Sneeze!
Communicate the best in Ottawa.
When I discover something great about Ottawa, I like to communicate the discovery to others.
If you have a recommendation for me to check out, let me know. If I’m impressed, I will write about it and share it via social media.
Email me the recommendation or comment on one of the posts.
Would you like to write your own sneeze? If I accept your sneeze, I will post it on this blog and share it on Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, and (eventually) YouTube.
Interested? Learn more.
Question, comment, or personal recommendation? Email me: sterling@OttawaSneezers.com.
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ON TUMBLR
I’m looking forward to this. I already have my tickets for the Thursday night performance.
I don’t know much of anything about ballet, other than I like it. Based on the write-up and a couple of reviews I looked at, I think this will be fun.
Plus, Marie Antoinette seems to be all the rage these days. :)
- Sterling Lynch
I’m looking forward to Plosive’s production of Daniel MacIvor’s How it Works.
Two out of the three MacIvor play I have seen are entertaining, accessible and smart. In other words, very enjoyable.
Director Stewart Matthews has done some good work. I’m also a big fan of Michelle LeBlanc.
All in all, this production looks promising and I will be there opening night.
The production runs at the Gladstone Theatre, from October 5–20.
I’m a big fan of John Carroll — both his music and the guy.
When he plays with his band, it’s always a treat.
I’ve even seen he and band play at the Black Sheep and I can say — with the authority of experience — that it’s worth the ride out there. Take the bus and drink freely.
If John Carroll is new to you, check out his residency show at the Chateau Lafayette on any given Wednesday and pick up tickets for the bus, after you are duly impressed.
- Sterling
I’ve dropped in on the Improvising Musicians of Ottawa/Outaouais’ Sunday night concerts, more than once.
It’s not a typical musical event. It’s not a typical Sunday night event either.
I’ve always enjoyed it. They are a friendly bunch of organizers, too.
It turns out they are putting a festival together [Oct.5 - 6].
- Sterling Lynch
If the Sunday night event is any indication, it should be a fun couple of days.
A couple of Saturdays ago, I had an inkling to get my dance on, but didn’t know where to get my fix.
I appealed to Twitter and @orenmazor recommended Ritual as good choice for any given Saturday night. I will check it out in the near future, for sure.
What do you think? Have you been?
Chinatown and Little Italy are two of the most prominent areas in Ottawa. Nestled right beside each other, their proximities create an intriguing multicultural blend and makes it a community like none other in the city. On Wednesday, February 5th and 6th, join us as we take you to eateries through these two vibrant cultural communities. Don’t wait, get your tickets now!
It’s a guessing game! We’re keeping the names of the restaurants we will be visiting a secret for now, but here and there we’ll give you some hints. Follow us on Twitter @DishcrawlOTT and be the first to know!
Where to Meet Us: All ticket holders will be notified of meeting location via email, 48 hours prior to the event.
I’m a Vegetarian: Vegetarian options are available, however we may not be able to accommodate other dietary restrictions. If you have any particular requests or have questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
Cancellation Policy: Cancellations are taken only if given 48 hours advance notice. All Dishcrawl events are held rain or shine.
Questions?: Contact me! I’m Mat, your Ottawa Dishcrawl Ambassador! My email is matw@dishcrawl.com.
About Dishcrawl: Food, Fun, and Exploration! We here at Dishcrawl aim to provide you with a premier culinary social experience by bringing together neighborhood restaurants, local chefs, regional food producers and fellow food enthusiasts. Join us if you’d like to embark on a one-of-a-kind gastronomic adventure!
Here is my “sneeze” for Svengali, showing at the NAC this weekend: http://www.julieharrison.ca/media/royal-winnipeg-ballets-svengali-an-amateurs-review/
ART SHOW and sale of bill bissett paintings
+ launch of new book ‘textual vishyuns: image and text in the work of bill bissett’ by Carl Peters http://talonbooks.com/books/textual-vishyuns
5 to 6:30pm
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Avant-Garde Bar
135 1/2 Besserer Street
Ottawa, Ontario
Artist in attendance
Free admission
The Green Door Restaurant presents “One Two Tree”, a solo exhibition by Ottawa printmaker Rozemarijn Oudejans, celebrating the UN International Year of Forests.
Woodcuts, etchings and photographs of tree trunks, bark, leaves, branches, seeds and silhouettes portray forest giants and garden dwellers and show the importance of these green lungs of the earth.
On display: November 20 to December 31, 2011
Green Door Restaurant
198 Main Street, Ottawa
Open: Tuesday – Sunday 11:00am to 9:00pm
More information:
http://www.rozemarijnoudejans.com
http://www.Printster.etsy.com
http://www.facebook.com/Printster
http://www.facebook.com/events/114066155374325/
The Branch Restaurant in Kemptville presents:
The Frank & Birdie Show @ 7pm no cover; Country folk, both original & traditional provided by a local duo on banjo and guitar. If you are a fan of John Prine, Lyle Lovette, Iris Dement & Gillian Whelch, you’ll dig this show! Old fashioned music with characters!
In Concert
TOKYO TAIGA
World music power trio makes North American debut in the A B Series
The A B Series presents the North American premiere of Koichi Makigami with TOKYO TAIGA. Preceding their appearance at the 27th Festival International de Musique Actuelle in Victoriaville, Québec, members – pyrotechnic vocalist Koichi Makigami (Japan), traditional Altaic throat singer Bolot Bairyshev (Russia) and percussionist Massa Sato (Japan) – debut their world music collaboration in Ottawa at the National Arts Centre’s Fourth Stage on May 18, 2011 at 7:30pm.
Experience the extraordinary work of Koichi Makigami and TOKYO TAIGA live at this exclusive engagement in Ottawa!
with an introductory set by Tara Holloway
Ten percent of ticket proceeds support the Canadian Red Cross Japan Earthquake/Asia-Pacific Tsunami Appeal
Check out the A B Series website http://abseries.org for more information. Tickets available at the National Arts Centre’s box office.
Local Ottawa author and civil servant Christian McPherson is signing his two new books at Collected Works on Sunday, May 8, from 1 to 3pm.
He’ll sign his debut novel The Cube People, which pokes fun at government cubicle culture as only a civil servant can. And his new poetry collection, The Sun has Forgotten Where I Live.
Call Collected Works at (613) 722-1265 for more info!
Thoroughly enjoyed The Middle Place, presented at Ottawa’s Great Canadian Theatre Company (GCTC). The format of documentary theatre was really intriguing and was an ideal format to present the lives of these young people and those who work with them. The skill level of the acting was excellent — with a couple of standouts. Definitely worth catching before the show closes out tomorrow! http://www.gctc.ca/plays/next-season/the-middle-place
Thanks for your sneeze, Julie!
Only 4 more shows of Observe the Sons of Ulster Marching Towards The Somme at Ottawa Little Theatre. 8pm Curtain. This is the type of show you rarely see at OLT – lyrical, visually stunning, poetic, Powerful! Amazing sets by Robin Riddihough and David Magladry. Featuring some very talented young (and young at heart) men. “This powerful play centres on the experiences of eight Irish men who volunteer to serve in the 36th (Ulster) Division at the beginning of the First World War. Moving from the home front to the trenches, the play reaches a climax at the start of the terrible battle of the Somme.” Directed by award winning Director Tom Taylor. Tickets $24 http://www.ottawalittletheatre.com
I just saw, in Victoria, as part of the Spark Festival at the Belfry Theatre (http://www.sparkfestival.ca) a most wonderful piece “The Middle Place” http://www.themiddleplace.ca by the Humanity Project. http://www.humanityproject.ca
Powerful, insightful, and human, “The Middle Place” tells the stories of inhabitants of a youth shelter in Toronto, in their words.
I had never heard of “verbatim theatre” before, and was more than impressed by the intersection of “story” and “acting”.
How does the playwright winnow hours of video-taped testimony to find the nuggets that connect us to this often voiceless population? And how do the actors remain true to the essence of these stories?
The true power of the arts, in my opinion, is to shine a light on the human condition, explore those collective darker corners where most of us do not want to go, and unite us in our common experience.
“The Middle Place” does just that.
Go see it! It’s in Ottawa March 29th – April 17th
For Tickets:
http://www.gctc.ca/plays/next-season/the-middle-place
Support a local poet and have a great time while you’re at it! Shane Rhodes is launching his fourth poetry collection, Err, at The Manx Pub as part of the Plan 99 Reading Series on Saturday, April 2, beginning at 5:30pm. Free Admission. For more information, call The Manx at (613) 231-2070.
Sex, booze, war and wordplay combine loquaciously in Err, a distinctive collection that shakes up a verbal cocktail of vibrant musicality. It’s funny, it’s heart-breaking, and it’s wordplay at its finest.
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Lovers of music and storytelling will be delighted by Ottawa’s renowned storytelling oboist Angela Casagrande and Ottawa’s best-known collaborative pianists, Amélie Langlois at a benefit concert for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Canada. February 26, 7:30 in Freiman Hall at the University of Ottawa. The concert includes repertoire by Fiocco, Verdi, Arban, and Monti, plus Angela’s stories about the music, musicians, and life as an oboist. Tickets, $20, or $10 for students and seniors, are available at The Leading Note on Elgin St. and at the door.
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Basement Artists kicks down the doors of 2011 with their BIG ROCK SHOW. Happening January 29th from 7 – 10:30 PM at Babylon Nightclub on Bank St., the BIG ROCK SHOW promises to deliver dozens of local media artists showcasing their talents as well as three hard-rockin’ musical acts headlined by Toronto band Matt Groupie and the Bandits. Tickets are $15 at the door. 19+. Support local artists and join us for a show unlike anything else you’ve ever seen!
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NAC’s NATIVITY: A Coyote’s Christmas
Great show that has: story, character, image, music, dance, morals, the Bible, coyotes, dance, and, most of all, HUMOUR. The “festive” breaking of the 4th wall was excellent (personal favourite moment: Herod points at ME and angrily snaps that my “joy will be short-lived!” while I crack up laughing). Many terrific performances with copious warm-and-fuzzy. Great job, NAC, and Merry Christmas, Ottawa!
If you consider yourself to be a young alternative person, you will feel right at home at the Carleton Tavern to watch a seriously raunchy and funny bit of local history. With a series of monologues describing various character’s reactions to religious and sexual norms in the neighbourhood, this play has people screaming with laughter. Like seriously reporting that their cheeks hurt by the end. And to be able to drink and eat (yummers) while you watch makes a really different and entertaining night out.
http://chambertheatrehintonburg.ca/
If you missed the production that put Third Wall Theatre on the map now is your chance to hear the beautiful imagery that T.S. Eliot paints in Murder In The Cathedral. Third Wall is remounting it in a staged reading. Some of the most powerful passages ever written. Who can deny the strength of lines like “I have smelt them, the death bringers…” http://www.thirdwall.com for more info
Come visit 45 local authors and artists at the Ottawa Authors and Artisans Fair, this Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 20 and 21, from 10 AM to 5 PM. Ideas for gifts galore. Drop by Rona Shaffran’s table and enjoy her new book, titled Cistern of my Body – readable, illustrated poems on the subjects of passion, disillusion and intimacy, which all weave together, just as they do in our lives.
The Fair will be held this year at Dominican University College, 96 Empress Ave, near Somerset and Bronson. Free admission. Wheelchair accessible. Local artists and authors display and sell books and art. Free public tours of this beautiful building and its antique books. Refreshments available. Local authors make presentations.
For a full schedule, please go to http:/www.dominicancollege.ca/
You will want to hear the poetry, stories, news events, history and genealogy through the voices of members of the Coutu family from 1672 when Claudia Coutu Radmore’s seventh great-grandmother came to New France as a fille du Roi, until 1792, when another long-ago relative tells what life is like under English rule, with books coming in to the colony, two Gazettes, the Royal Golf Club, restaurants, and Molson’s Brewery changing the face of life in Montreal. Claudia will read from a ‘minute or two/ without remembering’ at Mother Tongue Bookstore, Thursday November 25, 7 for 7:30, and Read’s Book Store, Carleton Place, Friday November 26th, 7 for 7:30.
Some of the world’s greatest storytellers will be in Ottawa for the new international Ottawa Storytelling Festival. This is your chance to experience the oldest and newest of performance arts: Britain’s Ben Haggerty with a Steam Punk Frankenstein; Choctow teller Tim Tingle with a story about the youngest prisoner ever in Alcatarz; Ivan Coyote with her wry funny, deeply touching, very cool stories of growing up in the Yukon and last but not least national treasure Anita Best, singing and telling the old stories of Newfoundland as though they are happening to all of us now and today.
I am stoked to see the “Best Worst Movie/Troll 2” double bill tonight at the Mayfair Theatre starting at 9:30pm. “Troll 2” is described as “the holy grail of bad movies” and an “anti-classic.” Bad can be good, even great. After seeing the wonderful/horrible movie “The Room” I know this. “Best Worst Movie” is an award-winning documentary about “Troll 2” that has been featured in numerous film festivals.
This event features discounted pricing for non-members, and one of the stars of the movie will be in attendance. There will be St. Ambroise beer on tap. Worth staying up late for!
http://mayfairtheatre.ca/movies/Troll-2/
http://mayfairtheatre.ca/movies/Best-Worst-Movie/
40 men on stage at the same time? Has that ever been done before in the independent theatre scene in Ottawa? I’m not sure, but I do know that I am curious to see how it turns out.
David Hersh brings an ambitious project simply called ‘I’ to The Gladstone (910 Gladstone Ave.) from November 18 to 27. Based on Eugene Ionesco’s The Lesson, it features the critically acclaimed Emmanuelle Zeesman (Blood Brothers/Andrew’s Brothers) & Andy Massingham (Blood Brothers/How The Other Half Loves), as well as a 40 man chorus that spans the ages of 15 to 65 and includes a variety of performers from across the city.
Over half the tickets for the run have already been sold, so don’t delay and get yours now: http://thegladstone.ca/
Saturday night I went to the Mayfair Theatre and saw the documentary “JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT: RADIANT CHILD”. I knew about Basquiat’s existence, but after seeing this movie, I realized how little I really knew. Basically, he started off as a penniless street kid doing graffiti, and not long after became a rich & famous artist.
Unfortunately, his story has a tragic ending. This movie is not just about art, it’s about creativity, business, celebrity, and race. It’s really fascinating, and inspiring too.
Basically, anyone who is interested in art should see it, and tonight is your last chance. Showtime is 9:45pm.
You like alternative rock? I like alternative rock? Who the hell doesn’t like alternative rock? How about alternative rock by a local indy band? How about FREE alternative rock by a local indy band? Well, the Ottawa-based band “First of June,” fronted by the team of Vanessa Laurin and Stephane Danis, have released a new album titled “All Is Well That Ends!” that’s available as a FREE download to anyone. You can find it at http://www.facebook.com/firstofjune
More info about the band at http://www.firstofjune.com/
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