said, “OK Mr. Roberts, you can go, but make sure to get that license renewed and get that window replaced.”

I said thanks and off I went, happy that she didn’t notice one of my headlights was out. No tickets, no fines, no hassle. It reminded me of that Eddie Murphy “White Like Me” sketch on SNL, where white people give free things to each other. That is white privilege. It isn’t fair, but it feels great when it comes your way.

—J. Roberts, Halifax

The Gerald Butts-Justin Trudeau regime cancelled the Northern Gateway pipeline, then forced Energy East out with additional burdensome regulations. Who cares about a potential economic boon for New Brunswick and the port of Saint John, when Montreal’s “environmentalists” have to be appeased (even as they dump raw sewage into the St. Lawrence River)?

Adding insult to injury, Butts-Trudeau wasted tax dollars purchasing the Trans Mountain pipeline some months ago for an amount well in excess of its value, then surprise, neglected to extend it. One wonders what judicially mandated extra talks with Indigenous groups will yield. Don’t be surprised if Trudeau officially kills Trans Mountain early in his next mandate, assuming he is re-elected. How many jobs were lost or never created because of Liberal dithering with the oil patch?

Suffice it to say, it is rich for Butts to claim the federal government was only trying to “save jobs” when he, the prime minister and their minions—including the clerk of the Privy Council—unsuccessfully pressured the attor-

ney general to pursue a deferred prosecution agreement instead of criminally charging SNC-Lavalin, which violated Canadian law by securing contracts in Libya with bribes to some Libyan officials.

Of course, early on in the SNC affair, Trudeau and Butts assured us the erstwhile attorney general’s demotion to veterans’ affairs minister only happened because Scott Brison resigned from cabinet. Now we know!

You know what they say about friends like these, Scott. —Kris Larsen, Halifax

Flat taxes are fair I’d like to respond to the letter from V. Bradshaw entitled “The ‘average’ lie” in the April 4 issue. Bradshaw makes the argument that Halifax Regional Municipality should charge a flat rate for everyone receiving the same level of municipal service. I strongly agree.

I am a homeowner who lives within the boundaries of HRM. Our home is assessed at $333,900 and we pay $3,384.61 in yearly taxes. We do NOT receive equal services such as city water and sewage. Our water is

When the Notre Dame fire ignites some good oldfashioned Instagram dick-swinging.

OVERHEARD

If we had a pissing contest, it would just be a puddle.

drawn from a well, and flushed into a septic tank. Our garbage is collected once every two weeks. Our mail is delivered at a “super box” half a kilometre away. Our street is plowed two days after a storm, even though several neighbours work as firefighters, surgeons and nurses, providing essential services in Dartmouth/Halifax. We live 20 kilometres from the nearest hospital and high school. Who are the recipients of the services we are paying for, but do not receive? —L. Costanzo, HRM

The malaria fight April 25 is World Malaria Day. Little known by most Canadians, malaria threatens almost half the global population, over 3 billion people. Hundreds of thousands die each year.

Emerging strains need to be destroyed quickly, before they have a chance to spread and create a global catastrophe. The world has a powerful tool—the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria—and these new strains can be stopped in their tracks. It’s critical that we at last step up and contribute our fair share of funding. —Nathaniel Poole, via email

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EDITED BY CAORA MCKENNA / SEND TIPS TO NEWS@THECOAST.CA

HEALTH

Avalon overwhelmed

The sexual assault centre is forced to shut down its waitlist due to high demand. BY ANDREW BETHUNE

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TOOLS

HRP wants BTE (Big Truck Energy)

F

or the first time since 1996, the Avalon Sexual Assault Centre has temporarily stopped accepting new clients.

The Dresden Row centre, offering specialized sexual assault care and support, announced it has become overwhelmed by their caseload after several years of increasing numbers of requests for help. The plan is to serve the 140-odd people on the waitlist and create a strategy for future sustainable operations before opening to new clients again.

“Front-line service providers here are really struggling to continue to meet the needs,” says Jackie Stevens, executive director of Avalon. “We’re all working at full capacity, but are not adequately resourced.”

The centre will still accept calls from anybody who needs help, and offers referrals, support and information for the time being.

Still available is the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner, a specially trained professional who offers medical guidance and evidence collection after a sexual assault occurs.

Public conversations like #MeToo mean the stigma of speaking about sexualized violence is fading and some survivors of sexualized violence feel safer seeking help. “We’re seeing this resurgence of people accessing services and so it’s affecting sexual assault services across the country,” says Stevens. “People who never had waitlists suddenly have waitlists.”

Avalon served 443 clients for counselling in 2018, its highest number ever. Not surprising—Statistics Canada says 2017 saw the most police-reported sexual assaults since 1998.

Halton, Ontario’s police force spent $313,000 on this ARV. SUBMITTED

Council approved the 2019-2020 budget so HRP is getting an armoured rescue vehicle. BY KAILA JEFFERD-MOORE Stevens at a 2016 rally. MEGHAN TANSEY WHITTON

The South House Sexual and Gender Resource Centre usually refers clients to Avalon.

While the waitlist is closed, they cannot.

“A sexual assault centre not being able to accept new clients, that is a crisis,” says Carmel Farahbakhsh, an education and administration coordinator at South House. Stevens says Avalon has tried many ways to accommodate the surge of clients but none have proven to be a solution. “We just aren’t able to provide the variety of services within our current resources and staffing and infrastructure,” she says.

She hopes all groups—society, government and organizations—will work together to find a way to support survivors. “As a province, as a community, how are we going to better provide access to services and support in a long-term basis for all survivors of sexualized violence?” she says. The Avalon centre’s waitlist will be closed for a couple of months.

The Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner can be reached at 902-425-0122. a

H

alifax Regional Police wants to add a new tool to its belt. At the Board of Police Commissioners meeting on Monday, HRP’s inspector Jim Butler quickly made the case for needing an armoured rescue vehicle (ARV) added to the HRP’s fleet. He said an ARV would give officers the ability to perform duties during high-risk emergency situations and get in-and-out quickly.

In Butler’s view, this is “the next step” in emergency preparedness and response. He says, “It’s not about being fearsome but about being well-prepared.” Police forces have been adding militarized vehicles to their fleets for over five years—from donated, repurposed military vehicles, to shiny new ones like the models from Fredericton, NB and Halton, ON that are similar to the model the HRP wants– but not the actual model in mind.

But, deputy mayor Tony Mancini says, “It’s about the perception out there...it’s a military-style vehicle” and the perception is negative.

There have been no incidents reported in

which HRP needed an armoured rescue vehicle and Butler had no available information on how often the HRP has requested to use the RCMP’s ARV, if any, but he pointed to incidents like the recent active-shooter threats at Dartmouth High and the Central Library as potential situations that could call for its use.

RCMP superintendent Don MacLean said the RCMP ARV is often used to go outside of the city and it may not be readily available depending on where it is in the province.

Butler’s presentation to the police commission was just that—a presentation, so councillor Shawn Cleary suggested an amendment to take the $350,000-$500,000 expense out of the 2019-20 budget.

“The only way we can influence this, until the board of police commissioners develops policy around it, is to simply not approve it in the budget,” said Cleary. “It would be shocking to me to think that we would allow the militarization of our police in Halifax.”

But the amendment was defeated and the ARV will be on order soon. a

The Coast

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The City

Voice of The City WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU voice@thecoast.ca SUBMITTED

More than just a diversity initiative A Dalhousie graduate student on being a Black female immigrant in STEM. BY DANIELLE GAITOR

A

Carlos Beals says “when you target a specific group of people based on the colour of their skin and are allocating resources to monitoring and surveillance of said group of people, that is discriminatory and that’s illegal.”

POLICE

“Appalling, abhorrent” Halifax’s police commission takes a strong stand on street checks.

The province follows suit. BY CAORA MCKENNA

T

he Halifax Board of Police Commissioners put its weight behind ending the practice of street checks at this week’s meeting following Scot Wortley and the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission’s report released in March. Aware of its inability to mandate any operational changes, the commission made a point of officially recommending an end to the practice. On Wednesday, justice minister Mark Furey made their recommendation a reality: Street checks stop now.

Councillor Lindell Smith introduced the motion, saying if there are people who perceive that “our force, who swore to protect our residents,” is not there to keep them safe, says Smith. “...We are not doing—as the commission—our citizens justice as the oversight body.”

The report looked at 12 years of Halifax Regional Police street-check data and found that Black men were nine times more likely to be stopped by HRP than white men, followed

by Arab men and Black women.

At the meeting, councillor Steve Craig explains that Wortley’s report presented the options to either ban street checks, or “keep street checks and regulate it so that there isn’t a violation of human rights,” which was met with “impossible” from members of the community attending the meeting.

Whether street checks are always a violation of human rights, and therefore illegal, was also debated at the meeting. The commission’s legal counsel Martin Ward explained that street checks on their own are not illegal, but when “the basis of you stopping that person and asking them questions is because of prohibited grounds under the human rights act, then that’s illegal.”

“When you target a specific group of people based on the colour of their skin and are allocating resources to monitoring and surveillance of said group of people,” says commissioner Carlos Beals, senior manager with Ceasefire Halifax, “that is discriminatory and

that’s illegal.”

For an official ban or end of the illegalwhen-discriminatory practice, “the minister is the person who holds the hammer here,” says Ward, but the commission’s strong message made an impact.

“The way members of our community have been harmed through this process is appalling, abhorrent and I can’t understand why we would perpetuate this kind of process,” says vice-chair Carole McDougal.

Kate Macdonald, a community stakeholder on the Wortley Street Check committee who was at the meeting says “We’ve been having this conversation for decades and it feels like now things are starting to take a little bit of a turn for the better. So let’s keep this momentum going.”

Furey hadn’t taken an official stance on the issue before the closure of the legislature on Friday, but maintained that street checks are a useful tool for policing. In a release announcing the ban on Wednesday Furey says, “the inappropriate use of street checks is alarming and unacceptable...We need to address the fear and mistrust that street checks have caused for many in the African Nova Scotian community.”

Commissioner Natalie Borden warned that the problem is deeper than a moratorium or a ban on street checks. “We have an issue with how the police interacts with the Black community,” she says. “And [I] would just caution people from thinking that once we ban street checks that all goes away.”

Iincreased street-check contact with Black Haligonians means “we are seeing more have criminal records due to interactions with our police force,” says Smith. Between 2006 and 2017, one-third of the Black male population was charged with a criminal offense. Only 6.8 percent of white males were.

The ban is in effect immediately until further notice. a

s a university student in Halifax, I walk into a classroom or research lab, looking around eagerly, hoping to see someone who looks like me. I gaze around anxiously, searching to find at least one person who can feel the weight that I’m carrying. I sigh in disappointment, realizing that yet again, I am alone. I feel like an imposter.

Imagine being an immigrant, Black, financially constrained, first-generation, female college student—in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). Now, imagine carrying the weight of intersectional disadvantage along with the expectation of success from my entire family, my island, my home country, The Bahamas. Sometimes, it all feels impossible. As I navigate this city with my unique identity, I wonder, “Does anyone feel me?”

This is what you call intersectionality, and it pains me that we are not talking more about it. Intersectionality occurs when social categorizations such as race, class, gender and nationality interlock to create systems of disadvantage or discrimination. With using the narrative of diversity and inclusion, there comes the responsibility to engage the privileged population, students and faculty included.

It is hard to understand intersectionality and marginalization by association because it is a lived experience, but you can stand for change as an ally. I am fortunate to have allies who have recognized when I was being discriminated against and have stood with me in their own ways. To them, I say thank you.

In my personal experience, there were times when it was so obvious that I was being treated differently that I was often left to wonder, “Which part of my identity makes this person treat me that way? Is it the fact that I am Black? Is it the fact that I am a woman? Is it the fact that I am an immigrant and I have an accent?” The weight of these experiences unfortunately increases over time.

My academic matriculation involves competing with individuals who do not realize their advantage, and the security that comes with a greater sense of belonging. How can we say that we stand for diversity and inclusion when the majority of the student body and faculty are not educated about what it means and how to put it into practice? Thankfully, I no longer receive comments on my “perfect English” or questions about riding dolphins, or wearing coconut bras and grass skirts.

At the same time, significantly increasing international fees sends a message of antidiversity and inclusion. To encourage diverse enrolment, there needs to be an environment where everyone can thrive and that too means fair fees. We are already disadvantaged. Do not tokenize us. Humanize us.

Additionally, faculty and administrative composition should reflect cultural competency and balanced representation. When I do not see “me” among the decision-makers, I can’t help but wonder, “Is my voice being heard?” Representation matters.

SUBMITTED

Encouraging diversity and inclusion by accepting a person who identifies with a marginalized group into the institution does not eliminate how years of systemic discrimination shapes their experience. Recognize that never having to think about intersectionality or how it’s affecting the lives of others is called privilege.

But with privilege, you too have a platform to bring about change. Start by simply acknowledging your privilege. Then, take a look through my lens. Hear the voices of the marginalized and “intersectional-ized.” We are more than just a diversity initiative. This is not to diminish the struggles of other social categorizations. This is not to negate the progress that has been made. This is an indictment, a call for change.

Will you stand with me? a Danielle Gaitor is a native of Andros, Bahamas and a first year Master’s student at Dalhousie University. Danielle is passionate about the educational advancement and empowerment of young women and girls from marginalized and underrepresented backgrounds. She is the curriculum developer for For My Sister, an international non-profit organization that mentors young women in the areas of education, service, leadership and personal development.

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COVER STORY

LIAIM FA R HENRICUS GIELIS

PETERY SART

BETHN DUN UNTER STEPHDEIENYLAHDY JULIA & SA

GIL ANDERSON

COLINIRE MCGU

THE POWER OF

PLAY

The seven improvisers of Hello City have invigorated Halifax comedy by embracing the city, the community and each other.

BY TARA THORNE PHOTOS LENNY MULLINS

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COVER STORY

T

he improvisational troupe Hello City is named after a song about how Halifax sucks. “The same people, the same drinks and the same music, the same quicksand / I think this harbour town is waist-deep and sinkin’ fast,” goes the first verse, taking a pause before rolling into the first line of the chorus: “Hello city, you’ve found an enemy in me.”

Improv comedy confuses people. It’s not sketch, a group of people creating and producing scenes—Saturday Night Live—or stand-up, a single person riffing on whatever— John Mulaney. The difference is clear once you consider it: Those comedic forms, their characters and narratives and jokes, are written.

Improvisation is scenes made up on the spot, spurred by audience prompts—think “Name a location.”

The idea is elegant in its simplicity: Make an offer to your scene partner(s). The partner accepts, adding a new element that takes the scene somewhere else. Together you make comedy. Yes, and.

“To be a good improviser you have to listen and say yes and support your partner,” is how one of the best-known, Amy Poehler, puts it in her book Yes Please, “and be honest and specific and find a game within the scene you can both play.”

Hello City turns two in June. For the past year, its monthly shows at The Bus Stop Theatre have routinely sold out with a Picnicface-at-Ginger’s fervour, troupe members scurrying around with chairs aloft, packing in as many people as legally allowed (knocking on 100), for a sliding scale of five to 20 dollars. (They call it Pay A Bill.) The company will be in residence at the annual Nova Scotia High School Drama Festival at the beginning of May. Its 2018 sellout Halifax Fringe Festival show The Book Club was so popular it’s been invited to the Stages Theatre Festival at the end of May. There’ll be another Fringe show in August.

There are seven of them. “It’s easier to be brave,” Poehler also writes, “when you’re not alone.”

L naked Ladies released Gordon in 1992, but iam Fair was not yet alive when the Bare-

he loves the band and “Hello City” without irony. He loves improv even more. He pushed them together in 2017.

“I was very depressed, this city sucks,” he says of his mindset then. “Like I hate it. But I want something. I wanna do improv. It’s just making stuff up. Why is it so hard to play pretend? The whole idea was ‘What if we got people to come in and tell stories that are from Halifax that are a part of the community?’ It’s a way to say cool, thank you for being a part of the city, despite the city.”

He assembled a group that has stayed, more or less, the same since that first show. It inHello City presents: The Hello Baby Show Tuesday, April 23, 7:30pm The Bus Stop Theatre, 2203 Gottingen Street $5/$10/$20

cludes Fair, a mischievous character wizard; his bearded best friend since high school, Colin McGuire, a presence so amiable he usually plays a dog once per show; Stepheny Hunter, a wry and versatile fan favourite; the sharp and confident Beth Dunn; Gil Anderson, fearless and physical; and the bombastic Henricus Gielis, who created the format for The Book Club. Peter Sarty, affable and gracious, was the group’s first monologist—the monthly special guest who tells stories of living in Halifax, from which the improv is made—but became a member soon after. He and Hunter have been dating for longer than they’ve been in Hello City. (There is technically an eighth member, Simon Marshall, who has moved to Newfoundland.)

The troupe boasts extensive training—many competed in the Canadian Improv Games in high school, moving on to the likes of Second City, workshops around the country and theatre school proper. They’re united in the concept of “play,” the word deployed the most across four conversations (save maybe for “community”).

“You gotta have that sense of play,” says Gielis. “We’re just playing pretend for friends, is what we’re doing. That’s all it is.”

“How do you create something that’s sustainable?” says Fair. “Get people that want to play, get people that are able to—everyone has ego, but at the end of the day, you say, ‘OK, this is what my want is, but my trust in the collective is greater than my own want.’”

“We respect each other so, so much. We’re all very good friends,” says Dunn. “We all have a personal level with each other, which I think is so important when it comes to improv—to be able to think, to make eye contact with somebody on stage, and know what they’re about to say. Or to know where the story is going.”

They find each other incredibly funny.

Lined up on the sides of the Bus Stop—leaning, crouching, hands clasped like the prayer emoji—they watch each other play, and they laugh. These aren’t stifled church laughs either—they’re appreciative, uproarious, fullbellied, joining in with the raucous audience.

“We fuck with each other a lot,” says Gielis.

“We for sure love to mess around with each other.”

“We came together as a group because we like spending time together and doing this art form,” says Hunter. “So partially, it’s like, yeah, it’s for the audience. But it is also for ourselves. We would be doing it whether we had, you know, 10 people in a crowd or 90. It’s the same for us.”

As often as possible—all have day jobs, about half are working actors who sometimes need to travel for shows—they assemble to rehearse and play. Then, once a month—usually it’s the second Tuesday, this month it’s the fourth— with a new special guest each time, they put up a show.

“We’ll do a little warm-up and it’s very silly and we’re excited to see each other, it’s not like ‘Oh god it’s your face again,’” says Sarty.

“You go up there and you’re just having fun with your pals.”

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< CONT FROM P7

“When you’re in improv, you’re in that flow state-of-mind—you’re not thinking necessarily exactly where every moment’s going to go, you’re just in that moment,” says McGuire.

“And when that honesty brings about something odd and funny, and we get a reaction out of a huge room of people? It’s mainly—we’re playing with each other. We are toddlers on the playground, just playing with each other.”

It was a slow burn that’s now a full-on bonfire.

“We had an audience that was sort of willing to hear us out. And because there was no other improv in the city, people didn’t know what we were. Halifax stuck with us,” says Anderson. “I don’t want to jinx anything”—she knocks on the table—“but we had to turn 20 people away from our last show.”

Yeah, it’s for the audience. But it is also for ourselves.

We would be doing it whether we had 10 people in a crowd or 90. —Stepheny Hunter

A fax is a tough go—there’s no money, there

are no venues and only a handful of opportunities, if you don’t make your own.

Hello City is fully invested in growing the local scene—on April Fool’s Day, the troupe joined forces with another recent addition, Same Boat, for an charmingly unwieldy 20-person show called Stir Fry. Fair, Anderson, Gielis and Dunn teach drop-in improv classes at Neptune Theatre and routinely offer their students stage time at Hello City shows. Out-of-towners passing through are invited to join in. They aren’t intimidated by other comedians—it’s all about making more improv.

“I got super-stoked at the Same Boat show the other night, because all I wanted for, like, five years in the city was to watch someone else do improv,” says Fair. “I was like, ‘One improv please’”—he mimes placing money on a counter—“and they were like, ‘Yes sir, come on in.’”

“And it’s not threatening to us,” says Anderson, “because they won’t be us.”

“People were ready for it—our group dynamic gelling from the get-go, it was one of those things, and I think the city was ready for it,” says Sarty. “It was the perfect equation for people to be really drawn to it.”

“If Hello City hadn’t been as successful as it is, I don’t know if we would be taking these next steps,” says Hunter. “But it’s because we know that there’s an audience for this.”

“Community is definitely a really important part of what we do, because, well, that’s who we’re doing it for,” says McGuire. “That’s where we’re doing it. We get a chance to highlight so many different people in the community for really cool things, and support The Bus Stop Theatre. That means a lot to us.”

“We also see value in others who are coming into the community, who come from a different background, and like, what are their minds like and how can we build?” says Dunn. “And how do you look at improv differently than I do? How can I learn from you?”

“Now there’s a regular audience for this kind of thing, improv,” says Gielis. “Other shows are doing their things and starting to cross-pollinate with our audiences, which is really nice.”

“Hello City can be one thing—” says Hunter, “—in this vast ocean of alternative comedy,” finishes Gielis.

“The city won’t grow if we don’t celebrate each other. It won’t grow. Period,” says Anderson. “We celebrate.” a Tara Thorne is The Coast’s arts editor.

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TEE JOHNNY

s with all art disciplines, comedy in Hali-

The Coast

2019-04-17 4:30 PM

ShopTalk S M A L L B U S I N E S S N E W S C O M P I L E D BY ALLISON SAUNDERS Send tips to shoptalk@thecoast.ca CHRIS AND AMBER PHOTOGRAPHY

WEDDINGS

Pop goes the nuptials Sarah Anderson wants to help you set virtual fire to your Pinterest wedding board and just elope instead. Anderson, the founder of East Coast Pop Up Weddings as well as an administrative justice of the peace, saw a hole in the wedding marketplace a year ago.

“I would get lots of couples who were looking for a JP, but people were asking for a few little extras that you might not get at a courthouse,” she says.

Now, she offers those missing flourishes in a set of packages like The Modern Elopement, which includes artisanal cake and refreshments, and the Tiny Wedding, which lives up to its name with a guestlist of eight.

This weekend, though, East Coast Pop Up Weddings is taking the ready-made wedding one step further, throwing an event titled Pop Up Love in the upstairs of The Stubborn Goat (1579 Grafton Street), where four couples can tie the knot (though Anderson is quick to note only one slot remains).

“For lack of a better way to explain it, it’s like a Vegas wedding chapel where you show up, get your bouquet, get married and then go do some photos with Applehead Photography. You pick a timeslot and you bring 20 friends and you have a ceremony,” Anderson offers, adding that a champagne toast at the bar is included in the $2,500 cost. “So many brides and grooms, they get a ring on their finger and then there’s this rabbit hole they fall into,” she adds. But, “that whole attitude of ‘Let’s just get married,’ that will never stop being romantic.” —Morgan Mullin

FASHION

Meet your TASTE maker Ring in 4/20 feeling good and looking good with the debut of TASTE, a curated collection of streetwear, sportswear and brand-name freshness. This Saturday, April 20, Grant Keddy’s Instagram shop (@buy.taste) logs off the interwebs for an afternoon and makes its pop-up debut at The Daily Grind Cafe (1479 Birmingham Street) from 12:30-4pm.

Drop by to get your athleisure look dialled for summer with Keddy’s racks of throwback looks from the likes of Adidas, Calvin Klein, Nike and Carhatt. —AS EASTER

Bunny and butter Dartmouth purveyor of locally made things Trainyard General Store (53 Portland Street) has a little something under its Easter bonnet for all of your sweet-toothed folks: This Saturday, April 20, the artisan boutique will welcome dessert-maker extraordinaire Honey & Butter for Easter pre-order pickups and some special treats. The baker will be at Trainyard from 11am to 2pm, or until sell-out—and the sell-out threat is real, cause cream egg brownies, coconut pies, lemon curd and banana pudding beat out Peeps and Mini Eggs any day. —AS The Coast • APRIL 18 – APRIL 24, 2019 • 9

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DARTMOUTH GUIDED TOUR PAID CONTENT

Guilt-Free Lebanese Eats Byblos Lebanese & Mediterranean Cuisine is the destination for incredible Mediterranean flavours. When you visit Byblos, you will not only enjoy the food but also the relaxing atmosphere. The chef and his team create a family-like welcoming that gives you the opportunity to learn about Mediterranean culture away from Lebanon. You will also enjoy watching the chef freshly cooking your meals right in front of you.

This restaurant ensures that they are fulfilling everyone’s taste buds by serving a range of platters that suits both meat eaters and vegans. They are proud to be supporting local businesses, and share the list of their sources online and on their menu. Enjoy your meal inhouse or take it home! It is not to be missed.

Look for the coupon in this issue of The Coast for 25 percent off the evening menu.

Offer ends April 25.

Byblos Lebanese & Mediterranean Cuisine 644 Portland Street

All Vibes Welcome

John’s Lunch. SUBMITTED

GUIDED TOUR

DARTMOUTH

No matter which side of the harbour you’re on, the shops, services and restaurants available in today’s Dartmouth are worth a special trip.

You’re Timeless to Me John’s Lunch is a 50-year-old diner, and they’re not trying to hide the fact.

Why would they? John’s has been a gathering place for families since the 1970s—kids have grown up on their food, and they’ve even brought their own kids in for their first French fry.

This legendary diner is known for their quality fresh-beef burgers, real turkey sandwiches and ’70s-style thick-crust pizza. Their local clams and award-wining fish and chips have hungry Haligonians flying down straight

from the airport after they’ve been away; John’s is always is their first stop back because they know there’s no other fish out there that will satisfy their maritime craving.

The quality of their food is the reason John’s Lunch has won three Best of Food categories, including Best Seafood. These are timeless recipes, \guarded and passed down through their loyal staff. Maintaining the Dartmouth tradition is what sets them apart, and will keep people coming back another 50 years.

John’s Lunch, 352 Pleasant Street

Feel your energy shift the minute you walk through the doors of Into the Mystic—this spiritual shop is where you can come in and reconnect with your inner self. Through their psychic and intuitive services like chakra balancing, feng shui, palm readings and numerology, you’ll walk out feeling more aligned than you have in a while.

They offer a salt halotherapy booth to help with breathing, skin and mood issues, as well as a jade infrared mat for circulation and pain issues like fibromyalgia.

The focus of Into the Mystic isn’t just to help with your emotional and physical balancing, but also to bring light into the lives around you. Pick a gift for a loved one that has energetic meaning and has visual and emotional healing purposes. This shop houses the largest crystal collection on the east coast with oneof-a-kind imported treasures you will only find here.

Into The Mystic, 1082 Cole Harbour Road

We’re Loving Them Apples Cideries are so big right now, it’s a good thing that apples do grow on trees.

Nova Scotia has some of the best apples in North America and Lake City Cider knows that it would be a shame to let our other fresh summer fruits go to waste. They build on the booming craft cider movement by playing with fun flavours and showing us that there is more to cider than the traditional apple.

With eight local taps on site, you’ll spot a few unique flavours: Red Head, made with strawberries; Exit 6 Oxford, a blueberry cider; and if you’re having trouble sleeping, the Tea & Honey chamomile cider is your ideal bedtime treat. For a limited time in June, you can even sip on their District Pride Rose, the sponsored cider for Halifax Pride.

Lake City Cider is where a love of Dartmouth meets a love of cider. These two worlds collide in an adventurous recipe that we’re sure you’ve never tasted before.

Lake City Cider, 35 Portland Street The Coast • APRIL 18 – APRIL 24, 2019 • 11

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DARTMOUTH GUIDED TOUR PAID CONTENT

The Bar that Starts us off Right The Watch that Ends the Night is where alternative meets comfort—just let your bartender know what you’re craving, and they’ll whip up something that’s all your own.

Their cocktail presence is strong, but this Best New Bar is known for more than their innovative drinks. Their talented kitchen team brainstorms a rotating menu every other week, and there’s constantly something new coming from head Chef Janie. On a bi-monthly basis, she collaborates with a featured NSCC culinary arts graduate to bring a six-course dinner series to life. You just need to sit back and let yourself be serenated by the live tunes of Barometer Rising.

Weekday adventurers are encouraged at The Watch—and they’re even rewarded with special promos like a Dartmouth Neighbours discount on Mondays, burger features on Tuesdays and live jazz music on Wednesdays with no cover. Make a reservation, because a night at The Watch is a night you don’t want to miss.

The Watch that Ends The Night 15 King’s Wharf Place

A Delicious Neighbourhood Takeover It’s every sailor’s dream to own a brewery, and retired navy cook Bill Pratt finally gets to live out his. Not only does he keep busy with Cheese Curds and Habaneros, but right across the parking lot you’ll find his new Upstreet BBQ Brewhouse. Bill is taking over the neighbourhood with his clever recipes, and let’s just say our mouths are watering already.

The slow-smoked brisket and ribs are tender, the beef is juicy, and the craft beer is the perfect balance of hoppy and malty. You can keep with the southern flair and break corn bread with your buds on a Friday night, and you won’t regret ordering a pulled pork sandwich or the smoked jackfruit.

Bill continues to craft unique recipes, including ones for vegans and vegetarians. You can expect more plant-based menu items across all three of his restaurants this summer.

We know that whatever he comes up with, he’ll bring the same quality of creativity and innovation to our plates.

Upstreet BBQ Brewhouse 612 Windmill Road

Dartmouth Expanded Watching Dartmouth grow in the last year has been soul-fulfilling and hunger-satisfying.

The area’s ample restaurants keep surprising us with their unique flavour fusions, and the cideries and bars are constantly crafting something delicious. These new expansions to the HRM have been driving in both locals and tourists to see what all the fuss is about (and we promise, you won’t be disappointed when you arrive).

Tim Rissesco, Executive Director with the Downtown Dartmouth Business Commission, says, “There is so much that you can only experience in downtown Dartmouth!

Our compact district is home to some of the best independent shops and restaurants in the country.

“Two thousand nineteen is another year of growth for downtown Dartmouth, with two 12 • APRIL 18 – APRIL 24, 2019 •

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DARTMOUTH GUIDED TOUR PAID CONTENT

new fitness facilities—Queensbury Rules Boxing Studio and REBEL Studio and TicTacGo— setting a new standard for escape rooms in the region,” he adds.

It’s amazing to see how much there is to do on this side of the harbour—these are unique experiences that can’t be found anywhere else.

Downtown Dartmouth Business Commission, 163 Portland Street

Designs through the decades In their second year of business, Retrospekt is bringing even more mid-century modern furniture to the HRM. Dating back to the 1950s and ’60s, these are one-of-a-kind pieces that you won’t find anywhere else. With their new Best of Halifax status, Retrospekt has been able to build more of a local presence. The perk of purchasing more locally is that the owners never know what new product will pop through their doors.

With Retrospekt’s rotating inventory, there’s sure to be a piece of restored furniture suited for the collector and novice alike. Find excitement in furnishing your first condo or in redecorating your long-term home—there’s never any sales pressure when you walk through their doors. They believe in taking the time to find that original piece that suits your style.

Whether it’s a new sofa, accent chair, dining set or bedroom set you’re looking for, you’ll find your perfect match in a piece of furniture that is authentic, versatile and timeless.

Retrospekt, 166 Ochterloney Street

Taking The HRM By “Perfect Storm” We’ve been drinking their locally made sodas for years, whether it’s straight-up or mixed in with clever cocktails around town. Now, Propeller is taking the soda industry to the next level with their own brand: Windmill Craft Cocktails.

Their first batch back in September mixed locally blended rum and Dartmouth-made ginger beer for a “Perfect Storm” and the HRM went wild for it. This line of ready-todrink (RTD) beverages are expanding to make more of your favourite easy-drinking cocktails.

This week, you can try the new a Vodka Soda with Grapefruit & Lime—it’s what all the cool kids are doing. It’s clean, light and refreshing Retrospekt (above). Upstreet BBQ Brewhouse. SUBMITTED

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Il Trullo Ristorante. SUBMITTED

with natural flavours, and available in Propeller stores this week and will be in NSLCs later this month.

After Christmas, they launched a Small Batch Program, where Windmill partners with local bartenders and play off of their cuttingedge cocktail trends for a one-off crafted drink (next one out soon!).

Propellor Brewing Co., 617 Windmill Road

The Cat’s Out Of The Bag We have to let you in on the best Kept secret in the Dartmouth area, because this charming store is the ideal one-stop shop for all giftgiving occasions. Anyone who unwraps one of Kept’s well-designed items is going to be the happiest receiver.

The store will win you over with its catthemed items, and who could resist the adorable squirrel on their logo? Kept’s selection is impeccable, and the staff really go above and beyond to make sure that you find exactly what you came in looking for (and maybe a few items that weren’t on your list). With knick-knacks and kitchen gadgets galore, you won’t be able to leave with just the essentials.

Grab that perfect Maritime trinket for a friend who is living away from home and needs a little taste of the salty sea. With so many locally made and fair-trade items, you’ll never feel guilty when shopping at Kept.

Kept Gifts & Housewares, 75 King Street

Live More, Stress Less Brighten your day with 10,000 square feet of lighting and cabinetry at Station12 Lighting | Kitchen | Bath. The family operated business has provided us with all of our lighting needs for 15 years. They continue to handle the “behind the scenes” layout work for us and never fail to provide customers—in Dartmouth and beyond—with recommendations and technical aspects so our lighting projects can be done stress-free.

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Their fashion-forward showroom keeps up with current trends through an inventory rotation, but still offers clients classic pieces that suit every space. With 40-plus suppliers, and housing Atlantic Canada’s largest selection for residential, commercial and hospitality lighting, you’re sure to find something in your style and budget.

Their team adds to the “light” environment with their lively personalities and passion for the products, which shines through in each project they work on. They’re all certified through the American Lighting Association and their kitchen designers boast years of experience and passion, so you can feel confident knowing that you are dealing with the best.

Station12 Lighting Kitchen 560 Windmill Road

Southern Italy next door In need of a vacation? Il Trullo Ristorante brings the feel of southern Italy right to Downtown Dartmouth for you. Sit amongst the natural structure based off a trullo, the unique conical roof found in southern Italy, and let yourself be transported to its home region of Puglia.

Who needs to hop on a plane when you have the view of the water right here? Il Trullo ties the Mediterranean vibe together with light olive oil-based sauces and incorporating local fish into the menu items. With homemade traditional lasagnas, squid ink risotto and their bestselling ravioli fungi, you’re sure to get your Italian fix.

Il Trullo was designed with the idea of incorporating recycled, local and natural materials to make the interior space sustainable. The owners are passionate about sustainability and have trained their staff on their aggressive recycling and composting programs. With compostable take-away containers and paper straws, eating at Il Trullo really does mean going back to our natural elements.

Il Trullo Ristorante, 67 King’s Wharf Place

The Coast

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$150,000

The amount of donations raised for Feed Nova Scotia during Halifax Burger Week. And while we’re counting, this year’s event saw 175,316 burgers served to hungry Haligonians.

EDITED BY ALLISON SAUNDERS SEND TIPS TO ALLISONS@THECOAST.CA

Season’s feedings

It’s your last chance to dine with Third Season Food, Ian Lea’s veg-focused supper club. BY MORGAN MULLIN

Saida Gazie runs Veith House’s newcomers’ catering program. AISHA GOYETTE

Getting the party started Veith House’s Newcomer Kitchen Party aims to create work for recent immigrants and refugees. BY AISHA GOYETTE Newcomer Kitchen Party

902-453-4320

V

eith House’s community kitchen will be ground zero for a new catering company with a cause: The Newcomer Kitchen Party.

And with two of its four events happening before the official April 11 launch date, it seems like this party could not wait to get started.

Veith House is a “community hub, a lot of our services are social work related,” says social worker Alex MacKinnon. “Since Saida came here, we have a bunch of pretty bumpin’ newcomers programs, which is great.”

Saida Gazie started as the newcomer program coordinator back in July of 2018. She is in charge of managing all programs and events designed to help those who are new to Canada, with accessible language classes, first aid training, community events, group outings and markets.

Another program offered at Veith House, recently added, is the Newcomer Kitchen Party.

With a playful east coast twist, it was inspired by a similar but recently shut down Newcomer Kitchen program based out of Toronto, with the same goal of creating work opportunities for recent immigrants and refugees.

“It’s basically like catering,” says MacKinnon. “We are starting small because we have a small kitchen here.”

It works like this: A local business will make an order to Veith House. The participants of the program will work together in the community kitchen to purchase the ingredients, plan the meal and fill the order. Then, after

covering the cost of ingredients, they divide the proceeds among themselves.

Veith House acts as the coordinator between those making the orders and the participants in the program, and offers their community kitchen free of charge.

“Veith House doesn’t take any money,” says Gazie. “All the money goes to the women, to help them.”

Gazie explains that this program is open to all newcomers to Canada: “It is open to women and men, we have two men already in our program.” Currently there are 12 participants.

The Newcomer Kitchen is still accepting applicants. The only requirement is to send in your name, along with a list of foods you can cook. According to Gazie, there is an impressive level of culinary talent to choose from.

It’s not a full-time job, but a way to make a little money. As Gazie says, job hunting as a newcomer to Canada can be difficult and this program provides an opportunity to make some much needed income.

With summer around the corner, the Newcomer Kitchen Party is expecting orders to pick up, but plan to keep it small until all the kinks get worked out. The group is still looking for delivery drivers.

Getting a new catering company started has more start up costs than Veith House expected, but they aren’t letting it put a damper on their plans for the future.

“It is a new project for us,” says Gazie, “but it is going well.” a

Dartmouth Veg Out Friday, April 19 Cafe Good Luck, 145 Portland Street 6:30pm, $55 manualco.info@gmail.com

I

an Lea is hosting a dinner party in five days, but he doesn’t really know what his guests will be eating. “At the moment I’m using a lot of celeriac because that’s available and I don’t think it’s a vegetable that’s as widely used,” muses the founder of Third Season Food. “It’s got a really nice, delicate celery flavour. But there’s also a lot of things you can do with it, from having it raw in salads to roasting it to mashing it. It’s a very versatile, weird-looking vegetable.”

The dinner in question? This Friday’s Veg Out, a self-described “five course vegetarian feast” at Cafe Good Luck (where Lea has worked since the modern Dartmouth diner opened its doors at 145 Portland Street last August). At $55 a ticket, the one-night-only, veggie-focused evening is nearly sold out when Lea answers the phone—and it sees Cafe Good Luck making good on its plan to be a gathering space in the community with more foodie events rounding out its repertoire.

But back to the menu: “All the sorts of cooking I really enjoy doing are based on seasonal produce, what’s available at the right time of year because that’s when stuff is at its best.

Most of the dishes I cook and the stuff we’ll be cooking Friday is ingredient-led, so we’ll see what’s available and then create the dishes from there,” Lea says. “I think a lot of people have moved towards that now, stripping back the fanciness of the dishes to the key elements of the ingredients and the providence of the ingredients—which I think is becoming more and more important for chefs but also for consumers as well.”

Lea’s British accent seems to become more pronounced with each word (he’s from York)—but perhaps that’s just because he sounds like he’s channeling something Nigella Lawson, England’s patron saint of seasonal eating, would say. “We’ll be using some kohlrabi, some celeriac, things like that. We’ll probably be working with very local greens, grown down on the Dartmouth wharf,” he

Lea’s dishes get to the “providence of the ingredients.” RACHEL MCGRATH

continues.

“Obviously at the moment in Nova Scotia, there’s not loads of stuff available—it’s quite a limited palette of ingredients,” Lea generously offers of the root-vegetable-heavy local scene this time of year—where “limited” could border on monotonous for the locally minded vegetarian. “But that’s also a challenge, that makes it more fun to create a more varied and interesting meal with a smaller amount of ingredients.”

The dinner will also double as a swan song of sorts for Lea, who’ll soon be returning to England to continue his pop-up dining adventures.

“We’re wanting to make it quite friendly, accessible food because vegetarian food can have a bad rap as hippie rabbit food or bland stuff. And also, the idea is sharing dishes as well,” he says. “Even though the cafe tables are in fours and twos, we’ll still be sending out plates where people can dig into [the food] themselves rather than plated-up dishes, so hopefully it’ll be a bit more engaging in that way.” a The Coast • APRIL 18 – APRIL 24, 2019 • 15

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COMPOSITION

Behind the scores MUSIC AND ARTS NEWS EDITED BY TARA THORNE SEND TIPS TO ARTS@THECOAST.CA

The series NEWFANGLED breaks down contemporary compositions for curious minds. BY AISHA GOYETTE NEWFANGLED w/Derek Charke Thursday, April 18, 7pm Paul O’Regan Hall at the Halifax Central Library 5440 Spring Garden Road free

P

ianist Barbara Pritchard and vocalist Janice Isabel Jackson form the duo NEWFANGLED and are bringing their 30-plus years of experience to perform some of Canada’s best contemporary works, free to the public at Paul O’Regan Hall.

“The main goal is really to help audiences not feel so lost when they listen to contemporary music,” says Jackson. Step by step, these “ambassadors for new music” take a fun,

down-to-earth look at the creative—but sometimes intimidating—world of contemporary music. They start with a live performance of a piece by one of Canada’s best composers, then follow it up with a behind-the-scenes look at the composer’s process.

“We were interested in bringing a fun and informative series to the library that looked at new works,” says Jackson, “and what the composer was thinking when they wrote the piece.”

Thursday’s session will be will be a slight deviation from the usual, as it will guest star Juno Award-winning composer Derek Charke, featuring his collaborative piece “Oikos Ecos.” Charke will be speaking about his piece, a commentary on social media, as well as taking questions from the audience.

A typical session in the series would include a brief lesson on the music’s score and an opportunity to follow the score projected onto the screen with a live performance of it.

The night ends with a Q&A, which has an open policy of “there is no such thing as silly” questions. Jackson welcomes anyone and everyone to participate—no knowledge of contemporary music necessary. In fact, this series is designed for those who just want to learn more: “We are making it as conversational, accessible and fun as we can,” says Jackson. a

“There’s nothing more mystical and wondrous than your everyday life,” say Elrick and Belyea. MICHELLE ELRICK

VISUAL ARTS REVIEW MUSIC

A Touch of life River of Diamonds marries poetry and pop. BY BRENNAN MCCRACKEN River of Diamonds w/Stewart Legere Saturday, April 20, 7:30pm The Bus Stop Theatre, 2203 Gottingen Street, $15

I

n the middle of an otherwise steady conversation about their music, Michael Belyea and Michelle Elrick find themselves at a loss for words. Discussing their shares appreciation for the natural world, Belyea remembers last week’s ubiquitous unveiling of the firstever photograph of a black hole. Elrick grins and looks up towards the ceiling; Belyea’s eyes dart around the room before he finds a way to continue: “There’s nothing more mystical and wondrous than just your everyday life.”

The change in subject is surprising but not entirely tangential: River of Diamonds, the couple’s new pop-poetry project, operates with a similar sense of awe and a parallel skywards gaze. Photon Touch, their debut album, sets nine of Elrick’s poems to verdant production by Belyea. With subjects ranging from celestial bodies to the wonder of the smallest scientific phenomena, Photon Touch illumi-

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nates the magic to be found in opening yourself to the world.

While the pair—who are married—had been considering a collaboration for awhile, Elrick says that the idea was cemented last summer when she heard a record by Brian Eno and poet Rick Holland. “These were songs,” she remembers thinking. For Belyea, it was a “no-brainer”: He’d amassed dozens of musical ideas, and finding ways to accompany his wife’s poems was the perfect opportunity to flesh them out. “At that point, it became true songwriting,” says Elrick. “The lyrics and the music were really influencing one another.”

River of Diamonds celebrates the release of Photon Touch and an accompanying chapbook at the Bus Stop this Saturday. Elrick and Belyea want the show to be fun—but they also hope it inspires moments of pause and attention for listeners. “We all have access to the experience of being alive,” says Elrick. “What do these poems have to say about being awake, aware, present in the world and alive to our own experience?” a

Rebecca Hannon, Contemporary Camouflage To April 28 Mary E. Black Gallery, 1061 Marginal Road

T

he human body is an unavoidable topic in conversations about jewellery. As a wearable art form, considerations have to be made for jewellery to hang correctly from a neck, for clasps to be manageable by hands and rings to sit comfortably on fingers. But for many contemporary jewellers the pieces they make are just as much at home on a gallery wall as they are on a wrist or dangling from an earlobe. This is certainly the case in Rebecca Hannon’s Contemporary Camouflage, on until month’s end at the Mary E. Black Gallery.

The display is as bold and colourful as the jewellery itself: Standard white gallery plinths and glass cases are abandoned in favour of a brightly patterned wall wrap that encircles the gallery. The patterns on the wall reference dazzle camouflage, a technique used in WWI where warships were painted in zigzag patterns to confuse perceptions of depth and distance. These black-andwhite dazzle stripes are present on the gallery wall, as are natural forms of pattern and camouflage: The red, black and yellow of the coral snake; spots from big cats.

Art or jewellery? How about both? REBECCA HANNON The jewellery mirrors these designs and colours.

Hung directly onto the wall, the pieces visually weave in and out of their surroundings, sometimes melting into the gallery walls and other times bursting out of them.

Hannon specializes in an unorthodox material: Laser-cut laminate, like would be found on a kitchen floor, only far more exciting. The flat pieces of laminate are intricately arranged into complex 3D structures, fitted together in a puzzle-like manner bringing to mind layers of feathers or rows of scales. At times the flatness of Hannon’s material is accentuated with colourful laminate circles, teardrops and other shapes laying flush to the wall.

In many ways Contemporary Camouflage is sensory overload. Our perceptions of shape, dimension and material are blown to bits, but the order in the chaos—the astute applications of pattern, the richness of the colours and the satisfying intricacy of the designs—is extremely satisfying. —Mollie Cronin

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Entertainment Listings

SUBMITTED

Music You’re here!

Events P18 On Stage P18 Visual Arts P19

› ENTERTAINMENT AND EVENTS PICKS WRITTEN AND COMPILED BY MORGAN MULLIN

Send event listings to listings@thecoast.ca. Print deadline Thursday, 5pm SURE THINGS

Music

Thursday April 18

Friday April 19

Saturday April 20

Big Ticket Shows

Big Ticket Shows

Big Ticket Shows

PAUL LAMB ALBUM RELEASE SHOW Lamb takes a break from his usual covers-filled matinee at The Lower Deck to deliver a stack of originals to not one but two sold-out crowds.

The Carleton, 1685 Argyle Street, $30, Apr 18-19. 9pm-12am

COLIN JAMES Fresh off album number 19, Colin James delivers a dose of bluesy tunes from the songbook that’s made him a contemporary of the likes of John Prine and John Hiatt. Rebecca Cohn Auditorium, 6101 University Avenue, $45-$65 KIP MOORE The “Dirt Road” crooner and verified “Tennessee Boy” arrives in Halifax for a honkeytonkin’ good time of a show at the Convention Centre, after crowds of fans were too numerous to occupy the originally planned venue at Casino Nova Scotia. Halifax Convention Centre, 1650 Argyle Street, $61, 7:30pm PAUL LAMB ALBUM RELEASE SHOW Lamb takes a break from his usual covers-filled matinee at The Lower Deck to deliver a stack of originals to not one but two sold-out crowds. The Carleton, 1685 Argyle Street, $30, Apr 18-19. 9pm-12am ROY WOODS The Brampton-based rapper and Drake protège (he’s signed on the Champagne Papi’s record label OVO Sound) plays to a sold-out crowd.

The Marquee, 2037 Gottingen Street, $45, 9pm

4/20 IN HALIFAX: DR. FRESCH W/CLODERDALE, TROY POWER, KITTYBASS, ASUR One of the city’s biggest celebrations of the first post-legalization 4/20 sees this big-time DJ—who boasts over 30 million plays on SoundCloud and chooses to describe his style as “future ghetto”—work the decks.

The Marquee, 2037 Gottingen Street, 10pm-2am

DJ + Dancing AUDIO THERAPY THURSDAYS Reflections, $7/$9, 11pm DJ DANCE PARTY Lower Deck, Clayton Park DJ IV W/DJ OKAY TK Vinyl Retro Dance Lounge HIP HOP KARAOKE W/DJ IV, DJ RS SMOOTH The Seahorse, $10, 10pm-2am NORTH END OLD SCHOOL PARTY Rail Birds Lounge, 9pm-2am OUTLANDISH THURSDAYS W/DJ MASTER Menz

Live Music BEN EDWARDS Timber Lounge, 7-10pm GLENN FRASER & JOYCE SAUNDERS Compass Distilling, 7:30-10:30pm THE GET DOWN PRESENTS: ALL TYPES OF NOISE Menz, 10pm-1am HALIFAX PIER Old Triangle, free, 8pm LANDING SOUND The Loose Cannon, free, 9pm-12am LEGENDARY HITS THROUGHOUT THE AGES W/THE SECOND CHANCES COMMUNITY BAND Dartmouth Players Theatre, $20, 7pm MANOUCHE DUO Stayner’s Wharf, $5, 8pm THE MELLOTONES Bearly’s, 10pm MUSEUM PIECES Cafe Lara NEWFANGLED: “OIKOS ECOS” See more on page 16.

Halifax Central Library, free, 7pm THE RESET FEAT. ROXY & THE UNDERGROUND SOUL SOUND, NATALIE LYNN, KIDS LOSING SLEEP, SARAH ELLEN MORRISON, WILLOW ST. STATION, WOLF CASTLE The Marquee, $5/$8, 10pm RUCKUS Parkside Pub, 9pm-1am SUPERFLUID W/CACTUS FLOWER, SAXSYNDRUM, MARZIRUCKUS Gus’ SIGNAL HILL Lower Deck, Halifax TRISTAN LEGG AND THE MAD DOGS Split Crow Pub TYLER KEY Le Bistro, free, 6-9pm For more listings, see thecoast.ca.

DJ + Dancing ALMIGHTY DJS BUNNY HOP DANCE Menz, 10pm-2am DJ DANCE PARTY Lower Deck, Clayton Park FETE-ISH HFX Jamaica Vibes, 10:30pm JASON HODGES AND MAN HEBERT W/ISAAC HAZE, DJ LIZZO The Seahorse, $10, 10pm-2am

Live Music ANALOG HEROES Sniggily Wiggily’s, $5, 9pm DAVE GOYETCHE Old Triangle, free, 5pm HALIFAX PIER Old Triangle, free, 8pm JESSIE BROWN W/CANYUN, NO FLYERS PLEASE Gus’, 10pm LEITH FLEMMING-SMITH Brightwood Brewery, 8-10pm MATINEE W/CRYSTAL & DARRIN Lower Deck, Halifax, 5:30-8:30pm THE NEGLIGENTS Bearly’s, 10pm NIHILIST W/DUMPSTER MUMMY, BEHOLD THE CONQUEROR, TRASH PUPPIES Oasis Pub, 10pm-1am SIGNAL HILL Lower Deck, Halifax TRISTAN LEGG AND THE MAD DOGS Split Crow Pub, free

DJ + Dancing DJ FROST AND XS 7 Red Stag Tavern, 10pm-1am THE JAM W/DJ LOUKAS STILLDRUNK, DK OKAY TK, DJ T-WOO The Seahorse, 10pm-2am PINEO & LOEB Pacifico, $5, 11pm-2am WANGLED TEB W/GOLD PUNKS, TJ WEBB, TERRAFORM Menz, 9pm-2am

Live Music 4/20 REEFER MADNESS FEAT. BLACK MOOR W/LIONSAULT, BURGERFRIESPOP, DREADFORT, 5 DAI SUSPENSION, HITMAN, ELECTRIC SPOONFUL, VOODOO SOMETIMES Gus’, 7pm ALYCIA PUTNAM Old Triangle, free, 5pm ANALOG HEROES Sniggily Wiggily’s, $5, 9pm BROOKLYN BLACKMORE SINGLE RELEASE SHOW W/SAMANTHA POWER, BRANDON DAVIS, FOGGY ROAD, CASEY MAY The Perfect Pour, 9pm-1am DANCE NIGHTS Newfoundland Social Club, $6, 8-11:30pm FOGGY ROAD The Carleton, 10pm-1:30am HALIFAX PIER Old Triangle, free, 8pm MATINEE W/PAUL & LAURA Lower Deck, Halifax, 5:30-8:30pm LISA MACDOUGALL Le Bistro, free, 7-10pm MICHELLE MOCK Bearly’s, 4:30-8:30pm RASTA GUMBO Stayner’s Wharf, $10, 9pm RIVER OF DIAMONDS ALBUM RELEASE W/STEWART LEGERE Read more on page 16.

The Bus Stop Theatre, $15, 7:30pm STEVE MARRINER Bearly’s, 10pm SIGNAL HILL Lower Deck, Halifax, 10pm TRISTAN LEGG AND THE MAD DOGS Split Crow Pub, free TYLER KEY The Fickle Frog Pub

JULIE DORION W/PRISM SHORES From artsy-oddball fun at Sappy Fest to grungey goodness in the ’90s band Eric’s Trip, Julie Dorion is Can-rock royalty that’s has been gracing us unworthy peasants with gifts for decades. Here, a small present— her presence—gets us through the long weekend with the tunes we need. Gus’, Sun Apr 21

Sure Thing

Sunday April 21

ROGER STONE Split Crow Pub, 8-11:30pm SHAMELESS Lower Deck, Halifax

OPEN DECKZ SUNDAYZ Menz, free, 10pm-2am

Tuesday April 23

Live Music

Big Ticket Shows

ANTHONY MCMULLIN AND JORDAN LEBLANC Split Crow Pub, 8-11:30pm DARYL NICHOL TRIO FEAT. KYLE TULLY, BRENDAN MELCHIN Coburg Social, 7-10pm JULIE DORION W/PRISM SHORES See photo. Gus’ OSTREA LAKE W/DEVARROW, MOE KABBARA The Bus Stop Theatre, $10, 7:30pm SIGNAL HILL SUNDAYS Lower Deck, Halifax THEO MACINTOSH Old Triangle, free, 7:30pm

JUST JACK Inner Space Concerts, the organization that throws classy, classical concerts in private homes, returns with yet another luxe offering for your eardrums: The first solo recital by flutist Jack Chen, rounded out with Mary Castello on piano, delivering works by Clarke, Dutilleux, Messiaen, Poulenc and more. Tickets are by donation and can be yours (along with venue info) by RSVPing at innerspaceconcerts.ca. PWYC, 7:30pm

DJ + Dancing

Monday April 22 Big Ticket Shows DJ Q-BERT & THE FRESH CREW W/DJ IV, CESS, SHAY PITTS, MARZ THAT ADVOCATE, CHELL, MAC MALICIOUS DJ Q-Bert has been spinnin’ wax since the ’90s and is considered to be one of the best record-scratchers around. The San Francisco Chronicle lays out how he’s influenced your favourite rappers and beatmakers, offering: “Q-Bert had earned a reputation for putting the jockey into ‘disc jockey,’ manipulating records in a rhythmic way that spun a path for talented DJs to finally be seen as musicians.

With a scratching style that was more percussive than, say, the average rock drummer.” Get an earful of hip hop history as he shares the stage with some of the city’s best DJs and MCs. Pro tip?

Don’t sleep on the fire verses of opener Shay Pitts. Reflections, 5187 Salter Street, $20, 10pm

Live Music MORGAN DAVIS Bearly’s, PWYC, 8pm ONE MAN SHOW Halifax Alehouse

Live Music GARRETT MASON Bearly’s, PWYC, 8:30pm OCEAN CHARTER OF VALUES W/ALASKA, ANDREA CORMIER, GLAZEY Radstorm, $8/PWYC, 8pm-12am SHAMELESS Lower Deck, Halifax

Wednesday April 24 Big Ticket Shows MADISON VIOLET The folk-pop duo known for its rich harmonies and sun-streaked sound returns to The Carleton for two sold-out sets.

The Carleton, 1685 Argyle Street, $25/$30, Apr 24-25, 8-11pm

Live Music ACOUSTIC WEDNESDAYS Gahan House, 8pm COUNTRY NIGHT W/WILLIE STRATTON Sniggily Wiggily’s, free, 10pm EMILY STUART Le Bistro, free, 6-9pm JAZZ MANOUCHE-SWING W/ DONALD MACLENNAN & WILLEM PAYNTER Obladee, free, 8-11pm JAZZ NIGHT W/THE EVAN MAHANEY TRIO The Watch That Ends the Night, 7-10pm

ROBBIE G Gus’ SHAMELESS Lower Deck, Halifax TRISTAN LEGG Old Triangle

upcoming concerts Metric w/July Talk, Murray A. Lightburn Scotiabank Centre, May 2, $41-$66 Tim Baker w/Charlotte Cornfield St. Matthew’s United Church, May 3-May 4, $40/$45 One Night with Conway: The music of Conway Twitty fet. Gil Grand Enfield Legion Hall, May 11, $30 Snotty Nose Rez Kids Reflections, May 24, $15 Hawksley Workman St. Matthew’s United Church, May 29, $44 OBEY Convention Various venues, May 30-Jun 2 ’90s house party feat. Vanilla Ice, Rob Base, All-4-One and friends Rath Eastlink Community Centre, Truro, Jun 1, $72.71-$118.71 Garrison Brewing’s Backlot Bash feat. Broken Social Scene, Dave Sampson, Natalie Lynn Cunard Event Centre, Jun 15, $43.75 Lonestar Rebecca Cohn Auditorium, Jun 17, $71.50-$76.50 Matt Andersen and The Mellotones w/Bobby Bazini Rebecca Cohn Auditorium, Jun 22, $50/$55 Def Leppard Scotiabank Centre, Jul 12, $90-$129 Dean Brody and Dallas Smith w/Chad Brownlee, Mackenzie Porter Scotiabank Centre, Sep 26, $48-$108 Thrush Hermit The Marquee, Sep 27-Sep 28, $44 Genius Child: Portia White at Town Hall feat. Harolyn Blackwell St. George’s Round Church, Nov 9, $37.50 Roger Hodgson Casino Nova Scotia, Nov 16-Nov 18, $100

The Coast • APRIL 18 – APRIL 24, 2019 • 17

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Events PHOTO LEIF NORMAN

Tuesday April 23 2019 EARTH DAY PUBLIC LECTURE: CLIMATE CHANGE IN A WORLD OF INEQUITY Tony Charles gives this talk.

The Atrium, Saint Mary’s University, 923 Robie Street, 7:30pm, free THE BIG SING The Big Sing is a biweekly, drop-in singing event. This week, the group tackles “Halo” by Beyoncé.

Gus’, 2605 Agricola Street, Every other Tuesday, 7-9pm, $5 FRENCH FILM RENDEZ-VOUS: PARVANA AND PIEDS NUS DANS L’AUBE A double bill of French flicks with English subtitles to celebrate National Canadian Film Day, this showing kicks off with Parvana, a 2017 animated movie that’s a glimpse into a girl’s childhood in Afghanistan. At 8pm, it’s Pieds Nus Dans L’Aube, the 1927-set tale of a boy’s last summer before college. Each film is $8.

Museum of Natural History, 1747 Summer Street, 6pm & 8pm HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS PLAYOFF GAMES ROUND THREE VS. DRUMMONDVILLE VOLTIGEURS Can the moose keep hope alive as the playoffs’ end draws ever-closer? Scotiabank Centre, 5284 Duke Street, Apr 23-24, 7pm

Sure Thing

NEW MAGIC VALLEY FUN TOWN It’s your last weekend to catch this Neptune offering, which picks up where an abandoned friendship left off over two decades ago, exploring what we remember and what we try to forget. If you’ve ever wished that there was a testosterone equivalent to the friendship meditations Judy Blume is known for, this play might be it.

Neptune Theatre, 1593 Argyle Street, Apr 18-20, 7:30pm, Apr 21, 2pm, $30-$66

Thursday April 18 FAT BABES CLOTHING SWAP Calling all plus-sized QTs looking to get their wardrobes fresh for spring: The Bounty, AKA the curated thrift pop-up catering to those size large and above, is hosting a clothing swap. Drop off duds you’re done with, mine for new-to-you treasures or just roll in the body-positive vibes of it all. South House, 1443 Seymour Street, 5:30-8:30pm MATTHEW WALSH’S BOOK LAUNCH Walsh celebrates the release of their debut book of poetry, a confessional, storytelling tome that publishers say “meanders through their childhood in rural Nova Scotia”—fitting its title, These are not the potatoes of my youth with this reading-and-signing sesh. Lucky Penny Coffee Co., 6440 Quinpool Road, 7-9pm

Friday April 19 SOMEONE: A QUEER STORYTELLING EVENT A group of local artists—including Stewart Legere, Meg Hubley, Michael Lake and more—share tales of their favourite queer role models.

An open mic portion and a dance party cap off the night. The Bus Stop Theatre, 2203 Gottingen Street, 7:30pm, PWYC

For more listings see thecoast.ca.

18 • APRIL 18 – APRIL 24, 2019 •

18-26.47.Listings.Events.indd 1

t Delamon See Mike ine at the co-headl stival’s omedy Fe Ha!ifax C ow) and el (b la ga opening oast week’s C peep next tings. lis st fe for more

SPRING GEEQUINOX The surest sign that spring has sprung? The descent of cosplay, comics, video games and all things nerdy at the Spring Geequinox.

Online tickets have sold out, so Big Bang Theory wannabes better show up at the doors early to snap up the few tix that remain. Halifax Forum, 2901 Windsor Street, Fri Apr 19, 4-8pm; Sat Apr 20, 11am-7pm; Sun Apr 21, 10am-4pm, $10/$15

Saturday April 20 BREAKFAST WITH THE BUNNY Hop to the HSC’s swank food court (AKA The Terrace) for this syrup-soaked pancake brekky complete with crafts, treats and a meet-and-greet with ol’ big ears himself.

Halifax Shopping Centre, 7001 Mumford Road, 9-10:30am NOVA SCOTIA PHYSIQUE CHAMPIONSHIPS See muscle-y peeps flex and pose at this competition. Note that the evening session is for those 19 and older.

Casino Nova Scotia, Schooner Room, 1983 Upper Water Street, 9:30am & 6:30pm, $25-$60 SPRING GEEQUINOX The surest sign that spring has sprung? The descent of cosplay, comics, video games and all things nerdy at the Spring Geequinox. Online tickets have sold out, so Big Bang Theory wannabes better show up at the doors early to snap up the few tix that remain. Halifax Forum, 2901 Windsor Street, Fri Apr 19, 4-8pm; Sat Apr 20, 11am-7pm; Sun Apr 21, 10am-4pm, $10/$15

Wednesday April 24 Sunday April 21 SPRING GEEQUINOX The surest sign that spring has sprung? The descent of cosplay, comics, video games and all things nerdy at the Spring Geequinox.

Online tickets have sold out, so Big Bang Theory wannabes better show up at the doors early to snap up the few tix that remain. Halifax Forum, 2901 Windsor Street, Fri Apr 19, 4-8pm; Sat Apr 20, 11am-7pm; Sun Apr 21, 10am-4pm, $10/$15

Monday April 22 CONSTELLATE: IN OUR NATURE The live storytelling night returns to celebrate Earth Day with true tales that organizers say “explore ourselves and our place in the world.” Good Robot Brewing Co., 2736 Robie Street, 8-10pm DISCOVERY DAYS: EARTH DAY The Discovery Centre is the spot to be this Earth Day, with themed fun like solar and wind energy demos, take-home seed bombs and hands-on activities about reducing plastic and food waste.

Discovery Centre, 1215 Lower Water Street, 10am-5pm LIFE DRAWING SESSION A weekly sketching sesh with artists of all levels.

Bring your own materials. Menz, 2182 Gottingen Street, 6-8pm, $5

2019 STARFISH STUDENT ART AWARDS The brightest stars in NSCAD’s sky are awarded for their brilliance at this annual evening of drama, glamour and celebration. Peep the works of 10 finalists over hors d’oeuvres before seeing the prize winner revealed.

NSCAD Port Campus, 1107 Marginal Road, 7pm, $25/$50 CHEFS FOR UNICEF WATER FOR LIFE GALA Some of the province’s top chefs gather at the Convention Centre to deliver theme-heavy tasting menus while raising funds for UNICEF’s clean water initiatives. Call 800-819-0889 ext. 8204 for tix. Halifax Convention Centre, 1650 Argyle Street,$300 EMERGING LENS FILM FESTIVAL OPENING GALA The film fest kicks off its 10th year of highlighting and honouring diverse filmmakers, playwrights and artists with a screening of Cory Bowles’ critically beloved flick Black Cop—which follows the daily struggles of a Black member on the force (“Your community doesn’t trust you, your colleagues are wary of you, and everyone assumes you hate NWA,” the synopsis explains). Secure your (free!) seat by searching the Emerging List Film Festival on Eventbrite.

Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21, 1055 Marginal Road, 6:30-9:30pm HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS PLAYOFF GAMES ROUND THREE VS. DRUMMONDVILLE VOLTIGEURS Scotiabank Centre, 5284 Duke Street, Apr 23-24, 7pm ROBIESCOPE SCREENS THE CABLE GUY The Robie Street suds spot screens this 1996 cult classic that sees Jim Carrey and Matthew Broderick riffing together as a socially clueless cable guy botches his attempt to befriend a cool designer. Good Robot Brewing Co., 2736 Robie Street, 7pm, free

ON STAGE

Theatre THE COLOR PURPLE The exciting hyphenate Kimberley Rampersad, who spent last summer at the Shaw Festival, directs this regional premiere of the musical that has won three Tonys between its two Broadway productions.

Neptune Theatre, 1593 Argyle Street, To Jun 2 JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR Citadel High delivers a rendition of the famed ’70s rock opera that traces the last days on earth of the carpenter from Nazareth.

Spatz Theatre, 1855 Trollope Street, To Apr 18, 7:30pm; Sat Apr 20, 2 and 7:30pm, $10-$18 NEW MAGIC VALLEY FUN TOWN See photo, left.

Neptune Theatre, 1593 Argyle Street, Apr 18-20, 7:30pm, Apr 21, 2pm, $30-$66

Comedy COMEDY AT THE OASIS WITH CHANEL FREIRE Chanel Freire host this open mic that aims to grow local comedy, one laugh at a time.

Oasis Pub & Eatery, 5661 Spring Garden Road, Tuesdays, 8:30pm COMEDY HOUR An hour packed with laughs featuring different funny folks each week.

Bearly’s, 1269 Barrington Street, Wednesdays, 8:30pm GERRY DEE Take your dad to see his favourite comic—and be prepared to bust a gut yourself as Dee does his thing.

Rebecca Cohn Auditorium, 6101 University Avenue, Tue Apr 23, 7pm, $49.50-$79.50 HA!IFAX COMEDY FEST OPENING GALA The annual celebration of all things funny kicks things off with a showcase of comedians from across the continent (including the alwayshilarious Debra DiGiovanni and Mike Delamont, above) at this taped-for-TV laugh session.

Casino Nova Scotia, Schooner, Room 1983 Upper Water Street, Wed Apr 24, 7:30pm, $60 HELLO CITY PRESENTS: THE HELLO BABY SHOW The city’s super-buzzy improv group (and the cover stars of this week’s Coast) deliver a new set of on-the-fly scenes based on a live monologue by Chris Gallant, a professional speaker and spoken word artist. Read more on page 6.

The Bus Stop Theatre, 2203 Gottingen Street, Tue Apr 23, 7:30pm, $5-$20 MEGACOMEDYMONDAYS MegaComedy can only mean mega laughs and a night of comedians spinning tales of magic and adventure. Or, as the organizers describe it, “the third worst place to find the best laughs in town.”

Gus’ Pub, 2605 Agricola Street, Mondays, 8pm, PWYC THE OPEN SMOKE COMEDY SHOW The Amsterdam-inspired social club invites you to bring some buds and get the giggles as Rick McGray hosts this comedy night that’s free for High Life members.

High Life Social Club, 5982 Spring Garden Road, Thursdays, 9-10:30pm, $8

Submit events to listings@thecoast.ca or upload them online at thecoast.ca.

Deadline Thursdays at 5pm.

The Coast

2019-04-17 4:02 PM

Visual Arts Teiakwanahstahsontéhrha’ | We Extend the Rafters Billed as a children’s exhibit but offering a lesson on Mohawk culture for all ages, artist Skawennati’s MSVU installation is an “Indigenous virtual environment addressing history, the future and change.” The skeleton of a traditional long house fills the space, anchored at one end with a screening of “a futuristic saga set in 3025, yet firmly rooted in the ancestral Haudenosaunee confederation story,” the gallery says. To May 5

SYDNEY BLUM

Sure Thing

Icarus-Colour-Space Inspired by the legend of Icarus and his ill-fated attempt to fly closer to the sun, sculptor Sydney Blum debuts this collection of wing-shaped pieces that suggest a “continuum of time and space.”

The show also acts as Blum’s first showing in Halifax.

Studio 21, To May 1

Galleries 14 BELLS FINE ART GALLERY Tue-Fri 10am-6pm, Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 12-4pm, 5523 Young Street Corners & Curves Nicole Power and Zehava Power deliver this set of scenes that hone in on the magical in the everyday—think golden hour lighting or the patterns criss-crossed telephone wires create. To Apr 21

Craig, highlighting the coal, lumber and steel industries in the rural Nova Scotia and their impact on the local environment.

To Apr 28 Transforming Body, Mind and Stone Each of the five carved works at this mini-retrospective shines a light on a segment of Luigi Costanzo’s decades-long career—from his early days to the realization that arthritis in his hands might take his creative outlet away. To Apr 28

ART 1274 HOLLIS Daily 10am6pm, 1274 Hollis Street Park Rhonda Barrett explores issues surrounding land use and urban planning as she displays a collection of up-cyled collage works contrasting public parks and public parking lots. To Apr 30

THE DART GALLERY Tue–Fri 11am-6pm, Sat 11am-4pm, Sun 10am-2pm, 127A Portland Street, Dartmouth A Little Piece of Heaven: My Nova Scotia Wendy Bissett Beaver delivers drawings of familiar views with crisp outlines. To May 5

ART GALLERY OF NOVA SCOTIA Tue-Sun 10am-5pm, Thu 10am9pm, 1723 Hollis Street Halifax Harbour 1918 The Art Gallery of Nova Scotia’s latest memorial of the Halifax Explosion sees the city’s waterfront shown “through the eyes of artists Arthur Lismer and Harold Gilman, following one of the most searing events in Canadian history,” the gallery explains. To Sep 2 A Sense of Site The practices of 12 Canadian artists—including Rebecca Belmore, Ursula Johnson and Jin-me Yoon—are explored at this exhibit. To May 12

GALLERY NINETEEN NINETEEN Mon-Fri 9am-6pm, Sat 9am-5pm, 6025 Stanley Street Violet Rosengarten’s Spring Collection: Flowers and Foliage, Islands, Lakes and Sea Violet Rosengarten’s spring collection is described by the gallery as “radiant plein air paintings with vibrant colours and interesting textures.”

To Apr 26

CHASE GALLERY Mon-Fri 8:30am4:30pm, Wed 8:30am-8:30pm, Sat 9am-5pm, 6016 University Avenue A Walk in the Woods Hallie Watson celebrates the arrival of warmer temperatures with large paintings and oil pastels focusing on forest scenes. To Apr 30 CORRIDOR GALLERY Mon-Fri 9:30am–5pm, 1113 Marginal Road You are innocent when you dream Gary Castle returns to the Corridor Gallery, exploring the nature of dreams with manipulated photographs that the gallery says “bring the fragments of dreams into focus.” To Apr 29 CRAIG GALLERY Tue-Fri 12-5:30pm, Sat 9am-5pm, Sun 11am-3pm, Alderney Landing, 2 Ochterloney Street, Dartmouth Effluents Curtis Botham’s series of large-scale charcoal works—which the artist created during a residency in New Glasgow and carry the sub-title Drawings of Industrial Nova Scotia—are exhibited at the

HERMES Sat-Sun 12-6pm, 5682 North Street Geometric Perfection as Universal Matrix Reni Gower wants you to be here, now, in this place—and is giving your eyeballs the sharp-edged work to make it happen. Inspired by sacred geometry, these patterns “recognize geometric perfection as the matrix of humanity,” the gallery explains. To Apr 28 MARY E. BLACK GALLERY Tue-Fri 9am-5pm, Sat-Sun 11am4pm, 1061 Marginal Road Contemporary Camouflage Rebecca Hannon plays with concepts around concealing and revealing as she decks out the Mary E. Black gallery in dazzle camouflage that contrasts against her sharp, fineart jewellery. Read more on page 16. To Apr 28 MOUNT SAINT VINCENT UNIVERSITY ART GALLERY Tue-Fri 10am-4pm, Sat-Sun 124pm, 166 Bedford Highway James R Shirley: Landscapes from the Soul A collection of monotypes and pinhole photographs by the iconic New York artist that relocated to Cape Breton in the 1970s and shares the same ragged energy as Robert Frank. To May 19

NOVA SCOTIA CENTRE FOR CRAFT AND DESIGN 1096 Marginal Road Craft LAIR: Gillian MaradynJowsey The Centre’s latest LAIR (that’s Local Artist In Residence), Gillian Maradyn-Jowsey, is a designer and ceramic artist. Her work is “invigorated by meaningful creative exchange and collaboration,” and she crafts functional, sculptural pieces made for everyday living in an art-filled life.

To Apr 28 SAINT MARY’S UNIVERSITY ART GALLERY Loyola Building, 5865 Gorsebrook Avenue BIGsmall A smattering of works from the gallery’s permanent collection, this showcase contrasts pieces based on subject matter, composition and, yup, size.

To May 19 STUDIO 21 Tue-Fri 11am-6pm, Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 12-5pm, 5431 Doyle Street DEER A study of the space where the natural and digital realms meet, Alex Livingston’s deer paintings were fuelled by research of natural history dioramas.

To May 1 Icarus-Colour-Space See photo. To May 1 TEICHERT GALLERY Sun-Mon 12-5pm, Tue-Sat 10am5pm, 1723 Hollis Street Ocean, River, Stream An aquaticfeeling show by Jeremy Vaughan.

To Apr 30 VIEWPOINT GALLERY Wed-Sun 12-5pm, 1459 Brenton Street Ten Years of Bat Shit Crazy Steve Richard takes over the photography gallery with a self-selected greatest hits of sorts. To Apr 28

Museums CANADIAN MUSEUM OF IMMIGRATION AT PIER 21 1055 Marginal Road Family Bonds & Belonging An exploration and meditation on what family means, this exhibition promises to “celebrate Canadian identity by exploring families and family history, linking past to present and province to nation.” To Nov 3 MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY 1747 Summer Street Dinosaurs Unearthed Billed as “an immersive exhibition that features dynamic scenes of life-size, life-like animatronic dinosaurs, full-scale skeletons and fossils from around the world,” this show makes all your Jurassic dreams come true. To Apr 28

Submit events to listings@thecoast.ca.

The Coast • APRIL 18 – APRIL 24, 2019 • 19

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2019-04-17 4:03 PM

LOVE THE WAY WE BITCH / LOVE 2309 Maynard Street, Halifax, NS B3K 3T8 Phone: 902-422-6278, Fax: 902-425-0013 EDITORIAL Editor Kyle Shaw (editor@thecoast.ca) Arts Editor & Copy Chief Tara Thorne (arts@thecoast.ca) Deputy Editor Allison Saunders (allisons@thecoast.ca) Listings Editor Morgan Mullin (listings@thecoast.ca) Acting City Editor Caora McKenna (copychief@thecoast.ca) Cannabis Affairs Editor Ashley Corbett (weedtalk@thecoast.ca) Senior Features Writer Stephen Kimber (stephenk@thecoast.ca) Contributing Writers Chris Benjamin, Jane Kansas, Carsten Knox, Brennan McCracken Contributing Editors Melissa Buote, Lezlie Lowe, Stephanie Johns Contributing Photographers Meghan Tansey Whitton, Lenny Mullins, Alexa Cude, Riley Smith Contributing Illustrators Paul Hammond, Tim Carpenter, Mollie Cronin, Jordyn Bochon Housing Reporter Sandra C. Hannebohm Interns Andrew Bethune, Justin Gollop, Aisha Goyette, Alexandra Hernandez, Kaila Jefferd-Moore

ACTIVE MARKETING PROFESSIONALS Director of Sales and Marketing Christa Harrie (christah@thecoast.ca) Account Executive Kate Spurr (kate@thecoast.ca) Account Executive Haley Clarke (haley@thecoast.ca) Sales Assistant Annaka Gale

PRODUCTION & ONLINE Production Manager Pam Nicoll (pamn@thecoast.ca) Production Designers Jess Hartjes, Akira Arruda Production Intern Candace Boyle Imaging Consultant Kevin Cunningham

❤ Notch on the bedpost You were exactly what I needed.

We met through a dating app.

Hung out for an hour, had sex and that was that.

You were lovely.

Thank you.

—XO opinion: ! Unpopular The south end is disgusting Once a respected neighbourhood, Halifax’s south end has turned into a slum yard of half-empty takeout containers and dog shit. The garbage disposal leaves much to be desired, as most of the bags are rejected and left to feed a family of pigeons. Populated by students and landlords, the south end is anything but historical. —Taking A Stroll in a Hazmat Suit are a no-good, awful, man ! You But this bitch is for myself, because I still love you. I will never, ever, say it, but I do. —Dumb Bitch

THE COMIC

OPERATIONS Office Manager Audra McKenna (audram@thecoast.ca) Distribution Team David MacPhee, Greg Fletcher, Yvonne Cromwell Front Desk Enforcer Kyla Derry (kylad@thecoast.ca) Publisher Christine Oreskovich (christineo@thecoast.ca)

The Coast is Halifax’s weekly newspaper, published every Thursday

by Coast Publishing Limited. The Coast’s goal is to be provocative, entertaining and truthful. Coast Publishing Limited takes absolutely no responsibility for long NSLC lines ahead of the long weekend. Relax, it’s two days. The Coast is printed locally on recycled stock with 23,000 copies distributed throughout Halifax, Dartmouth and Bedford. Mailed under Canada Post Publications Mail Agreement No. 40027554.

Return undeliverable addresses to the Distribution Department, 2309 Maynard Street, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3K 3T8 (email distribution@ thecoast.ca). Staff and management of The Coast neither advocate nor encourage the use of products or services advertised herein for illegal purposes. All rights reserved. © 2019 Independent and locally owned, founded in 1993.

Obvious ! Captain So, I’m searching medical web sites for my symptoms to try to ease my worries. Lots of people have written in to share their opinions and symptoms. But, there is always the majority of annoying people who have to repeat the obvious: “Go see your doctor.” Fuck off, will you? Does every second person really need to say this? We all know we should go see our doctor—duh! We most likely will. But for now, we want to look some shit up and see if it’s something we should freak out about or if it’s something we can deal with on our own.

People don’t need you to tell us to

see the doctor. The waiting rooms are all full. Maybe we don’t want to waste half the day on every whim?

We are grown adults. Every second comment on these sites is a broken record. “Go see your doctor!” “Go see your doctor!” “Go see your doctor!” God, you people are fucking annoying as hell. Either contribute to the conversation in a helpful way or fuck off with your two-cent drivel.

—Guess I’ll Go To The Doctor Fuck rape culture and abuse apologists in Halifax Women deserve better.

—Angry Femme

!

❤ Cuddles Halifax

There is something deeply powerful and profound about feeling seen, heard and valued by another.

Our understanding regarding the importance of physical touch and social connection is greater than ever—and so is the need.

—Cuddles Halifax

❤ Humanity It took me awhile to get around to this, but I want to say thank you.

Thank you to all the kind people

!

❤

who stopped when my car broke down on the corner of Woodlawn Road and Mount Edward Road in Dartmouth a few weeks ago.

Although I had it under control and was just waiting for a tow truck, at least two strangers pulled over to make sure I was OK. I appreciate it.

It just shows that humanity does still exist, between all the stares and rude looks of passers-by. Thank you and I hope your days all go well.

—Stranded With A Missing Tire School Thanks for flooding the world with the lowest common denominator and for training them to claim they are artists. Also, fuck this city.

—GTFO Of The Way

!

What are we bingeeating this week?

Rabbit-shaped chocolate Bar-shaped chocolate Smokers, vapers, everywhere… ...both in downtown Halifax and Dartmouth. It’s quite obvious by now that the folks in charge have no intention of enforcing the new smoking ban. By making the ban complaint-driven only (noxious phrase!), the people at the top are offloading their responsibilities onto the ordinary citizen: The one whose taxes pay their salaries. This is trickle-down neoliberalism to the municipal level that is appearing in cities across Canada. Other examples are the normalization of food banks and emergency homeless shelters. I say first things first: We need not increased taxation but existing monies spent more wisely on affordable and accessible housing and food, educational resources for kids and teachers and a health care delivery overhaul. We do not need a football stadium!

—Dartmouth Dweller

!

More bitching Go online to post your rant at thecoast.ca/bitch

20 • APRIL 18 – APRIL 24, 2019 •

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The Coast

2019-04-17 4:37 PM

Free Will Astrology

Harness your power, Virgo, says ROB BREZSNY Taurus

(Apr 20-May 20)

The beat generation of American poets arose in the late 1940s as a rebellion against materialistic mainstream culture and academic poetry.

It embraced sexual liberation, eastern spirituality, ecological awareness, political activism and psychedelic drugs. One of its members, Jack Kerouac, tweaked and ennobled the word “beat” to serve as the code name for their movement. In its old colloquial usage, “beat” meant tired or exhausted. But Kerouac re-consecrated it to mean “upbeat” and “beatific,” borrowing from the Italian word beato.

I bring this to your attention because you’re on the verge of a similar transition: From the old meaning of “beat” to the new.

This week’s birthdays: Danielle Boudreau, Andrew Mitton, Jan Olson, Julia Weir bday@thecoast.ca

Gemini

(May 21-Jun 20)

“Scattered through the ordinary world, there are books and artifacts and perhaps people who are like doorways into impossible realms, of impossible and contradictory truth.” Argentinian author Jorge Luis Borges said that, and now I’m passing it on to you—just in time for your entrance into a phase when such doorways will be far more available than usual. I hope you will use Borges’ counsel as a reminder to be alert for everyday situations and normal people that could lead you to intriguing experiences and extraordinary revelations and lifechanging blessings.

Cancer

(Jun 21-Jul 22)

The Free Will Astrology Committee To Boldly Promote Cancerian Success is glad to see that you’re not politely waiting for opportunities to come to you. Rather, you’re tracking them down and proactively wrangling them into a form that’s workable for your needs. You seem to have realized that what you had assumed was your fair share isn’t actually fair; that you want and deserve more. Although you’re not being mean and manipulative, neither are you being overly nice and amenable; you’re pushing harder to do things your way. I approve! And I endorse your efforts to take it even further.

Leo

(Jul 23-Aug 22)

Many experts who have studied the art and science of running fast believe that it’s best if a runner’s legs are symmetrical and identical in their mechanics. But that theory is not supported by the success of champion sprinter Usain Bolt. Because he has suffered from scoliosis, his left leg is a half-inch longer than his right. With each stride, his left leg stays on the track longer than his right, and his right hits the track with more force. Some scientists

speculate that this unevenness not only doesn’t slow him down, but may in fact enhance his speed. In accordance with current astrological variables, I suspect you will be able to thrive on your asymmetry in the coming weeks, just as your fellow Leo Usain Bolt does.

Virgo

(Aug 23-Sep 22)

Virgo adventurer Jason Lewis travelled around the world using transportation powered solely by his own body. He walked, bicycled, skated, rowed, pedalled and swam more than 46,000 miles. I propose we make him your role model for the next four weeks. You’re primed to accomplish gradual breakthroughs through the use of simple, persistent, incremental actions.

Harnessing the power of your physical vitality will be an important factor in your success.

Libra

(Sep 23-Oct 22)

Curcumin is a chemical found in the plant turmeric. When ingested by humans, it may diminish inflammation, lower the risk of diabetes, support cardiovascular health and treat digestive disorders. But there’s a problem: The body is inefficient in absorbing and using curcumin—unless it’s ingested along with piperine, a chemical in black pepper. Then it’s far more available. What would be the metaphorical equivalent to curcumin in your life? An influence that could be good for you, but that would be even better if you synergized it with a certain additional influence? And what would be the metaphorical equivalent of that additional influence? Now is a good time to investigate these questions.

Scorpio

(Oct 23-Nov 21)

“I have the usual capacity for wanting what may not even exist,” wrote poet Galway Kinnell. How abut you, Scorpio? Do you, too, have an uncanny ability to long for hypothetical, invisible, mythical, and illusory things? If so, I will ask you to downplay that amazing power of yours for a while. It’s crucial for your future development that you focus on yearning for actual experiences, real people and substantive possibilities. Please understand: I’m not suggesting you’re bad or wrong for having those seemingly impossible desires. I’m simply saying that for now you will thrive on being attracted to things that are genuinely available.

Sagittarius

(Nov 22-Dec 21)

“Sometimes I have kept my feelings to myself, because I could find no language to describe them in,” wrote Sagittarian novelist Jane Austen. I’m guessing you’ve had that experience—maybe more than usual, of late. But I suspect you’ll soon be finding ways to express those embryonic feelings. Congrats in advance! You’ll discover secrets you’ve been concealing from yourself.

You’ll receive missing information whose absence has made it hard to understand the whole story. Your unconscious mind will reveal the rest of what it has thus far merely been hinting at.

Capricorn

(Dec 22-Jan 19)

All over the world, rivers and lakes are drying up. Sources of water are shrinking. Droughts are becoming more common and prolonged. Why? Mostly because of climate change.

The good news is that lots of people are responding to the crisis with alacrity. Among them is an engineer in India named Ramveer Tanwar.

Since 2014, he has organized efforts leading to the rejuvenation of 12 dead lakes and ponds. I propose we make him your role model for the coming weeks. I hope he will inspire you to engage in idealistic pursuits that benefit other people. And I hope you’ll be motivated to foster fluidity and flow and wetness everywhere you go. The astrological time is ripe for such activities.

Aquarius

(Jan 20-Feb 18)

A blogger named Caramelizee offered her definition of elegance: “being proud of both your feminine and masculine qualities; seeing life as a non-ending university and learning everything you can; caring for yourself with tender precision; respecting and taking advantage of silences; tuning in to your emotions without being oversensitive; owning your personal space and being generous enough to allow other people to own their personal space.”

This definition of elegance will be especially apropos and useful for you Aquarians in the coming weeks.

Pisces

(Feb 19-Mar 20)

You Pisceans have been summoning heroic levels of creative intensity.

You’ve been working extra-hard and extra-smart. But it seems that you haven’t been fully recognized or appreciated for your efforts. I’m sorry about that. Please don’t let it discourage you from continuing to express great integrity and authenticity. Keep pushing for your noble cause and offering your best gifts. I’m proud of you! And although you may not yet have reaped all the benefits you will ultimately sow, three months from now I bet you’ll be pleased you pushed so hard to be such a righteous servant of the greater good.

Aries

(Mar 21-Apr 19)

French writer Simone de Beauvoir sent a letter to her lover, Aries author Nelson Algren. She wrote, “I like so much the way you are so greedy about life and yet so quiet, your eager greediness and your patience and your way of not asking much of life and yet taking much because you are so human and alive that you find much in everything.” I’d love to see you embody that state in the coming weeks, Aries. In my astrological opinion, you have a mandate to be both utterly relaxed and totally thrilled; both satisfied with what life brings you and skillfully avid to extract the most out of it; both at peace with what you already have and primed to grab for much more. a

Go to freewillastrology.com for Rob Brezsny’s EXPANDED WEEKLY AUDIO and DAILY TEXT MESSAGE HOROSCOPES. The audio horoscopes are also available at 877-873-4888.

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Savage Love SEX ADVICE FROM DAN SAVAGE mail@savagelove.net

Secrets and replies Am I a bad person for snooping through my girlfriend’s emails to confirm a suspicion? Plus: Do I tell my friend about my crush?

I first started dating my girlfriend, Q When I asked her about past boyfriends and she

said she hadn’t met the right guy yet. After dating for nine years, I found out about a past boyfriend and looked through her emails.

I found out she dated her married boss for three years.

She broke up with me for looking and for judging her. I feel like she lied, and she thinks it was none of my business. We’ve been broken up for five months. She’s reached out, but I can’t get over my anger or disgust that she was someone’s mistress. Am I a bad person?

—Still Angry And Disgusted

A

Yup. “Haven’t met the right guy yet” ≠ “Haven’t met any guys ever.”

Almost everyone has done something and/ or someone they regret doing—although it’s possible your ex-girlfriend doesn’t regret fucking her married boss for three years, SAAD, and it’s possible there’s no need for regret. Sometimes people have affairs for all the right reasons. Sometimes abandoning a spouse and/or breaking up a home with kids in it, AKA “doing the right thing” and divorcing, is the worse choice. Life is long and complicated, and it’s possible for a person to demonstrate loyalty and commitment with something other than their genitals. Sometimes people do what they must to stay married and stay sane, and their affair partners are doing good by being “bad.”

It’s also possible—and perhaps likelier—that your ex-girlfriend made an impulsive, shitty, selfish choice to fuck someone else’s husband.

It’s possible he’s a serial philanderer, a cheating piece of shit, and then, after fucking him that one time, your girlfriend felt pressured to keep fucking him and wound up having a years-long affair with her married boss. And then, when it was all over, she stuffed it down the memory hole because she wasn’t proud of it and wanted to forget it.

It’s also possible she didn’t tell you about this relationship when you asked because she intuited—correctly, as it turned out—that you are, in your own words, a bad person, the kind of guy who would punish his girlfriend for having a sexual history, for making her fair share of mistakes and for deciding to keep some things private. (Not secret, SAAD. Private.) In other words, she correctly intuited that you would punish her for being human.

Finding out about a past boyfriend doesn’t give you the right to invade your partner’s privacy and dig through their ancient emails.

Your girlfriend was right to break up with you for snooping through her emails and judging her so harshly. And she didn’t even lie to you, dude! Her boss clearly wasn’t “the right guy,” seeing as he was married and her boss, and the relationship ended before you two even first laid thighs on each other nine years ago.

And from where I’m sitting, SAAD, it looks like she still hasn’t met the right guy.

To be perfectly frank, I don’t want to help you get over your anger and disgust—not that you asked me to help you get past those feelings. It kind of sounds like you want your anger and disgust affirmed…and I’m going to go with that and affirm the shit out of those feelings: Stay angry! Stay disgusted! Not because those feeling are valid—they’re not—but

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because those feelings prevented you from taking your ex back when she reached out.

She may not know it yet, but she’s better off without you, SAAD, and here’s hoping you stay angry and disgusted long enough for her to realize it.

I’ve fallen in love with one of my good Q Sofriends.

I am in grad school, and we met

because we are in the same intensive program and we spend a lot of time together. When we first met, I had no interest in this person. And for the majority of the first year we worked together, that feeling maintained. However, over the past few months, I’ve found myself falling in love with this person. Their intelligence and beauty is simply intoxicating. I love our friendship, but at times it is a bit overwhelming being in their company because I’ve developed strong feelings for them. I don’t think they share these feelings. Or at least I haven’t been given any indication that they share the same feelings. How do I go about telling them? I’d like them to know this is how I feel, but I also don’t want to lay the weight of my feelings on them or ruin our friendship.

—Growing Romantic Attachment Disrupts Studies

A

You have two options: You can be honest with this person or you can be that unsettling “friend” with an ulterior motive.

Personally, GRADS, I think fessing up is better than shutting up—sublimated/unexpressed desire has a way of souring a friendship—but if your grad program is ending soon, I’d encourage you to wait. Most graduate programs are two years (some are less!), and you’ve been working together for more than a year.

So there should already be a light at the end of that intensive tunnel. In the meantime, savour the agony and “pray on it,” as Mike Pence would say. (Only you should swap out prayer for masturbation.) And, hey, you didn’t have feelings for them until recently. So who knows? They may develop feelings for you by the time your intensive grad program ends.

And, yes, telling a friend you have a crush on them is always a risk—it could ruin the friendship or make things awkward for awhile. Just be honest, direct and unambiguous (“I would like to date you,” not “I hope we can hang out sometime”), and explicitly invite your crush to say no if the answer is no. a

This week on the Lovecast: RADICALIZED! WITH CORY DOCTOROW Listen at thecoast .ca/savage

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