H A L I FA X ’ S W E E K L Y S TA G E
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VOLUME 26 NUMBER 46
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A P R I L 1 1 – A P R I L 1 7, 2 0 1 9
The Color Purple Neptune ends its season on a high note, snagging big-time director Kimberley Rampersad to helm the musical’s regional theatre premiere
International student or cash cow? THE CITY
Gottingen’s doughnut corridor is live FOOD + DRINK
Empty promises for disability housing THE CITY
Halifax’s strange stadium fixation OPINIONATED
Province sleeps on overdose crisis THE CITY
Tokyo Police Club gets revitalized ARTS
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Rampersad (left) with actors Tara Jackson and Karen Burthwright
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This week
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VOLUME 26, NUMBER 46 APRIL 11 - 17, 2019
On the cover: The Color Purple’s Kimberley Rampersad, Tara Jackson and Karen Burthwright were snapped by Alexa Cude at Neptune Theatre.
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OVERHEARD
Thinking of summering “Halifax: Big enough to in point pleasant park have a symphony, too small to have an affair.” @star67asshole. April 3. 2019
Issue #1,198
The City Opinionated Shoptalk Cover Story: Purple hearts Food+Drink
BEST OF TWITTER
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Reply all More NS film jobs An open letter to Geoff MacLellan, Nova Scotia’s minister of business, I am beyond frustrated with a number of your responses to questions posed by Tim Houston in the legislature this week. Your ill-informed commentary illuminates the fact that this provincial Liberal government has no real concept of how the film industry works, or how to invest in it to increase economic development in the sector and benefit the province’s coffers overall. For many years the Nova Scotia Film Tax Credit functioned well, and resulted in yearover-year increases in both locally grown productions and foreign service productions. Your admitted lack of interest in supporting an equity fund to help develop indigenous production—a key piece of the funding puzzle eliminated without consultation in 2015—tells me your understanding of indigenous productions is misinformed and faulty. If your government was truly committed to supporting home-grown Nova Scotia productions, you would announce your intention to rein-
Thanks to @thecoasthalifax and everyone for the amazing cannabis sessions this past Saturday! We loved hearing everyone participating in the conversation and asking questions! Hope you all had as much fun as we did. @CDNLUMBER
EMOJI SCOTIA
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The number of geese that are currently settling into their summer home at Sullivan’s Pond Hope For Wildlife dropped the majestic gang of waterfowl off on Monday, just in time for a dump of spring snow.
Me in my winter wardrobe vs me in my spring wardrobe
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
state an equity fund immediately. High levels of service production and the success of locally grown projects are symbiotic, and their growth and quality go hand in hand. Foreign service productions create the high numbers of well-paying jobs that allow professional film technicians and filmmakers to stay, work, invest and pay taxes in Nova Scotia. Without significant investment in foreign service production, many of these skilled individuals have to go elsewhere. When this happens, we all lose. Nova Scotia loses highly skilled and engaged members of the community, and local filmmakers lose access to the crucial experience, skills and abilities of seasoned professionals that they rely on to help tell their very own stories. Some of your comments lead me to think that you are under the false assumption that service productions will continue to come to Nova Scotia because of our incredible locations. This assertion is arrogant and wrong-headed While it is true that we have thousands of beautiful locations here in Nova Scotia, beauty alone is not enough to entice the type of productions we need here to make this industry the economic driver it can be. It
is at the very heart of what we do to use our skills and abilities to create worlds that once existed or that don’t exist yet. To think that there are shows that cannot be created without the locations that exist here is foolhardy. Even if there are productions that require some Nova Scotia locations to set the stage for their content, there is very little else to entice them to come here or stay here. In fact, there are many projects which have budgets in the tens or hundreds of millions to spend who come here periodically for a few days to shoot our beautiful vistas, and then take the rest of their money bucket to spend elsewhere. A child could identify that as a missed opportunity, while it appears your government cannot. In order for us to have a meaningful piece of the booming content creation industry, investment in a large-scale sound stage is crucial. You mentioned that in some jurisdictions sound stages were “unsustainable.” Where, Mr. Minister, would that be? Are you referring to Saskatchewan, where their purpose-built sound stage sits mostly idle? If so, I refer you to the complete gutting of the Saskatchewan Film Tax Credit nearly seven years ago.
In much the same way that indigenous and foreign service productions go hand in hand, so too does a production facility go hand in hand with a solid tax credit or incentive program. To feed the ever-growing demand for content and gain a portion of economic benefit other jurisdictions are gleefully enjoying, Nova Scotia needs a sound stage and a competitive tax credit, and we have neither. While I applaud the investment you’ve made in the downtown cultural hub, I must respectfully point out it is not an appropriate venue for any kind of large-scale film production. Touting it as such demonstrates the kind of flawed logic that has become a hallmark of this government, and seems like a sad attempt to pit those who work on small indigenous productions against those who make their living on larger service productions, to create a divide within the industry. News flash: We are the same people. We are all part of the same industry, the same community, the same family. We are all #NSFilmJobs and if your tactic is to segregate us from one another, to divide and conquer, I can say with confidence you will not succeed. —Jenny M. Reeves, president, IATSE local 849
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EDITED BY CAORA MCKENNA / SEND TIPS TO NEWS@THECOAST.CA
STUDENTS
Not your cash cow Dalhousie International students protest 11 percent tuition increase for new students. BY CAORA MCKENNA
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alhousie’s international students are fighting a yearly 11.1 percent tuition increase in the upcoming 2019-2020 budget. On Tuesday, the budget will go to a vote—if it passes, new Dalhousie international students will be paying up to 44 percent more for tuition in their fourth year than students pay now. “Regardless of the high tuition we pay,” says Tabasa Shimada, “we still receive the same education.” Shimada is a fourth-year political science student from Toyko, and the vice-president external of Dalhousie’s International Students Association. Shimada organized the rally that marched from Dal’s International Centre to deliver more than 1,000 signatures protesting the increase to administration last Tuesday. The increase “would add up to an astronomical amount of money,” says Shimada. “International students already pay twice as much.” The average international tuition fees for undergraduate science programs at Dalhousie are currently $18,177. And the posed increase would mean new international students would see a $8,000 to $10,000 increase over the next four years. University administration defends the increase on the grounds that Dalhousie tuition is still lower than comparable schools. (Western University, for example, charges international students $25,666-$28,743 a year.) Faiza Nauman, a third-year biology student from Saudi Arabia, chose Dalhousie in part for
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the ocean, and in part because she couldn’t afford the ocean on the west coast. “If I was one of the students coming in, in fall 2019 semester, I wouldn’t be able to afford this university,” she says. “And it’s so sad to think that I wouldn’t have been able to come.” Both Nauman and Shimada plan to stay and work in Nova Scotia when they graduate. All levels of government are are laying on the international student love lately. Immigration minister Ahmed Hussen says that helping international students stay is a key facet of Canada’s new multi-year immigration levels plan for 2018-2020. Lynette Macleod, spokesperson for the province, says via email the office of immigration “has made great progress in finding pathways for [international students] to stay and work.” The number of students immigrating through their programs has increased from 25 in 2014 to 440 in 2018. Mayor Mike Savage recently touted the success of his international student dinners at the Metropolis Immigration conference in March. Tuition hikes for Nova Scotia students are capped at three percent, but the province does not regulate international or post-graduate student tuition. Spokesperson Shannon Kerr says the primary focus of the provincial government is to maintain accessibility “for Nova Scotian students who study at Nova Scotian universities...as Nova Scotia taxpayers contribute to the funding of universities in the province.”
Faita Nauman couldn’t afford to be an incoming international student at Dalhousie. CAORA MCKENNA
For the province “to welcome students in order for them to stay, first international students have to come to Canada and Dalhousie’s proposal of this international student tuition increase is doing literally the opposite,” says Shimada. An 11.1 percent tuition increase and improving access for international student retention are “not two views that go together,” says Nauman. Students protesting the hike at the rally called out the administration for using international students as endless cash revenues that can help balance the budget, calling for better spending of international tuition to support international students. Shimada and other students went to three of four consultation sessions for the budget, pro-
testing the hike and asking for more supports from the university, like culturally informed counselling and mental-health supports. She says, “things like that get turned down because the International Centure”—where Shimada works—“does not have the capacity.” Dalhousie spokesperson Janet Bryson says the new budget also allocates $700,000 for supporting international students. If enrollment keeps its pace, there will be 500 new international students next year, which will put an extra $718,500 in Dal’s pocket for 20192020. But the following year, the proposed increase will bring in an extra $2.9 million, and even more in subsequent years. The budget will be voted on by the Dalhousie Board of Governors on April 16. a
The Coast
2019-04-10 4:31 PM
The City EMPATHY
Overtime on overdoses The province needs more time on overdose prevention sites. Matthew Bonn says they can’t wait any longer. BY CAORA MCKENNA
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Leblanc, MacLean and Lee speaking at the No More Warehousing: Holding Premier McNeil to His Promises press conference. SANDRA C. HANNEBOHM
HOUSING
The time is yesterday Government “super-far behind” on 10-year housing road map for people with disabilities. BY SANDRA C. HANNEBOHM
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ast Thursday disability advocacy groups presented a letter to the premier, calling on the provincial government to address systemic warehousing of people with disabilities. “The fact that there are thousands of people with disabilities still living in institutions shows that Nova Scotia is not doing enough to keep these promises and support our rights,” says Jeanne Whidden, member of People First Nova Scotia, a self-advocacy group of members who have been labelled with an intellectual disability. People First Nova Scotia and No More Warehousing: Nova Scotia Association for Inclusive Homes and Support, in collaboration with the Disability Rights Coalition of Nova Scotia, are demanding that government follow through with commitments it made in a 10-year road map plan it endorsed in 2013. The plan recommended an end to large-scale, congregate care facilities and to reduce the disability housing waiting list, which is now more than 1,000 people long. “The government promised to make changes to the way people with disabilities are supported in this province so that they do not have to live in institutions,” says Whidden. The letter had more than 100 additional signatories from non-profit organizations, government agencies and individuals who support the demand to follow through with the road map’s promises. According to the 2016 census, 240 Nova Scotians between 18 and 60 years old are forced to live in nursing homes despite the government commitment to reform housing for people with disabilities. Jen Powley, lead organizer of the No More Warehousing Association, says the provincial government doesn’t seem to have a specific strategy for supporting people with severe physical disabilities. “They say they have group homes suitable for their needs, but I haven’t been able to find them,” she says. She says one of the barriers to finding supported housing is simply the spacerequired for an electric wheelchair, which many with
severe physical disabilities use. “Finding a unit large enough to accommodate a power chair is not easy,” she says. “It takes about four times the space to accommodate power chairs than a regular individual.” Powley’s been lucky to have family who can arrange and pay for her to live independently with care support, “but that’s not possible anymore,” she says. “It costs around $100,000 a year for the service they paid for.” The government currently has eight small options homes on the go. Two are complete, two will open this year, and four have gone to tender. Community services minister Kelly Regan says the government is working hard to close down institutional care facilities and open more small options homes but since there would also have to be support for the tenants, “it just doesn’t happen overnight.” Before the groups’ press conference last week, premier McNeil met with a member of People First, Donnie MacLean, who says McNeil was committed to meeting with them and improving disability housing, but no specific promises were made. NDP community services critic Susan Leblanc says this conversation has been going on for 20 years with little progress. Thirty percent of Nova Scotians live with a disability, and with Canada’s ageing population of baby boomer parents, Leblanc says the situation will get worse before it gets better. She’s spoken to several parents and caregivers who now care for family members with disabilities on their own, but will lose that ability as they themselves get older. “There’s a whole bunch of people who aren’t even being considered right now,” says Leblanc, “because they aren’t on any waiting list.” All things considered, the government is “super-far behind” on opening small options homes, she says. “The problem is only going to get worse, and more people are going to join the call to action.” a
aliFIX—a group of activists, academics, former addicts and community leaders committed to bringing the first overdose prevention site to Halifax—is moving forward in lieu of the province’s immediate support. The GoFundMe launched last week has already raised $2,700. Matthew Bonn, 28, a former addict who volunteers for HaliFIX, says Halifax is more than ready for an overdose prevention site. In housing in Vancouver Coastal Health alone, there are 25 overdose prevention sites. There are 46 supervised consumption sites in Canada. Atlantic Canada has zero. Last week, someone Bonn knew died of an overdose in Halifax. Since the fall, Bonn and others were working to make their case to the provincial government. Bonn says things looked promising, but the province says they need more time to make any decisions. The province has $1.7 million budgeted for overdose harm reduction including needle exchange programs, naloxone kit training and distribution and peer support for safer consumption. With those supports, in the first two months of 2019 there were still four reported probable opioid related deaths, and average 60 deaths per year from 2011-2018. “These are 60 deaths that are preventable,” says Bonn. HaliFIX realized they needed to go forward “with or without” the province’s immediate support, says Bonn. “And if that starts with five grand and a tent we just open up, then that may be to what needs to happen to go forward with it,” says Bonn. “But we’re really hoping that the province will step in and and you know, do it the right way.” A federal exemption announced in 2018 means groups don’t need provincial support to set up an OPS. Bonn says the federal exemption is good in principle, but unless they step in “and give us some funding, then it’s really no help to anybody.” Bonn says that the money saving potential of an OPS should be enough to change minds. “Say if three people don’t have Hepatitis C, because of our location. That means the government doesn’t have to pay for their treatment and the treatments cost about $90,000. “If people can’t really get behind it in the aspect of saving lives or whatnot, then get behind it in the fact that it saves money.” The group was working with Direction 180 and Mainline Needle Exchange, where Bonn works, to prepare their presentation for the province, but formed HaliFIX after Direction 180 and Mainline were directed by the department of health and wellness not to use already-funded resources to work on establishing an OPS until they’ve received a policy directive to do so. Direction 180 director Cindy MacIsaac says in an email they’ve “stepped away in order to protect our existing services and resources.” It is unclear how long the province will take to make a decision on an OPS for Halifax, but Bonn says the support they have from all areas of the community—mayor Savage, Halifax Regional Police, MLAs to name a few—and people are dying preventable deaths. Overdose prevention sites differ from super-
Bonn says we need to focus on those who need to access the OPS, “not the people that think it’s bad for optics.” SUBMITTED
vised consumption sites in the way they can be mobilized and set up quickly to deliver harm-reducing services in crisis situations. The sites provide a safe and sterile place to consume or inject drugs, with life-saving emergency overdose response on-site. In an ideal world—and with the province’s support—Bonn says they can get “the Cadillac model” of an OPS in Halifax. But right now, they’re pushing forward because “we know that this service works. And we feel like, if you stop working on it, it’s not going to get anywhere.” a
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Minutes passed until City Hall’s Microsoft update completed and the Halifax West Community Council meeting was able to start on Tuesday. Part of the agenda was initially postponed, but then maybe it didn’t have to be postponed, so after a quick chase down the hallway and a confirmation no one had made it out the door, the meeting went ahead as originally planned.
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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
AKRAM HAMDAN
SHOP THIS
Grin and barrette
With suite, a newbie accessory dealer. BY ALLISON SAUNDERS When Kristi MacDonald, fashion fiend and co-owner of rchmnd (1869 Granville Street), was getting married last year, she scoured shops for the right barrette only to continuously come up empty-handed. When she finally landed on a look she liked, MacDonald— thanks to her wide-spanning connections in the fashion world—ordered a whack of hair accessories from Australia, and planned to gift them to friends and family with similar taste. Then, thinking nothing of it, she posted a her haul on Instagram. After an outpouring of oooos, ahhhs and DMs begging for details, suite was born. “It’s no secret that hair accessories are having a major moment this season, but to date, they have really only been available online through International,” meaning mega shipping and OPENINGS
duty costs, says MacDonald. She went back to her contacts and ordered an even bigger batch for Haligonian shoppers and, last weekend, hosted a her first pop-up (and sell-out) as an accessory dealer. Now she’s planning her next event for April 27 at Sweet Pea Boutique, this time with more items that might appeal to brides, bridesmaids and wedding guests with barrettes on the brain. And while she’s sticking with hair stuff for the time being, MacDonald will follow where fashion leads her. “We have deep roots in the global fashion industry,” she says, “and as we travel and observe the latest in fashion around the world, we look forward to bringing what’s going on, in real time, to Canada.” Follow along with the latest and most adorable at @__suite. VIA FACEBOOK
Primordial Yoga finds strength in numbers When Taylor Alexandra first started practicing yoga, it was a solo journey—a coping mechanism that allowed her to connect with herself in a way she’d never experienced. It wasn’t until years later that she finally brought her practice into a studio setting, testing out a class at downtown Halifax’s Shanti Yoga for no other reason than “Why not?” “When I was going through difficult times and barriers, they weren’t as difficult when I was practicing with others. I found more resilience then I had otherwise. It was progress in a different way,” she says. “I learned through that I wanted to be able to share that with others. I knew what I was getting in the studio I could increase 10-fold by doing training.” Now, with eight years of practice behind her, and training in kundalini yoga, she’s opening her own space—Primordial Yoga (3323 Agricola Street)—an intimate setting for folks to 6 • APRIL 11 – APRIL 17, 2019 •
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feel the power of strength in numbers. Its aim is to be more of a “healing centre” than a yoga studio, with classes catering to groups of five or six, says Alexandra. “I really wanted to have a client-focused, small-group approach to how I offer yoga because it is very intense and can be intimidating for a newcomer coming into a class of 30 people.” Primordial will offer classes in nidra, kundalini and hatha yoga—as well as a gentle, trauma-informed hatha—and gong bathing. Find Primordial’s entire April schedule, and prices for both drop-ins and members, at primordial.life. —AS
The Coast
2019-04-10 4:32 PM
Opinionated
Halifax’s favourite sport: Stadium-bashing
AKRAM HAMDAN
ARCHITECTURE49
Shannon Park is a gem worth way more to us without the stadium. BY MARTYN WILLIAMS
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tadium-bashing has evolved into a far more popular and fun sport around here than football ever will be. The flames of public ridicule and horror are amply fanned by the announcement of some eye-watering costs to be taxpayer-funded, followed by the protracted absence of any firm business proposal from Maritime Football. The latest: Shannon Park’s “grand stadium” plans have been scaled down to a cute collegestyle facility. If you’d like to get a feel for how much of a thriving community hub it will (or won’t) be check out the Wanderers Grounds off Sackville Street. Nothing underlines our stadium tunnelvision more than the forgotten alternatives. What else could we do with this prime land? Could it benefit the community and local economy more without pro-sport allurement? Shannon Park enjoys close proximity to our urban core, killer views over downtown and the Bedford Basin, a unique history and an awesome coastal landscape. It’s an opportunity to showcase our renewed enthusiasm for reducing sprawl by creating a walkable urban community which has everything onsite— housing, shops, employment, green spaces and a school. Public consultations in 2015 revealed our desire for a mixed use development with ample green spaces, waterfront access and an emphasis on people, not cars. We asked that the heritage of the area including the Mi’kmaq settlement at Tufts Cove be respected. Shannon Park is owned by Canada Lands Company (CLC), the federal government’s real estate and redevelopment corporation. It’s still waiting for approval from Halifax Regional Municipality of their comprehensive concept plans submitted back in December 2016, and says it’s been ready to build since the summer of 2017. Could Shannon Park work as simply a great place to live, work, play and explore? Can we trust CLC’s decades of experience with distilling liveable places from public opinion? And vitally for the taxpayer, their ability to self-
Look at all those fans: Beer-drinking, fry-scarfing, car-driving football enthusiasts. ARCHITECTURE49
finance projects? Or do renderings released last month on Twitter by Architecture49 announcing the Atlantic Schooners and Sport Nova Scotia’s plans for a Shannon Park Community Stadium mean a loophole has been found and the stadium is inevitable? Why the scurrying at our expense to justify and deliver a stadium-cum-aquarium? Isn’t taxpayer cash for essential services? Instead of staff working out a business case to support this expensive enticement, they could work out the revenue and jobs created from CLC’s current plans for Shannon Park. Then estimate the cost of losing the proposed services, workplaces and homes to the 20 acres of land Maritime Football want including occasionally used car parking space, and the suggested hundreds of millions of taxpayer funds required to buy, build and maintain a temple for football worshippers. Maybe that commercial analysis will provide us with renewed enthusiasm and gratitude for the Moosehead and Wanderer action we can enjoy right here and now in Halifax, also CLC’s on-the-table and ready to go selffunded proposal? a Martyn Williams is an Englishman who is here for the hockey, warm hospitality and awesome nature. He is also an advocate for improved safety for vulnerable road users, founding facebook group HRM Safe Streets for Everyone.
WORK WITH US The Coast is looking for a recent Nova Scotia graduate to join us as a Sales Support Representative (SSR). This position is responsible for directly supporting The Coast’s Sales and Marketing department. In this role, you will drive productivity and efficiency gains for The Coast by assisting with operational tasks such as sales opportunity creation, proposals, reports, trafficking artwork, managing social media platforms and ad-hoc office administrative tasks to assist moving the sales cycles forward. Qualifications • Proven ability to provide exceptional high-end customer service • Experience and understanding in social media platforms • Strong computer skills (Mac environment) • Excellent communication skills (written and oral) • Ability to organize and preplan each day • Can complete the tasks with accuracy and precision • Ability to solve problems and meet daily challenges If you have the passion to organization, love talking on the phone and making new business contacts submit your resume along with a compelling cover letter to Christa Harrie: christah@thecoast.ca We thank in advance all applicants for their interest. Only those candidates under consideration will be contacted. No phone calls please. The Coast is committed to employment equity and an inclusive, barrier-free selection process and work environment.
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2019-04-10 4:18 PM
COVER STORY
Purple hearts The women of Neptune’s season-closing The Color Purple on how a story that begins over 100 years ago spins into now. BY TARA THORNE
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n a sharp and sunny Tuesday morning, the lobby of Neptune Theatre is quiet. Behind the doors of Fountain Hall, backed by a six-piece band, a choir swells. After three weeks of rehearsal, it’s the first day in the theatre itself for The Color Purple, Neptune’s 2018-19 season closer. Following tradition, it’s a musical, and as in the most recent seasons, it’s a movie-turned-Broadway musical hit like Shrek, Legally Blonde, Once and last year’s Mamma Mia, the highest-grossing production in the company’s 56 years. But this one is different. The Color Purple began, of course, as the Pulitzer Prizewinning novel by Alice Walker in 1982; then the 1985 film by Steven Spielberg, netting Academy Award nominations for Whoopi Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey (in her acting debut); a Winfrey-produced musical opened on Broadway in 2005 and was revived in 2015, winning three Tony Awards between the shows including for both Celies, LaChanze and Cynthia Eviro. It’s a story spanning decades, beginning in 1909, of poverty, racism, domestic abuse, unrequited love, queerness and Black identity—this is not Elle Woods, it’s not ogres and it’s definitely not ABBA. Neptune is the first regional company to produce the play in Canada, and has hired one of the most exciting theatre artists in the country to execute it: Kimberley Rampersad, the choreographer, actor and director out of Winnipeg. She’s between summers directing at the Shaw Festival, choreographed the recent Matilda at the Citadel Theatre in Edmonton—where she’ll direct Purple again as its season opener this fall—and is currently at the helm of this two-month run. On the building’s second floor, a door opens from the theatre and Rampersad strides into view, hoop earrings swinging, her dancer’s limbs moving with purpose—there’s no spare minute here. Rampersad calls herself the “ultimate facilitator” of the show—she immediately rejects the suggested “supreme leader”—and shares credit freely and generously. “There’s a director of the text that’s on the stage, there’s a director of the music that’s on the page and then as a choreographer there’s a language that isn’t on the page but is being created to support the text that’s on the page and the music that’s on the page. So it’s a triumvirate,” she says. “So the director feels 8 • APRIL 11 – APRIL 17, 2019 •
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like a figurehead, and everything ends up having to go through that lens eventually, but in the best way it’s quite a circular way of leading.” The Color Purple begins in 1909, with the barely teenaged Celie (Tara Jackson) giving birth to her second child by her own father (Jeremiah Sparks), “already ruined two times,” as the musical’s opening number goes. At 18 she is married off to the abusive Mister (Ryan Allen), who keeps her from her most important relationship, her sister Nettie (Samantha Walkes). Then Shug Avery (Karen Burthwright), a singer and casual sexual acquaintance of Mister’s, shows up and gives Celie hope for the first time. Shug also gives Celie a queer situationship for the ages—intimate elements of a relationship, but not a proper or fulfilling one, especially unlikely between two queer Black women in the early 1900s. It’s a story of the intricacies of relationships between women, persevering despite violent men, societal expectations and restrictions of race and class. Rampersad’s mother gave her the book as a girl; Burthwright, who saw both Broadway productions (and has appeared on Broadway herself, in the 2012 revival of Jesus Christ Superstar), was initially kept from it by hers. “I came across it and it was weird for me because my mom was telling me not to read a book. That didn’t make sense,” says Burthwright, leaning into a banquette next to Jackson on a rehearsal break. “She had to explain to me, ‘When you’re a little girl there’s things that you’re gonna read that you don’t understand yet.’ That it’s not time for you to tackle and/or have it explained to you. And that for me was The Color Purple. One hundred percent it was the violence against women—how to you explain to a little girl that someone could hit her? Where do you even start?” Jackson—that’s her on all the ads you’re seeing around town—saw Spielberg’s movie when she was 10. “I remember crying at the end, but I don’t remember why I was crying,” she says. “I think I made the connection, but every time I watch it or I read it now, there are more layers, and more of myself and more of my experiences in there. It’s so special. Every time we rehearse it or do a scene there’s a new discovery—it’s really impactful.”
Burthwright and Jackson play the show’s on-and-off couple Shug and Celie. ALEXA CUDE
The Coast
2019-04-10 5:23 PM
COVER STORY
The Color Purple: The Musical To June 2 Neptune Theatre, 1593 Argyle Street $30-$86 neptunetheatre.com IAN SELIG
“I keep saying in rehearsals that Alice Walker wrote a feminist manifesto, way before her time,” says Burthwright. “And a Black feminist manifesto, for that time, in rural Georgia? South of the Mason-Dixon line, in that time, in Black folkspeak?” “It’s unheard of,” says Jackson. “Things change but then things sometimes cycle through again,” says Rampersad. “We have different approaches, it manifests itself in different ways, but in terms of class, race, sex, sexuality, gender identification—those are all things that we go through in this play that happened 100 years ago, and that we are still going through now. “There’s something great about framing
something in the period that it’s in because we don’t necessarily as audience members feel indicted from jump—we can see a point of view and we frame it in the distance and then hopefully as it goes on we might realize how it spins into present time.”
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ackson, who is from Calgary, and Burthwright, from Toronto, are excited to be working not just with the renowned Rampersad but also with The Color Purple’s woman-heavy creative team. “The language that she sees in the language, between words, between moments. How she runs the room. How she has to run the room.
It’s very different—her presence, that female energy at the helm,” says Burthwright of the director. “We have three female stage managers, we have a female director, we have a female Chrysalis participant assisting, we have a female Chrysalis participant assisting the musical director, a female set and costume designer, wig designer.” (The Chrysalis Project is Neptune’s new mentorship program for emerging artists.) “It’s a sense of pride for me as well to look at my creative team, to look beyond the table and see all these women there.” “And it just feels different,” adds Jackson. “There’s that inherent female connection, it’s unspoken but it’s there. It’s much appreciated.”
How often have you worked for a Black woman director in your careers? Burthwright: How often? Jackson: Never. Never. First time. Burthwright: I’m going to go ahead and say la première temps. This is it. Writer, yes. Black male yes. Female never. Jackson: This is the first Black woman I’ve been directed by. “Like anything else, I think certain people should do certain things cause they’re the best at it. I’ve always believed that,” says Burthwright. “Any level and point in my career, I just want the best people in the room with me. And we got the best this time, and she CON’T ON P10 >
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COVER STORY
There’s something great about framing something in the period that it’s in because we don’t necessarily as audience members feel indicted from jump—we can see a point of view and we frame it in the distance, and then we might realize how it spins into present time.” —Kimberley Rampersad
ALEXA CUDE
< CON’T FROM P9
happens to be Black and female. And it’s wonderful for this particular show.” “It makes sense. This is a Black woman’s story,” says Jackson. “It’s Celie’s journey, it’s told from her perspective. To have a Black woman direct just makes sense.” Rampersad is aware her position here is notable—in an industry that, like many, is slowly waking up to the truth that there are not just stories outside the white, mostly male experience but also artists not of that experience to tell them—and that the stakes are high. But don’t think things are suddenly easy for her. “My womanness and Blackness will never serve me in getting more work. Not in my lifetime. And that’s straight-up truth,” she says. “I know I am getting some wonderful opportunities. And I have worked very hard for them. I know that I represent many women, women of colour, people who are marginalized, who work as hard if not harder than me—I happen to be a person who is getting opportunities right now. But the fact is, is that if I am not successful in this, I will not be given chances the way other people would be given chances to succeed or fail again. I don’t have that luxury.” Like their director—their ultimate facilitator—her actors have chosen to focus on what is offered by the work itself. 10 • APRIL 11 – APRIL 17, 2019 •
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“We—and by ‘we’ I mean the Black community, Black actors—we don’t get the opportunity to stretch all these muscles that we’re stretching right now in this show,” says Jackson. “We don’t get the big roles that require us to go to those places that we train to go to. For me that’s where the pressure’s coming from, on myself—this has to be right and perfect in my eyes.” “Love, betrayal, finding yourself, coming into your own, being broken up with, being abused, having your family literally ripped apart from you, being in an unrequited relationship where there’s no equality or respect, sexism, homophobia—it’s all these things,” says Burthwright. “You think about the work, what’s on the page? And you have to imbue every moment and choice and opportunity with that. And be barefoot, grounded and planted to the earth, literally.” “It’s a full community event. So you’ll see those 18 actors that are up there and our conductor and our six musicians down in the pit— for each person there’s probably three people behind the scenes that they represent,” says Rampersad. “It’s the sum of the parts. That’s kind of my mantra when we make theatre—it’s the sum of the parts.” a Tara Thorne is The Coast’s arts editor.
The Coast
2019-04-10 5:25 PM
LENNY MULLINS
EDITED BY ALLISON SAUNDERS SEND TIPS TO ALLISONS@THECOAST.CA
CLOSINGS
Halifax Press signs off The big cheeses behind sandwich-loving food truck Halifax Press announced via Facebook this week that their newspaper-pun-loving operation is officially out of circulation. Keen entrepreneurs Jill Johnsrude and Connor Dubreuil opened their lime-green mobile restaurant in 2014 during the city’s food truck boom, and served up melty meals at parking lots and parties across Halifax and Dartmouth until this winter. —AS OPENINGS
A Fisherman’s Cove feed Kale Boucher and Jeff Lucas want to make their mark at Fisherman’s Cove. The pair of restaurant vets share 23 years’ experience between them—Boucher as a Red Seal chef, Lucas in both the front- and back-of-house— and have teamed up open Coastal Cook House (16 Government Wharf), a gourmet take-out restaurant on the scenic waterfront strip. “We’ve had so many ideas at different restaurants we worked at and couldn’t implement them,” says Lucas. “So when the opening came up at Fisherman’s Cove, we decided to pursue it.” Boucher says the menu will be small but diverse. They’ll be flexible to change it based on customer desires but are hopeful diners will find favourites that they’ll come back for. “The idea we came up with is come
out with a small menu we can execute to perfection. When people ask what the best dish is, we want to be able to tell them everything is great.” The debut line-up features sandwiches (like chicken and waffle), burgers, lobster and bacon mac and cheese and a couple of rice dishes. Lucas, who calls the Cove neighbourhood a “mini-Lunenburg,” is excited about the potential of their business’ new home. “This place is like an untapped market,” adds Boucher. “There are not many restaurants around and we wanted to add something new to the area. It’s developing and growing, and we wanted to make it boom.” Coastal Cookhouse aims to open on May 1. —AS
You love Vandal Doughnuts’ Homer, but what about Fortune Doughnut’s Marge? Last weekend, the fantastical Fortune— brought to you by the Freak Lunchbox folks— opened its doors at 2300 Gottingen Street to sellout crowds waiting to post their next treat for all of the internet to see. The shop (which is just two blocks from Vandal, for those counting) is open at 8am Tuesday through Sunday, and stays that way until its shelves are empty. The Coast • APRIL 11 – APRIL 17, 2019 • 11
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MATT WILLIAMS
RECORD STORE DAY
Baldwin’s Wicked plan MUSIC AND ARTS NEWS EDITED BY TARA THORNE SEND TIPS TO ARTS@THECOAST.CA
Rock singer Adam Baldwin embarks on a mini-tour of Taz stores for RSD and his new EP No Rest for the Wicked. BY JONATHAN BRIGGINS
Adam Baldwin Record Store Day Taz tour Saturday, April 13 Taz Records, 1239 Bedford Highway, noon 45 Portland Street, 2pm 1521 Grafton Street, 4pm
A
The Club has a new rule: Is this music making us happy? MIMI RAVER
INDIE ROCK
Tokyo’s drift
The Toronto indie-rock quartet Tokyo Police Club nearly threw in the towel, then made its loosest, hookiest album yet.
trip to Taz Records is nothing new to Adam Baldwin, but what he’s doing for Record Store Day is a little unusual for a music lover: On April 13 he’s playing all three Taz Records locations in one afternoon. “When I was first moved out on my own, I used to go to the old location on Gottingen Street about once a week,” says Baldwin. “I’d take a bus from the south end over there and buy records.” The original plan for this weekend was to play the Halifax location only. “I was at New Scotland Yard in Dartmouth and I just thought to myself, maybe that day I should play over here too,” he says. “And I wasn’t about to leave the Bedford store out of the loop.” He’ll load in with a small PA system and acoustic guitar, play a couple songs, sign copies of his newest EP No Rest for the Wicked
then head to the next stop. It’s fitting Baldwin is driving all around the Halifax Regional Municipality playing songs from an EP with lyrics that were mostly written while driving from Dartmouth to Lawrencetown. “I wrote the majority of the record in my van,” he says. “The melodies all came to me while I was sitting there singing gibberish driving back and forth to see my kids.” With pen and paper in his van (and next to his bed) to capture flashes of inspiration, Baldwin created some rock and roll that’s brutally honest and from the heart, talking candidly about struggles with substance abuse and getting help. “I don’t understand why anybody would write a song or make a piece of art if it wasn’t an honest interpretation of something. That’s what I do,” he says. “The songs that are written that way, straight out of somebody’s heart—those are the songs that mean the most to me.” a
Tokyo Police Club w/Sorrey Saturday, April 13, 8pm The Marquee Ballroom, 2037 Gottingen Street $20
G
reg Alsop knows what burnout feels like. By 2016, he’d been doing the same job for years. He was sick of repetition, tired from overworking and unsure whether the path he was on was really right for the long haul. Alsop’s isn’t a story of cubicle monotony: He drums in Tokyo Police Club, an infamous fixture of 2000s Canadian indie rock that you’ve probably heard of and maybe even love (if you don’t, you probably know someone who does). For a time, the band was something of a machine: It toured endlessly, won Junos, played the late-night TV circuit, found itself on larger and larger stages. Alsop and his bandmates—originally a group of four guys barely into their 20s—couldn’t help but feel like they were onto something big. They wanted to be known around the world, to sell out arenas, to top the charts. So the plan seemed clear: Record, tour, repeat. It was a recipe for moderate success, sure, but Alsop says the band didn’t anticipate the exhaustion that would come with it. “We’d been doing the band for 10 years total, and you don’t question a lot of things at first,” he says. “Things kind of become ingrained— the practice of the business, the practice of the band, your relationships with each other— and you never really stop and take the time to question it or talk about it... “We were all just kind of tired of doing the same thing over 10 years, and we were looking at stopping it as the only option. It’s broken, so let’s quit.” When I reach Alsop over the phone he’s at home on Prince Edward Island, where he and his wife recently bought a house and are raising an infant. Alsop talks about enjoying the
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weather, the natural beauty, the slowness of life—in other words, living a different life than the one he lived when his band first exploded into the national spotlight. But the group isn’t done quite yet. Alsop and the band are getting ready to hit the road again—including a stop at the Marquee on Saturday—in support of the Tokyo Police Club LP that almost never happened. That album, last year’s TPC, emerged from a period of creative and interpersonal reckoning. Alsop wasn’t alone in his burnout—by 2016, guitarist Josh Hook and keyboardist Graham Wright were also feeling ready to throw in the towel. But Dave Monks, the band’s singer and ostensible frontperson, wasn’t ready to let go. He convinced his bandmates to regroup and see what could happen if they renegotiated their aspirations. Maybe, Monks thought, the goal could simply be to keep going. “I mean, when the goal before was like ‘Try to get a number-one song on the radio’—how do you do that? I have no idea how to do that,” says Alsop. “When you just get rid of that goal entirely and just worry about if this music is making us happy right now, then it’s so much nicer to make music together.” As a result, TPC sounds looser than anything the band’s recorded before—you can hear both its tribulations and the fun found in the process. There’s a self-aware lightness to these new songs: Songs about being frustrated, fucking up, regretting it and finding a way to keep going. “The goal is just to keep pleasing ourselves and keep pleasing the fans that we still have and that we’re really grateful to have after all this time, and hopefully keep making music that we’re really excited about,” says Alsop. “If one day we stop getting really excited about it, we can stop.” For now, Tokyo Police Club continues—the excitement hasn’t faded just yet. a
SUBMITTED
BY BRENNAN MCCRACKEN
FILM REVIEW
Birds of Passage Friday, April 12, 7pm Carbon Arc Cinema, 1747 Summer Street $8.75 carbonarc.ca
C
iro Guerra’s Academy Award-nominated Embrace of the Serpent (2015) was gorgeously photographed in black and white, spanning 40 years in the Amazon, whose main character was a shaman and lone survivor of his tribe. That is to say: Ambitious. For Birds of Passage, Guerra—joined in the director’s seat by Serpent producer Cristina Gallego—takes on no less than the bonanza marimbera, the decade from 1975 to 1985 in Colombia that saw an influx of money, gangs and violence thanks to cannabis.
The film begins with a Wayuu courtship between the solemn Rapayet (José Acosta) and young Zaida (Natalia Reyes). He needs a dowry—she’s wealthier than him, and very traditional—and with the help of a gregarious friend gets into weed-selling, finds himself very good at it, and starts ascending the ranks. Things escalate from there into a violent, Coppola-esque drug movie. The film is set mostly on harsh plains with bright, beautiful costumes and a climax that surprises with its scale and ferocity. The directors coax layered, duplicitous performances out of their actors, a lot of whom are performing for the first time, including the formidable Carmiña Martínez as Wayuu matriarch Ursula. A typical tale, told in a new way. —Tara Thorne
The Coast
2019-04-10 4:29 PM
Entertainment Listings
KRISTA COMEAU
Music You’re here! Events P14 On Stage P14 Visual Arts P15
› ENTERTAINMENT AND EVENTS PICKS WRITTEN AND COMPILED BY MORGAN MULLIN
Send event listings to listings@thecoast.ca. Print deadline Thursday, 5pm SURE THINGS
Thursday April 11 Big Ticket Shows UNCLE KRACKER In further proof that country superstars do not often cross over (or hold over) to the non-cowboy-hat-wearing masses, Uncle Kracker is in the midst of a massive North American tour (who woulda thunk)—and tickets to see your #tbt anthem “When The Sun Goes Down” are a cool $50. Casino Nova Scotia, 1983 Upper Water Street, $50, 8pm
DJ + Dancing AUDIO THERAPY THURSDAYS Reflections, $7/$9, 11pm DJ IV W/DJ OKAY TK Vinyl Retro Dance Lounge DJ RANDY Monte’s OUTLANDISH THURSDAYS W/DJ MASTER Menz
Live Music ANN DENNY Le Bistro, free, 7-10pm THE BLAKEY PROJECT: A TRIBUTE TO THE JAZZ MESSENGERS Stayner’s Wharf, $5, 8pm THE GET DOWN PRESENTS: GET THE FOLK UP! Menz, 10pm-1am JAMES SHAW & KYLE TULLY Compass Distillers, 7:30-11:30pm JEFF BONANG Staggers, 8pm LANDING SOUND The Loose Cannon, free, 9pm-12am THE LEGENDARY GOLDBLOOMS Sniggily Wiggily’s THE MELLOTONES Bearly’s , 10pm MUSEUM PIECES Cafe Lara, free PAUL BOUDREAU Timber Lounge, free, 7-10pm ROWDY DOW Old Triangle, free, 8pm SHADOW OF EVEREST W/40 MINUTES TO 5, HALNOVA Gus’
Friday April 12 Big Ticket Shows ERIN COSTELO RECORD LABEL LAUNCH PARTY See photo. The Marquee, 2037 Gottingen Street, $20, 9pm
DJ + Dancing DJ DXS Pacifico DJ RANDY Monte’s DJ TONY HAZE The Bitter End, 10pm FETEISH HFX Jamaica Vibes, 10:30pm
Music
Live Music
DJ + Dancing
AQUAKULTRE ALBUM RELEASE SHOW W/YOHVN BLVCK, DJ FADZWA The Seahorse, 10pm-2am FRIG DANCER W/THE DEAD MINUTES, ROOTABAGGA Gus’ GREG MITCHELL & NATASHA LEFORT The Carleton, 6-9pm JAH’MILA SMITH W/ SMOKE ’N RHYTHM Bearly’s, 10pm MIKE COWIE AND GERRY CARRUTHERS The Press Gang PATRICK DRAKE Stayner’s Wharf, 5pm THE PERSUADERS Split Crow, 9:30pm-1am ROGER STONE Old Triangle, free, 5pm ROWDY DOW Old Triangle, free, 8pm RUDE DOWGS ALBUM RELEASE PARTY W/DJ IV Rail Birds Lounge, 10pm-2am THE SHAKEDOWN COMBO W/RASQUATCH, ROADSIDE SCARECROW Menz, $7, 10pm TEN MILE HOUSE Sniggily Wiggily’s, $5 WHAT THE FOLK! REMEMBERING DON BURKE Local Council of Women House, 6:30pm ZOE LEGER Le Bistro, free, 7-10pm
AFROBEATS W/ZULUBOY, DJ FADZWA Gus’ Pub DJ FROST AND XS 7 Red Stag Tavern, 10pm-1am DJ RANDY Monte’s PINEO & LOEB Pacifico, $5, 11pm-2am THAT R&B NIGHT FEAT. DJ OKAY TK Rail Birds Lounge, 9:30pm-2am THAT ’90S NIGHT The Seahorse, 9pm-2am
Saturday April 13 Big Ticket Shows MIX:MATCH suddenlyLISTEN, the champion of experimental and improvisational sound in all styles, returns with yet another genre-defying viewing experience: The improv variety show. “Mix:Match will feature performances by augmented reality artist and guitarist Amy Brandon, poets Cory Lavender and Alice Burdick collaborating with visionary singer Ann Denny,” show organizers begin, before adding musicians Norm Adams, Geordie Haley, Jackson Fairfax-Perry and Morgan Zwicker will round out the fun. Art Bar, 1873 Granville Street, $20/PWYC, 7:30pm TIMOTHY AND NIKKI CHOOI Two brothers—both decorated violinists—team up to tackle a set that includes Prokofiev’s “Sonata” for two violins, Paganini’s “24 Caprices” for solo violin, Bach’s “Chaconne” for solo violin and more. Lilian Piercey Concert Hall, 6199 Chebucto Road, $15-$35, 7pm TOKYO POLICE CLUB W/SORREY The Ontario-based four piece that delivers tight, melodic indie-rock brings the party to The Marquee. See page 12. The Marquee, 2037 Gottingen Street, $20, 8pm
Sure Thing
ERIN COSTELO VENUE RECORDS LAUNCH PARTY After quietly releasing one of the best albums of 2018, it makes sense for Costelo to launch a label that’ll house her blistering soul sound. Here, she celebrates the effort with cuts off last year’s Sweet Marie. Fri Apr 12, The Marquee Ballroom, 2037 Gottingen Street, $20, 9pm-12am
Live Music ADAM BALDWIN’S TAZ TOUR: BEDFORD Read more on page 12. Taz Records, Bedford, noon ADAM BALDWIN’S TAZ TOUR: DARTMOUTH Taz Records, Dartmouth, 2pm ADAM BALDWIN’S TAZ TOUR: HALIFAX Taz Records, Halifax, 4pm BRUCE AND JAY Durty Nelly’s, 4-7pm BUCK TINGLEY Bearly’s, 10pm THE CARLETON COLLECTIVE The Carleton, 10pm-1:30am ELIZA NIEMI W/MAYBEL, MARTHAS, MIKE FONG Radstorm, $6/PWYC, 7-11pm GORDIE TUCKER Bearly’s , 4:30-8:30pm JESSIE BROWN W/BRASS ANTLERS, KILMORE, VOODOO SOMETIMES The Pavilion, 6:15-9:45pm JOE MURPHY & THE WATER STREET BLUES BAND Your Father’s Moustache, 4-8pm LATIN NIGHT FEAT. MARCEL AMORES, LÁZARO CASTANEDO AND GUESTS The Fickle Frog, free, 8:30pm LAURA GALLANT Cafe Lara, free, 7-8pm MARK RAVEN AND GUESTS Staggers, 4-7pm MIKE COWIE AND GERRY CARRUTHERS The Press Gang PATRICK DRAKE Stayner’s Wharf, 4:30pm THE PERSUADERS Split Crow, 9:30pm-1am ROWDY DOW Old Triangle, free, 8pm SILVER FLAME BAND Vimy #27 Legion, $3, 7:30-11:30pm TEN MILE HOUSE Sniggily Wiggily’s, $5 THOMAS MATHESON The Carleton, 6-9pm TRISTAN LEGG Old Triangle, free, 5pm ZOE LEGER Le Bistro, free, 7-10pm
Sunday April 14 DJ + Dancing DJ ROCK NIGHT W/DJ IV AND FRIENDS Sniggily Wiggily’s, free
Live Music BLUES JAM Bearly’s, 8:30pm DARYL NICHOL TRIO FEAT. KYLE TULLY, BRENDAN MELCHIN Coburg Social, 7-10pm DON’T STOP MY ROCK VOL 2 The Bus Stop Theatre, $10, 6:30pm JEFF GOODSPEED AND HIS ULTIMATE BAND OF SUPER HEROES Stayner’s Wharf, free, 5pm KITCHEN PARTY AND JAM SESSION Vimy #27 Legion, $3, 3-7pm THE MIKE COWIE VIBE TRIO W/RON HYNES, DAVE STAPLES Morris East, Bedford West MIKE LLOYD Old Triangle, free SKIN & JONES The Perfect Pour, 4-7pm THEM OTHER JOHNS The Local, 3-7pm
Monday April 15 DJ + Dancing DJ TONY HAZE The Bitter End MOOSE MONDAYS W/DJ TOM FLEMING Toothy Moose, free
Live Music DAVE MACISAAC & LOUIS BENOIT Old Triangle, 7-10pm MORGAN DAVIS Bearly’s, 8pm MIKE LLOYD Split Crow Pub, 8-11:30pm ONE MAN SHOW Halifax Alehouse
Tuesday April 16 Big Ticket Shows NEKO CASE W/JENNIFER CASTLE You shouldn’t need reason to listen to one of the best artists in folk-rock right now, but if you
do, perhaps NPR’s description of Case’s singing voice will convince you: “Neko Case’s voice sounds like it originates from the belly of Mother Earth herself. In her music, you can hear the roots of trees, the wisdom of ancient warrior bones, the shift of tectonic plates, molten lava and placid water,” the music mag raves. Of course, if you’ve waited to be convinced that means you’ve missed your chance to see a sold-out set. Better luck next time. Rebecca Cohn Auditorium, 6101 University Avenue, 8pm
DJ + Dancing ALL REQUEST W/DJ BILL KIDNEY Staggers, free, 9pm AMATEUR DJ NIGHT W/DJ MASTER Menz
Live Music GOTTIJAM Menz, $3, 10:30pm JORDAN LEBLANC Split Crow Pub, 8-11:30pm NEW MUSIC TUESDAYS Sniggily Wiggily’s, 8:30pm RARITY W/ROMANCER, SLEEPSHAKER The Seahorse, $10/$15, 8pm TYLER AND SCOTT Durty Nelly’s, 9:30pm
Wednesday April 17 Big Ticket Shows JAMES EHNES & ANDREW ARMSTRONG W/SYMPHONY NOVA SCOITA The New York Times calls Ehnes “a violinist in a class of his own” and The Strad describes Armstrong’s pianism as “beautifully expressive and virtuosic.” Together with Symphony Nova Scotia, the pair creates what Cecilia Concerts calls “a rare blockbuster concert of major symphonic masterworks” that’ll go heavy on the Beethoven and Tchaikovsky.
Rebecca Cohn Auditorium, 6101 University Avenue, $45-$95, 7:30pm
Live Music ACOUSTIC WEDNESDAYS Gahan House, 8pm BLUES NIGHT FEAT. JOE MURPHY AND BRAD CONRAD The Loose Cannon, 9pm COUNTRY NIGHT W/WILLIE STRATTON Sniggily Wiggily’s, free, 10pm FOLK AND COUNTRY LINE W/JULIE CUNNINGHAM Gus’ Pub HALIFAX PIER Old Triangle, free, 8pm AN IRISH CÉILÍ WITH RANKIN MACINNIS Obladee, 8:30-11:30pm JAZZ NIGHT W/THE EVAN MAHANEY TRIO The Watch That Ends the Night, 7-10pm LEITH FLEMING-SMITH The Carleton, 6-9pm WEDNESDAY NIGHT JAZZ W/DAMIEN MOYNIHAN, SILVIO PUPO, RONALD HYNES The Local, 9pm-12am TENEBRAE Cathedral Church of All Saints, 9pm TYLER KEY Le Bistro, free, 6-9pm
upcoming concerts Tim Baker w/Charlotte Cornfield St. Matthew’s United Church, May 3-4, $40/$45 Snotty Nose Rez Kids Reflections, May 21 Garrison Brewing’s Backlot Bash w/Broken Social Scene, Dave Sampson, Natalie Lynn Cunard Event Centre, Jun 15, $44 First Aid Kit Halifax Jazz Fest mainstage, Jul 10, $53 Thrush Hermit The Marquee Ballroom, Sep 27-28, $44
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Events
ON STAGE
Sunday April 14
LINDA SCHETTLE PHOTOGRAPHY
BUNNY YOGA Two one-hour stretching seshs that see you doing downward dog with some floppy-eared friends—all while supporting 10,000 Carrots Rabbit Rescue. Halifax Shopping Centre, 7001 Mumford Road, 11am2pm, $10 FINDING FORM AND CONNECTIONS Artist Rebecca Hannon celebrates her current Mary E. Black Gallery exhibit, Contemporary Camouflage, at this workshop that helps you create your own wearable art pieces. Mary E. Black Gallery, 1061 Marginal Road, 1-4pm TITANIC 107TH ANNIVERSARY COMMEMORATION View memorabilia, artifacts and books at this commemoration that has been put together by the Titanic Society of Atlantic Canada. Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, 1675 Lower Water Street, 1-4pm Sure Thing
COPPÉLIA Ballet Jörgen and Symphony Nova Scotia combine forces to deliver this “funny, fantastical tale of an eccentric toymaker and his greatest creation— a beautiful dancing doll so lifelike that it causes an uproar in its small village.” Show organizers promise it’s a “merry tale of love, life and mistaken identity” perfect for audiences of all ages. Rebecca Cohn Auditorium, 6101 University Avenue, Apr 12-13, 7:30pm; Sun Apr 14, 2pm, $15-$72
Thursday April 11 CHEF DOLENTE’S CRAFT DRAUGHT SHOWDOWN: SOBER ISLAND VS BRIGHTWOOD The king of The Carleton’s kitchen crafts a five-course menu with perfectly paired pours from both Sober Island Brewing Co. and Brightwood Brewery. The Carleton, 1685 Argyle Street, 7-10pm, $69 FOUND IN TRANSLATION: SUE GOYTTE AND GEORGETTE LEBLANC IN CONVERSATION In the amp-up for its inaugural run, the AfterWords Literary Fest brings two of the town’s biggest verse-slingers together to talk poetry, translations and more (LeBlanc is in the process of translating Goyette’s MasterWorks Prize-winning work Ocean into French). Bespoke poems from former poet laureate Rebecca Thomas round out the fun. The Seahorse, 2037 Gottingen Street, 7-10pm, $15 THE HALIFAX PLANETARIUM: SIGNPOSTS IN THE SKY Quinn Smith hosts this guided tour around the galaxy with The Halifax Planetarium’s interactive night sky projections. Dalhousie University, Sir James Dunn Building, 6310 Coburg Road, 7:15pm, $5 IN PERSON: OLIVIA BIERMANN Local YouTube sensation Liv B celebrates her her first cookbook, Liv B’s Vegan On A Budget, at this reading. Chapters, 188 Chain Lake Drive, 7-9pm MICHELLE SYLLIBOY BOOK LAUNCH & READING A celebration of the release of
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Michelle Sylliboy’s book of photographs and hieroglyphic poetry, titled Kiskajeyi— I Am Ready, sees the artist giving a reading in the BMO community room. Halifax Central Library, 5440 Spring Garden Road, 6:30-8:30pm
Friday April 12 BIRDS OF PASSAGE SCREENING Carbon Arc’s latest flick is a 2019 offering that traces the origins of the Colombian drug trade through the eyes of an Indigenous Wayuu family. See page 12. Carbon Arc Cinema, 1747 Summer Street, 7pm HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS PLAYOFFS ROUND TWO VS. MONCTON WILDCATS As of press time, the standings of the second round didn’t yet dictate if this as-needed game is, in fact, needed. Stay tuned to ticketatlantic.com! Scotiabank Centre, 5284 Duke Street, 7pm OPEN HEART FORGERY ISSUE LAUNCH AND POETRY MONTH CELEBRATION A celebration of the latest issue of the verse-laiden mag sees mayor Mike Savage making a speech before snacks are readings are shared. Halifax City Hall, 5:45-8pm ROCK NIGHT DANCE AND FUNDRAISER Boogie down for a cause—The Make-A-Wish Foundation—as local acts Alvin Whittaker, Brite VU and more play a rock-heavy set. Montes Showbar Grill, 245 Waverley Road, Dartmouth, 7pm, $10
Saturday April 13 THE ABCS OF RUNNING AND AIR BNB Pro-Airbnb peeps share their side of the story at this workshop. Good Robot Brewing Co., 2736 Robie Street, 1pm COMMON ROOTS URBAN FARM MOVING PARTY As the urban farm prepares to relocate from its patch of grass on Robie Street, it’s asking for volunteers to help take apart raised beds and shop the on-site plant sale. Wear clothes you can get dirty in. Common Roots Urban Farm, 1929 Robie Street, 11am-3:30pm, free
THE FIGHTING DAYS The Dartmouth Players describe this piece of theatre as a glance inside the women’s suffrage movement. Dartmouth Players Theatre, 33 Crichton Street, Dartmouth, To Apr 13, $14/$17 HEAR COMES TROUBLE The Spencer House for Senior’s theatre troupe Two Houses Theatre Company delivers this comedy about hearing aid troubles in the library’s room 301. Halifax Central Library, 5440 Spring Garden Road, Mon Apr 15, 7pm, free 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, Apr 17-18, 7:30pm; Sat Apr 20, 2 and 7:30pm, $10-$18 NEW MAGIC VALLEY FUN TOWN Two childhood friends reunite after 25 years in this play that traces faded connections and the things we remember versus what we try to forget. Neptune Theatre, 1593 Argyle Street, To Apr 21
CLAIRE L’HIVER AND THE WIND THE WAY SCREENING The Halifax Independent Film Festival hosts an off-season screening of Sophie Bédard Marcotte’s comedy-drama and an experimental short by Kira Daube. Halifax Central Library, 5440 Spring Garden Road, 6:30pm, free
Dance
PIER 21 READS: ZELDA ABRAMSON AND JOHN LYNCH “Authors Zelda Abramson and John Lynch drew on interviews with survivors, hundreds of case files from the Jewish Immigrant Aid Services, and other archival documents to present a vivid portrait of the daily struggles of the Holocaust survivors who settled in Montreal,” the museum offers of this writing duo. Here, they share snippets of their tome, The Montreal Shtetl: Making Home After the Holocaust with several dramatic readings. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21, 1055 Marginal Road, 7-9pm EXPRESSIVE CAFE A safe, supportive environment for those with aphasia to practice language skills and socialize. Held in the building’s basement level. Nova Scotia Rehabilitation Centre, 1341 Summer Street, 6pm
Wednesday April 17
HALIFAX HURRICANES PLAYOFF GAME VS CAPE BRETON HIGHLANDERS As of press time, the series results weren’t available to dictate if this as-needed game is, in fact, needed. Check ticketatlantic.com for more. Scotiabank Centre, 5284 Duke Street, 7pm
HALIFAX TALKS ART: WHAT MAKES A PAINTING Up your art IQ! Studio 21, 5431 Doyle Street, 6-7:30pm
SPRING TEA AND SALE Crafts and homemade treats await. St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, 216 School Street Dartmouth, 2pm & 4pm
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. Read more in this week’s cover feature, beginning on page 8. Neptune Theatre, 1593 Argyle Street, To Jun 2
Tuesday April 16
COUNTRY NIGHT DANCE AND FUNDRAISER Boogie down for a cause— The Make-A-Wish Foundation—as local acts play a country-heavy set. Montes Showbar Grill, 245 Waverley Road, Dartmouth, 7pm, $10
HRM MAKING COMICS MEETUP Stan Lee vibes abound at this all-levels workshop that sees you sketching out your comic book dreams. Radstorm, 2177 Gottingen Street, 1-3pm
Theatre
LIFE OF BRIAN SCREENING Everyone’s favourite Monty Python flick—which tracks how a schlub born in the manger next door to Jesus often gets mistaken for the messiah—gets screened at the Robie Street suds spot. Good Robot Brewing Co., 2736 Robie Street, 7-9pm
Submit events to listings@thecoast.ca
COSTAL DANCE THEATRE IN CONCERT Details are sparse on this dance show, but we’re sure it’ll make your toes tap. Alderney Landing Theatre, 2 Ochterloney Street, Dartmouth, Sat Apr 13, 2pm and 7:30pm COPPÉLIA See photo, left. Rebecca Cohn Auditorium, 6101 University Avenue, Apr 12-13, 7:30pm; Sun Apr 14, 2pm HALIFAX POLE THEATRIX The pole dancing palace shows off what some of its nimblest artists can do, with a performance featuring comedy, pole doubles and more. Studio In Essence, 1535 Dresden Row, Suite 203, Sat, April 13, 7-9:30pm WILD WITHIN, A MOCEAN DANCE BENEFIT Performances by Mocean members and guests let your curiosity about the dance group’s upcoming production grow. Themed appetizers by chef Dennis Johnson and a silent auction round out the fun. Alderney Landing Theatre, 2 Ochterloney Street, Dartmouth, Thu Apr 11, 7pm, $25/$40
Comedy COMEDY AT THE OASIS WITH CHANEL FREIRE Oasis Pub & Eatery, 5661 Spring Garden Road, Tuesdays, 8:30pm 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, 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 members. High Life Social Club, 5982 Spring Garden Road, Thursdays, 9-10:30pm, $8 RADICAL COMEDY NIGHT Jordan Roberts, Laura Shepherd, Nicole Maunsell, Oshean Juneja and more jump on the mic at this silly sesh that’s also a fundraiser for Radstorm, one laugh at a time. Radstorm, 2177 Gottingen Street, Fri Apr 12, 7pm, $8/pwyc
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Visual Arts this experimentation is to greatly expand my own conceptual and practical tool box.” To Apr 11 A Little Piece of Heaven: My Nova Scotia Wendy Bissett Beaver delivers drawings of familiar views with crisp outlines and rich colour. Apr 12-May 5
GARY CASTLE
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 To Apr 26
Sure Thing
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. Apr 13-21 ANNA LEONOWENS GALLERY Tue-Fri 11am-5pm, Sat 12-4pm Granville Square, 1891 Granville Street CHICLINIC Xinting Hui explores the space where clothes become fashion. To Apr 13 Not just the distance but what it contains Emma Allain “explores themes of distance, alienation, translation, and interference” in a range of mediums. To Apr 13 (sa)line progression “Alicia Hunt’s practice involves direct, multisensory encounters with coastal places in Nova Scotia,” the gallery offers of this showcase. To Apr 13 ART 1274 HOLLIS Daily 10am6pm, 1274 Hollis Street Park Rhonda Barrett explores issues surrounding land use and urban planning as she displays up-cyled collage works contrasting parks and parking lots. To Apr 30
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.” The Corridor Gallery, To Apr 29
ART GALLERY OF NOVA SCOTIA Tue-Sun 10am-5pm, Thu 10am9pm, 1723 Hollis Street A Sense of Site The practices of 12 Canadian artists are explored. To May 12 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,” the gallery explains. Apr 13-Sep 2 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 delivers a collection of 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 See photo. 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 resi-
dency in New Glasgow and carry the sub-title Drawings of Industrial Nova Scotia—highlight the coal, lumber and steel industries in the area. 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 of talent development to the realization that arthritis in his hands might take his creative outlet away. To Apr 28 DALHOUSIE ART GALLERY Tue-Fri, 11am-5pm; Sat-Sun 12-5pm, 6101 University Avenue The Memorialist D’Arcy Wilson delivers this mix of photography, video projection and historical artifacts while studying the colonialist way settlers view and understand nature. To Apr 14 THE DART GALLERY Tue-Fri 11am-6pm, Sat 11am-4pm, Sun 10am-2pm, 127A Portland Street, Dartmouth Dwayne Carberry: Dots, Dabs, Details, & Dartmouth The artist explores new ways of creating paintings with this show, saying in his statement that “the end goal of
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, geometric work to make it happen. 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 (a World War I-era camo that used bright shapes and lines to blur outlines) that contrasts against her sharp, fine-art jewellery. 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 James Shirley—the iconic New York artist that relocated to Cape Breton in the 1970s and shares the same energy as Robert Frank. To May 19 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.” To May 5
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.” 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. 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 Inspired by the legend of Icarus and his ill-fated attempt to fly closer to the sun, sculptor Sydney Blum debuts this collection of wingshaped pieces that suggest a “continuum of time and space.” To May 1 TEICHERT GALLERY Sun-Mon 12-5pm, Tue-Sat 10am5pm, 1723 Hollis Street Jeremy Vaughan: Ocean, River, Stream 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, sharing images from his three books Cloud Busting, Obscuro and Aerial. “Where most people end with the creation of an image is usually where Steve begins and many have made the observation that the dedication for these projects can only be described as ‘bat shit crazy’ the gallery adds. To Apr 28 Submit events to listings@thecoast.ca or upload them online at thecoast.ca. Deadline Thursdays at 5pm.
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.” Originally produced by the Royal BC Museum, it offers a collection of stories from early and contemporary families, those who came as immigrants and those who have always been here, while touching on themes of “belonging, growth and change, gatherings and generations.” To Nov 3 DISCOVERY CENTRE Mon-Sat 10am-5pm, Wed 10am-8pm, Sun 1pm-5pm, 1215 Lower Water Street The Science of Ripley’s Believe it or Not! The Discovery Centre continues to be the spot to spark your curiosity as it celebrates the wild world of Robert Ripley with an exhibit of “mind-boggling discoveries and eye-popping artifacts” and the stories behind them. To Apr 30 MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY 1747 Summer Street Dinosaurs Unearthed Billed as “an immersive exhibition that features dynamic scenes of life-size, lifelike animatronic dinosaurs, full-scale skeletons and fossils from around the world,” this show makes all your Jurassic dreams come true. To Apr 28
Other Spaces ART BAR 1873 Granville Street Hot Printz sale The NSCAD Print Club offers up fresh art at affordable prices with this show stuffed with all sorts of screen prints, lithography, intaglio, relief and more. Promises of wall hangings, zines, books, snacks and a 5pm happy hour round out the fun. Thu Apr 11, 2-8:30pm
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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 Gallop, 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 Imaging Consultant Kevin Cunningham
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! Traffic Why the fuck isn’t the city doing the road work at night, like all of Europe does? —Fiddler ❤ Cider cutie
The first time I noticed you was last summer, when your hair was a purple, hot mess. You had held the door open for me. I didn’t thank you, because fuck that patriarchal sentiment. I quickly walked past but only after checking you out cause damn you’re good-looking. Nowadays I can’t stop looking. You’ve caught me a few times and have smiled back. Should I say hi? Am I being weird? Should I have just said thanks? Haha nah! —Thirsty For Apples
❤ To my big dog (that’s gotta eat)
I hope to one day create a soup you will love more than your 3am pizza slices. Until then buckle up! We are in for a soupy ride. —Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop Soup Queen
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 you having to put your snow tires back on. Are you new? 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.
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Slumlord savings My neighbours and I haven’t had heat or hot water in three days thanks to our piece-of-shit slumlord who lets the oil tank run dry. I think he does this on purpose every now and then to save money. No tenants can use heat or hot water for a week, probably saving him a lot of money. Heat and hot water is included in the lease—I suggest you fill the fucking tank, asshole, before we make a group complaint with the tenancy board. If our rent was late, you’d sure make sure you show up on time. This bastard never does any repairs either, but pulls up in a BMW and takes many trips to Greece thoughout the year. Buck up or be sued. —I Curse The Ground You Walk On
Halifax offers a beer lifestyle on a champagne budget I had to leave Halifax because I could not afford to live there. I had a decent, professional job with full benefits and pension. I worked in the arts sector and made about $50,000 a year—not bad for midlevel position with a non-profit in NS (my counterparts in Ottawa made $70,000 a year for the same job). No matter, I thought that I could start “adulting.” stay in my home province and build a life here. Well, after student loan payments, I realized that I couldn’t afford the hefty $1,200-and-up a month which most one-bedroom rental units costs in this city. That was almost half a month’s net salary. (The taxes are pretty high here!) Landlords are now Airbnb hosts. I realized in this context, I would never be able to live without roommates, afford a car (and park it!) or save for a down payment on a property of my own. I worked hard to gain a promotion—I made a case for a raise. But the job scene is tough here and no matter how talented you are, there are limited positions which pay well and there are baby boomers who
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aren’t retiring. My only choice was to either find a partner who could share expenses with me (but you can’t rush love!) or move away. So now I live “out west.” The extra money I earn and the lower cost of living have made a big difference in my quality of life. I no longer feel like I’m living like a dirt-poor student with the responsibilities of a professional job. There are opportunities for career growth, promotions and lower taxes. Finally, I can enjoy the fruits of my labour. Adulting is nice—but I sure do miss my family in Nova Scotia. I don’t miss roommates and poverty and worry about having no financial future. What’s to be done, NS? —I Don’t Live Here Anymore!
What do we want to smoke this week? Brisket Salmon
❤ Home sweet home
Really good ice cream! Visible soil! Cool events! The Coast! Halifax, I missed you so much. No matter how many new buildings have popped up, how many new craters have appeared in the ground and how many people have up and left for Toronto, you are still the place for me. I am so happy to be home again, and not just because it means leaving a particularly dull neighbouring province. —Haligal Engaging in risky behaviour You two are absolutely vile and have the support of no one but the fools of this town. She’s the real MVP in all this, carrying an actual level of grace around with her in spite of your gross gimmick. We’re not buyin’ the bullshit and we’ll always like her most. —Grimm’s Fairytales Don’t Have Happy Endings
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More bitching Go online to post your rant at thecoast.ca/bitch
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Free Will Astrology Courage, Libra, advises ROB BREZSNY
Aries
(Mar 21-Apr 19)
The Qing Dynasty controlled China from the mid-17th century to the early 20th century. It was the fifth-biggest empire in world history. But eventually it faded, as all mighty regimes do. Revolution came in 1911, forcing the last emperor to abdicate and giving birth to the Republic of China. I’m inclined to think of your life in 2019 as having some similarities to that transition. It’s the end of one era and the beginning of another; a changing of the guard and a passing of the torch. The coming weeks will be a favourable time to be very active in deciding and visualizing the empire you want next. This week’s birthdays: Leah Hassin, Keelin Jack, Mary Lynk, Erin Oakes Send wishes to bday@thecoast.ca
Taurus
(Apr 20-May 20)
I hope that sometime soon you’ll acquire a new source of support or inspiration. Now is a phase of your astrological cycle when you’re likely to attract influences that are in alignment with your deep values. This addition might be a person or animal. It could be a vibrant symbol or useful tool. It may even be a fantasy character or departed ancestor that will stimulate vitality you haven’t been able to summon on your own. Be on the lookout for this enhancement.
Gemini
(May 21-Jun 20)
Poet David Hinton analyzed the Chinese word for “poetry.” Its etymological meaning is “words spoken at the fertility altar.” Let’s make that your theme, even if you don’t write or read poetry. I suspect the coming weeks will be a favourable time to take a vow or utter a solemn intention in front of a homemade fertility altar. The oath you speak might express a desire to boost your use of your physical vitality: Your lust for life, your adoration of the natural world or your power to produce new human life. Or your vow to foster your fertility could be more metaphorical and symbolic in nature: The imaginative intimacy you will explore or the creativity you’ll express in future works of art or the generous effects you want to have on the world.
Cancer
(Jun 21-Jul 22)
Christopher Robin Milne was the son of author A.A. Milne, who wrote the Winnie the Pooh stories. He said there are two ways to navigate through life. Either you “take a bearing on something in the future and steer towards it, or take a bearing on something in the past and steer away from it.” So in his view, “There are those who look ahead and pull and those who look behind and push.” I’m hoping that in the coming weeks and months, you will
make a delighted commitment to the first option: Taking a bearing on something in the future and steering towards it. I think that approach will inspire you toward the most interesting success.
Leo
(Jul 23-Aug 22)
The national animal of Finland is the brown bear. The national insect is the ladybug and the national instrument is a stringed instrument known as the kantele. As for the national author, it’s Aleksis Kivi, who produced just one novel that took him 10 years to write. He also published a short collection of odes and a few plays, adding up to a grand total of less than 800 pages of work. I think that the efforts you make in the coming weeks could have a disproportionately large impact, as well, Leo. What you lack in quantity will be irrelevant compared to the sheer quality you generate.
Virgo
(Aug 23-Sep 22)
I follow the blogger Evanescent Voyager because she makes me cry with sad joy and exultant poignance on a regular basis. One of her other fans wrote her a love note I could have written myself. It said, “Your emotional brilliance and thoughtful passion break me into pieces and then weave me back together with more coherence than I had before reading you. I revere your alchemical talent for undoing me so you can heal me; for lowering my defenses so I can be open to your riches; for demolishing my habitual trance so you can awaken my sleeping genius.” I believe that in the coming weeks, life itself will offer to perform these same services for you, Virgo. I urge you to accept!
Libra
(Sep 23-Oct 22)
“Love is no assignment for cowards.” That’s a quote attributed to the ancient Roman poet Ovid. What did he mean? Was he foreshadowing the wisdom of Pat Benatar, who in 1983 told us, “Love is a battlefield?” Was Ovid implying that to succeed in the amourous arts we must be heroic warriors prepared to overcome fears and risk psychological dangers? Probably. But I will also point out that it takes as much courage to create fun, interesting togetherness as it does to wrestle with the problems that togetherness brings. You need just as much bravura and panache to explore the sweet mysteries of intimacy as you do to explore the achy mysteries of intimacy. Keep these thoughts in mind as you marshal your audacity to deepen and expand your best relationships in the coming weeks.
Scorpio
(Oct 23-Nov 21)
The literal meaning of the French term jolie-laide is “pretty and ugly.” Bloggers at wordsnquotes.com define it as follows: “It’s a fascinating quirkiness that’s irresistible, like a face you want to keep looking at even if you can’t decide whether it is beautiful or not.” Jolie-laide overlaps with the Japanese term wabi-sabi, which describes a person or thing that is lovely because of its imperfection and incompleteness. I
bring these facts to your attention because I think you have extraordinary potential to be a master embodier of both jolie-laide and wabi-sabi in the coming weeks.
Sagittarius
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(Nov 22-Dec 21)
As Czech playwright Vaclav Havel (1936–2011) matured, he became a political dissident who opposed the Soviet Union’s authoritarian grip on his country. Eventually he was a key player in the Velvet Revolution that banished communism. When Czechoslovakia emerged as a new democracy, its people elected him president. Havel later thanked Lou Reed and the Velvet Underground for fully awakening his liberationist leadership. He said their unruly music stoked his longing to establish a culture where total creative freedom was possible. I mention this, Sagittarius, because now is a favourable time to identify the music or art or films or literature that might fuel your emancipation in the coming months.
Capricorn
(Dec 22-Jan 19)
Capricorn author J.R.R. Tolkien toiled on his masterpiece The Lord of the Rings for 12 years. Once he finished, it wasn’t published for more than five years. So 17 years passed between the time he launched his precious project and the time when it reached an audience. I don’t think you will need that much patience in shepherding your own venture to full expression, Capricorn. But I hope you’ll summon as much faith in yourself as Tolkien had to rouse in himself. To do so will bring out the best in you!
Aquarius
(Jan 20-Feb 18)
Released in 1998, The Prince of Egypt is an animated film that tells the story of the Hebrew prophet Moses. In the climactic event, the hero uses magic to part the waters of the Red Sea, allowing his people to run across the sea floor and escape the army that’s chasing them. To make that seven-minute scene, 28 professional animators laboured for 318,000 hours. In the coming months, you could create your own version of that marvel, Aquarius. But you’ll need a team to help you, and that team is not yet ready to go. The coming weeks will be a favourable time to get it ready, though.
Pisces
(Feb 19-Mar 20)
Piscean businessman Steve Jobs testified that taking LSD was “one of the two or three most important things” he ever did in his life. It opened his mind in ways he felt were crucial to his development. What are the three most important things you’ve ever done, Pisces? I invite you to revisit at least one of them, and see if you can take it to the next step of its power to inspire you. What if it has even more to offer you in your efforts to become the person you want to be? 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
Catfishing for advice I’m engaged in an online emotional affair. My husband doesn’t know I have a boyfriend and vice versa. Now what? a heteroflexible married cis woman Q I’m in my 40s. I’m also a POS cheater and
a catfish. I really fucked up. One year ago, I met an older man in an online fetish forum. He sent me an unsolicited PM, and we have talked for hours every day since then. My husband, whom I’ve been married to for more than 20 years, does not know that I am having an emotional affair. I have no intention of telling my husband what I’ve done. I have been honest with my online boyfriend about everything except my name, my age and the fact that I have a husband. (I know those are all really big things to lie about.) My boyfriend lied to me early on about his name, age and relationship status, but came clean out of guilt. So I had the opportunity to say that I lied too, but I didn’t take it. I know what I’m doing is wrong. My husband would be very hurt if he knew. And my boyfriend, who wants to make a life together, would be very hurt as well. I’m in love with both men, but I’m not leaving my husband. I know the only right thing to do is break things off with my boyfriend. I’ve tried multiple times: I’ve told him that he is better off without me, that I’m a bad person and that he shouldn’t trust me. Each time, he convinces me to stay. We have not been physical. We have never even been in the same room, much to his dismay. I have thought about telling him the truth, but I am worried about my safety, and I do not want to hurt him any worse than I already have. Plus, I’m a fucking coward. I am in treatment for PTSD. My therapist believes that my actions are a coping mechanism—it’s easier to pretend to be someone else than it is to be me. I don’t think she’s wrong, but I also don’t think it excuses what I’ve done. How do I end this relationship without doing any more damage to my two partners?
—Conning And Tricking For Intensely Selfish Haven
A
Far be it from me to question your therapist’s assessment—she’s spoken with you on multiple occasions, and her insights are doubtless more informed—but I think her framing falls short. She describes your actions as a coping mechanism: You told a stranger lies and abused your husband’s trust to escape your miserable life. If you weren’t so fucking miserable—if other people and/or circumstances hadn’t conspired to make you so fucking miserable—you wouldn’t have done this. You wouldn’t be doing this still. But despite your therapist’s efforts to help you down off that hook, CATFISH, you seem determined to hang there. She’s offering you absolution, in whole or in part, while you stand around flagellating
yourself (“POS cheater,” “fucking coward,” “bad person”). Personally, I think you’re entitled to your feelings. Go ahead and feel terrible. You did a bad thing. It’s not the worst thing someone’s ever done online, and most people know not to take what a stranger tells them on the internet at face value. But if feeling terrible doesn’t motivate you to make changes…well, it’s not for me to question your sincerity. But some people think it’s OK to do terrible things so long as they have the decency to feel terrible about having done them. If you’re not one of those people—if you actually feel bad—doing something about it and learning something from it will alleviate your misery. Here’s what you need to do: End things with your boyfriend. Write him an email, tell him the truth about your age, marital status and unavailability. Don’t share your real name with him; you’re under no obligation to do so, and if he turns out to be the vindictive type, CATFISH, you don’t want him to have your real identity. Apologize for not coming clean when he did—he lied to you too at the start— and thank him for the pleasure of his virtual company and the joy he brought to your life. Then block him. Here’s what you need to learn: You didn’t do this because you’re miserable—or you didn’t do it just because you’re miserable. You did this because it was fun. We call it “play” when children pretend to be someone or something they’re not; child’s play is also, yes, a coping mechanism. Vulnerable children pretend to be big and powerful superheroes and/or monsters to cope with and momentarily escape their relative powerlessness. And nothing makes a child’s playful fantasy feel more real than a good friend who plays along. Most adults don’t make time for play—most of us aren’t LARPers or kinksters—but even adults need play, and some adults need play more than others. You found a space where you could play (that online fetish forum), and you found a playmate who helped make your fantasies feel real (a guy you’ve never actually met and who could still be lying to you about all sorts of things). It got out of hand when arousal, orgasms, oxytocin and promises you couldn’t keep got stirred into the mix. The play made you feel better at first, but the dishonesty and stress of deceiving two people eventually wiped out the benefits you were getting. You need to find a way to build some play into your life, sexual and/or non-sexual, that doesn’t require you to lie or hide. It would be great if you could do that with your husband, CATFISH, but if he’s not willing or able to play with you, get his OK to play on your own. a
On the Lovecast, WEED = BETTER ORGASMS FOR WOMEN. YAY SCIENCE! Listen at thecoast .ca/savage 18 • APRIL 11 – APRIL 17, 2019 •
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