"CHINESE VANCOUVER THEN AND NOW: 1972-2010"

Tuesday, March 9, 2010
7-9 pm
Alice MacKay Room, Vancouver Public Library, Central Branch
OPERA SPEAKS @ VPL -


Admission is free.

An eminent panel explores the history of Chinese in Vancouver, with
emphasis on the Chinese communities' emergence and development since
1972, the year of Nixon's momentous trip to China. Discover how our
city has been shaped and transformed by Chinese culture over the past
38 years. This will be a fascinating evening. Speakers include eminent
architect Bing Thom, UBC historian Henry Yu, and filmmaker and writer Colleen Leung.

Presented in partnership with the Vancouver Public Library.
Opera Speaks @ VPL is sponsored by Omni BC Diversity Television. http://www.vancouveropera.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=255&Itemid=15

Winter Olympics invited countries from around to the world to multicultural Vancouver, but cultural diversity was missing in the Opening and Closing ceremonies.

Apparently the opening ceremonies did feature performers of cultural diversity.  But we missed it.

Only before the televised official opening... ("Miss Jully Black to the back of the bus please")... not "Canadian" enough to be televised.... and February is Black History month in Canada!

Read Vancouver Sun Pete McMartin's review of the opening ceremonieshttp
http://www2.canada.com/vancouversun/news/westcoastnews/story.html?id=195883fa-d774-4385-9365-2cda2e55e631

The Closing Ceremonies were promised to include more French content, and to feature Canadian humour and myth-busting of Canadian stereotypes.

Vancouver's cultural diversity was represented in the hundreds of jumping Grade 9ers holding snowboards in the opening sequence.  My First Nations 2nd cousin was there - his mother was very proud.  But all the featured performers were White - with the exception of K-OS.  And most of the volunteer performers of colour were dressed as hip-hop dancers, instead mounties, lumberjacks and hockey players.  Because there are no Asian hockey players in the NHL - but that's another Canadian Myth that's been busted since Larry Kwong played one game in the NHL in 1948, 10 years before Willie O'Ree became the first black hockey player in 1958.

A Few days later the same Pete McMartin quoted Tung Chan in an opinion piece -
Opinion - An Olympic Games as white as snow
http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/2010wintergames/Opinion+Olympic+Games+white+snow/2620782/story.html

But read the comments to the above piece, or to Craig Takeuchi's pieces in the Georgia Straight.
2010 Olympic closing ceremony: Why wasn't there any aboriginal content?
or
Vancouver 2010 Olympics: The Great White, er, Multicultural North?

Despite all the crowd cheering, street filling patriotism, when Canada wins a gold medal hockey game, there is still a dark anonymous racism that haunts all the internet comments, and rears its head at any hint of "affirmative action" or ethnic inclusion.

This is the next story.   This is the next stage of insight. 

The aim of the Closing ceremonies was to have some fun, poking fun at Canadian stereotypes, and doing some "myth busting."  But one of the myths that got reinforced is that Canada is White.  Despite generations of immigration from all around the world, Canada cannot find a performer of colour good enough to speak at or perform at and during the Closing ceremonies. 

Would it have hurt Canadians if one of the chorus line lumberjacks, mounties, or hockey players had been a shade of colour other than white?  Would we have heard a chorus of boos, if one of the mounties had worn a turban?

We know that racial discrimination in sports can be cruel to kids growing up, so it can't be a wonder why our top athletes are mostly White.  But we have succeeded in the Arts.

Where was Indo-Canadian comedian Russell Peters?
Canadians of multi-ethnicity are cool and sexy.  What better examples do we have than actors Kristin Kreuk of Smallville?  or Lisa Ray of Bollywood?  Even Keanu Reeves primarily grew up in Toronto, despite being born in Lebanon - but we didn't hold Steve Nash's birthplace of South Africa against him.

First Nations actors Graham Green and Tantoo Cardinal were good enough for "Dances with Wolves" but not for the Closing Ceremonies?  And Tantoo just received her Order of Canada too...

Our authors Joy Kogawa, Thomas King are amongst the most studied authors in our Canadian high schools, colleges and universities. Wayson Choy and 7th generation descendant of Black Loyalists
George Elliot Clarke are also amongst our most loved - these four authors also are Order of Canada recipients.

We are not saying that Canada should enforce racial inclusivity guidelines for its sports teams.  But we are saying that the closing ceremonies lacked the representation of Canada's population, and it reinforced every sad stereotype of Canada.  Alongside the Mounties, lumberjacks, beavers and moose was the sad realization that Canada is only populated by White people, despite multi-generations of accepting people from all over the world.

And where are the bagpipes?

Canada's first Prime Minister, BC's first Premier, and Vancouver's first mayor were all born in Scotland.  Has the former largest ethnic group of Vancouver so much assimilated into mainstream culture, that they have forgotten their ethnic roots?

The SFU Pipes and Drums is the six time and current World Champion pipe band.  There are more bagpipers in Canada then there are in Scotland - or is this a Canadian myth that we are not proud of?

Bagpipers have performed with Uzume Taiko, and Delhi 2 Dublin, - two internationally recognized examples of cultural fusion music happening in Vancouver.  To me, these are the examples of performers that should have been featured at the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, demonstrating how Canadians have come from all over the world, put aside our racial differences, and blend our cultures, and our shared our histories together. 

This is the Canada that I am proud of - not the beer swigging garage band party music that was featured - without any relevance to the historic Olympic successes that we witnessed over the past 17 days

2009 featured photos in exhibits at Royal BC Museum and Scottish Parliament. Other highlights included the inaugural writer in residence program at Historic Joy Kogawa House, and Todd Wong's first visit to Scotland for the finale weekend of Homecoming Year. And there was the 250th anniversary of poet Robert Burns.    more »

Origami Master Joseph Wu also has a sense of humor to accompany his nimble fingers and creative mind. A few years ago he created a design called "When Pigs Have Wings" which I first saw at the Pacific Origami Conference at the Hotel Vancouver in November 2007   more »

Over 50 artists were featured at the Vancouver 2010 Aboriginal Art Exhibition at Canada Place in Vancouver BC, Oct 17/18. It's a two day free exhibition with sales to the public. On Friday evening, a live auction of highlighted artworks was held with proceeds going towards the Vancouver 2010 Aboriginal Youth Legacy Fund.   more »

August Dinner at Foo's Ho Ho

Theatre Under the Stars at Malkin Bowl in Stanley Park

July 15 to Aug. 22

Tickets $32 to $39,

www.tuts.ca

Falling in love is one of the most wonderful things in life.  There's lots of "falling in love" in the Thoroughly Modern Millie production by Theatre Under the Stars.  This makes it a wonderful choice to see with a date.

Diana Kaarina is wonderful as the title character Millie Dumount, who hops off a bus from Kansas and makes her way in New York City.  Set in 1922, Millie decides to find a rich husband, by seducing her boss.  Trouble is, first she has to get a job, and a place to live.. 

Millie settles in at the Hotel Priscilla, a place for young women.  It's on the wrong side of 42nd St., and run by the very strange Mrs. Meers - who may be Chinese or not.  Millie has a series of adventures that include getting a job as a stenographer, going to a speakeasy during prohibition, getting arrested, and going to a fabulous party in the penthouse suite of socialite Muzzy van Hossmere.

Everything about this musical is campy, and over the top.  The music is a pastiche of well-known melodies from other productions.  The plot contains misplaced identities, misunderstood intentions, star-crossed lovers, and a kidnapping.  But the wonderful dancing and singing numbers make you forget that everything seems cliched.  Indeed, Thoroughly Modern Millie is designed to pay homage to old musicals, with tongue-in-cheek fun.

Diana Kaarina brings a lot of experience to this production.  She created the role of Miss Dorothy Brown (Millie's BFF) for the First National tour of Thoroughly Modern Millie (2003).  Kaarina brings lots of Broadway experience, having been the closing Eponine in Les Miserables (2003) and also playing roles in Rent and The Phantom of the Opera.

Kaarina brings a touching humaness to the character of Millie.  She isn't just the talk-talking gold digger who wants to marry her boss, but she also cares for her friends and is willing to make sacrifices.

All the lead roles are played well.  Meaghan Anderssen plays the ditzy Miss Dorothy Brown with great comic aplomb, which she did so very well in last year's TUTS production of Annie Get Your Gun.

Danny Balkwill plays Jimmy Smith, the poor but dashing young son of a gardener.  Audience members might recognize him as one of the competitors in Canadian Idol. 

Seth Drabinsky plays Trevor Graydon, the boss that Millie wants to marry.  Drabinsky excells in elocution, as he sings "The Speed Test" which is a Gilbert & Sullivan parody, complete with Busby Berkeley styled dancing.  Wow!

I didn't expect to see Asian-Canadian actors or Asian characters in Thoroughly Modern Millie.  But it was there in subtle ways... and not so subtle ways.  The program points out that lead actor Diana Kaarina is Half -Finnish and Half-Chinese. Either way, she is still a beauty, similar to Smallville actor Kristin Kreuk who ancestry is Half-Dutch/Half-Chinese.

The subplot involves the character of Mrs. Meers who runs the Hotel Priscilla, and also employs two Chinese henchmen for a side business of kidnapping.  Sarah Rodgers is over the top, as Mrs. Meers - so highly unbelievable character, that she can only exist in a musical.  Aaron Lau and Daeyoung Danny Kim play the characters of Ching Ho and Bun Foo.  They strive to make the characters realistic, speaking in only Chinese, and also performing some martial arts moves on stage.

While I found it refreshing to see Asian actors playing authentic Chinese characters speaking good Chinese, without being traditionally stereotyped. The stereotypes still persisted in other ways.

Racial stereotypes of Chinese in Thoroughly Modern Millie

I was shocked that this musical contained lots of out-dated Chinese stereotypes including: a Chinese laundry, kidnapping for white slavery, bad Chinese accents, and a female actor in "white face" playing a white woman masquerading as a Chinese woman. Much less culturally sensitive than Robert Downey Jr playing a black man in Tropic Thunder

Part of the sub-plot is that white girls are sold into white slavery and shipped off to China, by the character of Mrs. Meers, a white woman dressed up as a Chinese woman - who doesn't even have a proper Chinese accent - She keeps mis-prounouncing her "L's" as "R's"

She keeps saying things like "Ssssso saaaad, to be arrrr arrrrone in dis worrrrld"

I realize that this is supposed to be a fun frothy romp, and every character is stereotyped to extreme measures...

Actual Asian ethnic actors play the Asian roles and do NOT speak in bad Chinese accents - but actually in good Cantonese.  The play makes fun of the stereotypes...

But I still felt uncomfortable watching the perpetuation of racist stereotypes in this way.  There are many people in today's audience who don't realize the origins of such stereotypes, nor the harm that was caused over decades of racism.

Check out what the Asian American theatre review had to say about the two Chinese henchmen, singing "Mammy" in Chinese - originally sung by Al Jolson, wearing a "black face" when he played a black man on stage.
http://www.aatrevue.com/Old/Millie.html

The original movie was made in 1967 starring Julie Andrews and Mary Tyler Moore. Japanese-American actor comics Jack Soo and Pat Morita played the Chinese henchmen. The Broadway musical debuted in 2002, with the roles of the Chinese henchmen expanded. They only speak in proper Chinese. It's the white actress playing a white woman who disguises ... Read Moreherself as a pastiche of Asian stereotypes and accents. The purpose was to "cleverly" make fun of racial stereotypes. Almost every character is stereotyped to extremes in this post-modern Broadway musical.

It's arguable that the perpetuation of stereotypes in any form is still de-humanizing and destructive OR have we come far enough that we should be able to recognize such stereotypes for what they are, and be able to laugh at the stupidity and ridiculousness of the people who perpetuate them?

The best use of "Clever" parodying of racial stereotypes was in Marty Chan's "Mom, Dad, I'm Living With A White Girl." The stereotypes take place in the main character's dream about him mother and father becoming a dragon lady and her loyal henchman. In this case, the context is about racial and cultural stereotypes, and easily understood by the ... Read Moreaudience.

But in Millie, while the 2 Chinese characters are played very straight and respectful, speaking in good cantonese, and humourously holding up sheets of laundry for a clever display of "subtitles" - The fact remains that they are still Chinese laundry workers, part of a "white slavery" kidnapping operation.

The character of Mrs. Henessey is still a white woman pretending to be Asian, by wearing a "painted face", speaking mixed up Asian accent, and perpetuating stereotypes.  Check out youtube portrayals of Mrs. Meers.
http://www.youtube.com/results?feature=moby&search_query=thoroughly+modern+millie+they+don%27t+know&search_type=&aq=0&oq=thoroughly+modern+millie+they+d

Otherwise - the cast is GREAT!
And the lead who plays the title character Millie Dumont is Broadway veteran, Vancouver born Diana Kaarina, half-Chinese and half-Finnish.

Other reviews

Vancouver Sun review: Millie shines in a show burdened by too much business

Georgia Straight: Thoroughly Modern Millie full of relentless enthusiasm

Gay Vancouver Review: Thoroughly Modern Millie is throughouly enjoyable | Theatre

Flower Drum Song makes you laugh and sing...
It's Rogers and Hammerstein in 1950's San Francisco Chinatown!

May 29-June 14
Waterfront Theatre
Directed by Rick Tae
Produced by Joyce Lam
Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre
www.vact.ca

This VACT production is amazing, it should become a Vancouver regular.  Who knew Asian Canadians could put on such a good song and dance musical, worthy of being included into "Theatre Under the Stars" or at any of Metro Vancouver's stages. 

Actor Jimmy Yi is a knockout!  He plays Sammy Fong the night club owner who might or might not get married to Linda Low, played coquettishly by Lannette New.  But Linda might also marry Wang Ta, played by Isaac Kwok.  Or Ta might marry Mei Li (Rosie Simon).  And somebody else also has a crush on Ta.  Sound confused?  You should be.  It's a classic Love triangle times 2 with some great songs and dance numbers thrown in.

But then there is also Ta's father Wang Chi Yang, played by BC Lee (now known as the former Vancouver City Councilor), who wants to lay down the family law as he insists that Ta should be married, and sets out to set up a traditional Chinese style arranged marriage.  Gee... Sammy Fong has a picture order bride just arrived into town... how convenient.

Jimmy Yi as Sammy Fong with Lannette New as Linda Low - photo courtesy of VACT

Okay... forget that the characters and the setting are Asians in San Francisco's Chinatown.  This could be a plot similar to Shakespeare's As You Like It, or Gershwin's Girl Crazy, or Lerner and Lowe's Brigadoon, or Rogers and Hammerstein's South Pacific.  Love, trying to find the right person, and the ensuing moral dilemmas are universal themes in every language and culture. 

Flower Drum Song originally debuted in 1958 on Broadway with dance great Gene Kelly choreographing the moves.  This Rogers and & Hammerstein musical has everything.  Dancing, singing, corny jokes, love stories... and controversy!  It's a classic tale of old traditions versus assimilation into the New World. Addressing social issues within the Broadway musical format is the legacy of Rogers and Hammerstein.  They aptly addressed racism, sexism and classism with their hits Oklahoma, Carousel, The King and I, South Pacific and The Sound of Music. In particular, The Sound of Music addressed how some Austrians objected to Nazi Germany taking over their country prior to WW2.  The King & I addressed how the kingdom of Siam dealt with and resisted the growing colonialism of Asia by European nations.

Set in 1950's era San Francisco, this VACT production addresses the nostalgia of the era.  Director Rick Tae has found the balance for the show in a post-modern politically correct environment, by willingly playing up the campiness of the 50's beatnik era language.

It is the older brother Ta (Isaac Kwok), the first born son, that is caught in the middle.  He wants to please his father, but he also wants to forge his own identity.  Kwok is a recent graduate from Capilano University's Musical Theatre program and does a good job in the lead role, singing and acting his way between the show's generation and love match issues.  His strong voice and good looks should could easily find him cast in leads for Brigadoon and other shows. 

Lannette New has a tough job, living up to the role of Linda Low played so excellently by Nancy Kwan in the 1961 movie.  The Low character is flamboyant role of a night club performer - sexy and independent - not your typical Chinese daughter-in-law material. New reigns in the energy with sweetness and presence.

With Vancouver's huge Chinese population, you would think ethnic Chinese actors would get tired of the perennial stereotypecasting playing Chinese waiters, kung fu baddies, chinadolls and gangsters.  But where do people get the chance to expand their horizons and resume lists?

For the past 10 years, Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre has been producing plays to showcase Asian Canadian talent, and feature works by North American Asian playwrights such as David Henry Hwang.  Asian comedy nights have become annual features that grew into sketch comedy contests.  The Sex in Vancouver series was adapted from the Sex in Seattle series originated by Kathy Hsieh and Serin Ngai's

Producer and president, Joyce Lam also had a vision to put on Rogers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song as a full production in Vancouver.  Incredibly, it had never happened before.  Two years ago she saw Jimmy Yi, in the staged reading by APPLAUSE! Musical Society, and in that moment, she knew she had her casting for Sammy Fong.

Amazingly, the original 1958 production got six Tony Award nominations, and spun off some national tours and the popular 1961 musical film version. It also marked the first time in musical history that a mostly Asian cast appeared on the Broadway stage.

But the work and film fell out of favour in the late 1960's due to criticism of the gender and racial stereotyping of the era, in the wake of the rising civil rights movement.

In 2002, playwright David Henry Hwang reworked the original music and storyline for a Broadway revival that received multiple Tony nominations, a Grammy nomination for the soundtrack.

More later

What is the C-Word that is the meaning of life?

The C-Word cast (Foreground, from left): Preet Cheema (Akesh Gill), Grace Chin (Kelly Cho), Sheryl Thompson (Ashley Hennessey). (Background, from left): Fane Tse (Steve Chung), Raahul Singh (Pal Prasad). Photo by Terry Wong, courtesy of The C-word.

The C-Word  April 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, 2009
written by Grace Chin
at the Playwrights Theatre Centre on Granville Island, Vancouver

The C-Word is an engaging play... even before you sit down in the seats.  What is the C-Word?  Is it for  Chinese?  Or the derogatory Chink word?  Does it mean Coloured?  Is it a four letter word that belongs below the belt?  One for male appendage, or for female anatomy?

Is the C-Word something more abstract, profound and perhaps "Complicated"?

Or is it "Compassion" or "Cheating"?

In the opening scene, "The Love Guru" is giving a seminar on how to get some action for his male clients.  Pal Prasad (played by Raahul Singh), gives a short talk about goals, and what it takes to follow through.  It's about intention and going after what you want.  It could be any personal development seminar, but this is about the C-word.

Next we meet girlfriends Kelly Cho and Akesh Gill played by Grace Chin and Preet Cheema.  They are on a shopping trip and talking about Kelly's upcoming wedding plans.  Soon we learn that Kelly has a live-in boyfriend named Steve Chung (Fane Tse) who is a yellow guy, while Akesh is single, but she doesn't like brown guys.

Things become complicated when Steve goes to see his old friend Pal to ask for some advice, and compare his relationship and impending marriage with Kelly to Pal's long term "open relationship" to a blonde woman named Ashley (Sheryl Thompsson).  What follows becomes an intercultural Vancouver-style dramedy of errors, innuendo, suppositions on the study of relationships. 

Excuse me... the proper words are cheating, commitment, compassion, change, comic and consolation - after all this is "The C-Word."

"The C-Word" is the third play by Grace Chin.  Twisting Fortunes was co-written with her TF Productions partner Charlie Cho, and was a delightful comedic romp, set to Vancouver's caffeine drive.  "The Quickie", Chin's first solo playwright experience, explored multicultural speed dating.  "The C-Word" goes to the next level, exploring a search for meaning in relationships.  This is Chin's most frank and sexual play to date, and hints at the darker sides of relationships and human nature, not to mention weddings.

In all three productions, Vancouver's multicultural society is the setting, but it is the intercultural nature of the characters where the culture clashes occur.  It's not just a Chinese-Canadian 2nd generation immigrant experience that is explored, but also South Asian this time around too.  And somehow this is juxtoposed with what might be mainstream Canadian or possibly alternative sexual lifestyles.

From the beginning, the characters are all interesting and engaging.  The topics are easily relateable to the audience... unless you don't have any friends of a different ethnicity, or have never dated.  The pacing is good, and the diaglogue never flags.

The casting all works.  Raahul Singh has fun being the egotistical "Love Guru" and his character makes reference to the Mike Myers movie.  More cultural references abound as character development exploration occurs when Kelly and Ashley try to figure each other out, and what their men may see in each other.  Here the extremely self-critical Kelly tries to get a handle on the brazen Ashely, she labels a "Samantha" compared to her "Miranda" - or is she really a Carrie Bradshaw?  Grace Chin actually displays a bit of each of the Sex in the City characters in her role of Kelly.

Much of the action revolves around Kelly and Pal, but while Steve's character seems stalled and doesn't give Fane Tse a big range to play with, Preet Cheema gets to push her character Akesh in the 2nd Act.  Supporting actors Lili Lau Cook and Vincent Cheng provide wonderfully surprising turns as Kelly's parents.  Mel Tuck directs this ensemble cast.

Previous productions

a take-out love story	an accidentally Asian romantic dramedy

Web: www.scriptingaloud.ca/cword

See previews in Review Vancouver and Vancouverplays.com.

BLOGGERS RULE at the Vancouver Opera... Live Blogging for Rigoletto!

Local Bloggers sat in the lobby during intermission, live blogging opening night at Rigoletto. (l-r) Monique Trottier "So Misguided", Rebecca Bollwit "Miss 604", Tanya "Netchick", Kimli "Delicious Juice" - photo Todd Wong

Opera is one of the most intercultural art forms.  It forces its audience to listen to foreign languages, as it tells stories from different cultures.  Okay, it also presents a lot of stereotypes and racial chariactures too!  But today's productions will balance historic stereotypes with 21st Century sensitivity for cultural diversity.

Vancouver Opera has been one of the most innovative arts organizations to find new ways to market themselves, whether creating Manga comics for promotion, marketing to the Asian population base in Vancouver with the Voices of the Pacific Rim recital, or beginning live blogging with Carmen and now Rigoletto operas.

Opening Saturday Night at Vancouver Opera, there are lots of people dressed up in the finery.  The lineups are deep and long for the cappucinos or wine.  Over at the East side of the lobby, 6 bloggers sit madly typing into their laptop computers during intermission.  It's Live Blogging Night at the Opera.  It started with a few bloggers being invited to blog Carmen in January.  And now a few more have been invited to blog Rigoletto. 

Some of the audience members are curious.  Some are demanding.  Some are complaining about the sound in the balcony.  One audience member insists that they are not having a true opera experience unless they are drinking wine.  One of the bloggers writes that she is having sooo much fun people watching, she finds it hard to touch type at the same time.

I bring out my camera and ask the bloggers for a picture.  Actually I yell out, "Bloggers... smile for the camera!"

They all look up and smile.  I will post the picture laters...

I recognize Miss 604 Blogger, Rebbecca Bollwitt.  She recognizes me and writes on her blog that "We were just visited by Karen Hamilton of TinyBites.ca who is here to enjoy the show as well as Gung Haggis Fat Choy.

Rebbecca Bollwit "Miss 604", Todd Wong "Gung Haggis Fat Choy", Tanya "Netchick" - photo A. Youngberg/T. Wong

Back on January 18th, she was live blogging the Canucks hockey game.  I comment that she probably wishes she was at the Canucks vs San Jose game.  She says "yeah." 

It turns out that blogger NetChick is a rower, now interested in dragon boat paddling.  I tell her that my Gung Haggis Fat Choy dragon boat team has been featured on television documentaries for German and French public television, as well as the CBC.  It would be pretty cool, if she joined our dragon boat team... we have lots of opportunities for blogging.  Oops, I forgot to tell her we will have a parade entry in the annual St. Patrick's Day Parade.

At the opera, it's always interesting to see who is there in the audience.  I spy an older couple, a male caucasian with an Asian woman.  They are always at major arts events.  I think he used to work at the CBC.

I chat with Doug Tuck, VOA Marketing and Selina Rajani, Communications/Media.  I introduce them to my date for the evening, Alexandra Youngberg, my CUPE 391 Vancouver Library workers president.  Alex loves this production of Rigoletto.  She loves music and sings in a choir.  Alex has even sung O Solo Mio, while I played my accordion.

The 2nd and 3rd Acts are wonderful ( I will write my formal review tomorrow).  Some members of the audience give a standing ovation to Eglise Gutierrez who plays Gilda, Rigoletto's daughter.  We all stand up up for Donnie Ray Albert who plays Rigoletto.  It's quite the multicultural cast.  Donnie Ray is African-American, born in Louisiana.  Eglise is born in Cuba.  Sam Chung, Chinese-Canadian born in Winnipeg, steps out of the Vancouver Opera chorus to play his first supporting role with Vancouver Opera in the role of Matteo Borsa. I congratulate Sam at the reception following.

During the reception, I also chat with Michael Mori, who is hapa Japanese-Canadian.  Kinza Tyrell, chorus master tells me how exciting this production is, and asks me how I know Sam and Michael.  "Well... through events at Joy Kogawa House, because we really supported, and raved about the Naomi's Road opera. 

James Wright, VOA General Director congratulates the cast at the opening night reception - photo T. Wong

My old friend Walter Quan is here!  We first met back in 1986, while we were volunteers for the Salt Water City exhibit celebrating 100 years of Vancouver Chinatown history.  We recently had lunch in Victoria 2 weeks ago, when I had to return the life-size photos to the Royal BC Museum.

Opera Manager James Wright spots me, and waves at me.  So does orchestra concertmaster Mark Ferris, who along with his wife Gloria, have been friends for years. Mark performed at the 2004 Gung Haggis Fat Choy dinner. Meanwhile, the bloggers are noshing at the food tables, taking pictures of the event, and chatting amongst themselves.

I think it's great that Vancouver Opera is connecting with bloggers.  Back in December 2004, I blogged my own review of the VOA production of Madama Butterfly: Madama Butterfly Review: Vancouver Opera Nov 27 to Dec 11.

Since then, I have also reviewed:


Check out the opera night blogs:

• 
  Miss 604
  Rigoletto and Blogger Night at the Opera
• 
  
• So Misguided

  It’s Not Over Until ... Rigoletto Cries Out

  
  
• NetChick

  Live blogging Rigoletto

  
  
• 
  delicious juice

  rigoletto!

  
  
• A View from the Isle

  And we begin, Blogger Night at the Opera: Rigoletto commences
• 
  

Dance Review: Cock-Pit
Why men should watch men dance
special contribution by Devon Cooke

Wen-Wei Dance
Scotiabank Dance Centre (677 Davie Street, Vancouver)
Feb. 24-28, 2009

I spent a fine Friday evening last week watching Cock-Pit, a suitably suggestive and ambiguous title for Wen Wei Wang's equally suggestive dance piece. It featured a woman and four scantily clad men, one of whom was pointed out to me as "Scottie-too-Hottie" (my female companion agreed). The show was highly enjoyable, funny at times, and poignant at others. It was also highly sexual - a fact attested by the palpable female enjoyment in the audience. As a man, I certainly enjoyed listening to that audience, but I also enjoyed the performance.

Now, when a man admits to enjoying watching dance, and especially when that dance involves highly muscled men strutting around in little more than tight-fitting boxer shorts, there's one very natural question that arises: Is he gay? Perhaps it's not so much a question as an assumption, but, as a straight male, I'm here to tell you that while that assumption may often hold true, straight men don't know what they're missing when it comes to dance.

I must admit to being a little apprehensive going into the show about how I would handle the "eww" factor (as in "eww, naked men!"), but my worries were unfounded. The show was engaging, enlightening, and I didn't feel like my sexuality was compromised. Why? Because I felt myself empathizing with the men on stage rather than objectifying them. Cock-pit is (among other things) an exploration of gender and, especially, being male. As gender exploration goes, it's pretty straightforward: The men are manly, the woman is womanly, and there's barely the slightest hint that there might be any other way of arranging things. While this might be a less than complete sketch of gender, it does speak to the fairly rigid gender roles that most people fall into, and it made me look at men (and myself) in a new light.

Watching Cock-pit was like watching a hockey game or playing poker while consuming cold pizza and beer. It reminded me what it means to be a man, but, unlike hockey or poker, it also gave me a sense of how ridiculous we look to the other 51% of the population. I'm sure the women in the audience had a different perspective.

I've never thought of feathers as being particularly male, but when they're six feet long and stuck down the front of your pants, they're a fairly obvious symbol. Cock-pit used this symbol to good effect, and much of the comedy in the show came from painting a portrait of man's endless obsession with his penis. With the help of the feathers, the men in the show sword fight and show off, bargain and compete, and, most of all, fight with each other for the attention of the lone female dancer in the cast.

This oasis of femininity provided a sharp point of contrast to the testosterone-laced energy in the rest of the dancers. Her presence helped remind the audience that maleness exists in opposition to the female - and provided a welcome place to rest my male-weary eyes. With my heightened awareness of my masculinity, I found my eyes drawn strongly to her whenever she was on stage, and her dancing made me equally aware of the difference between our two genders.

There is much more to Cock-pit than simple gender differences. Many sections were suggestive of birds (cocks of course) or insects, and one particularly memorable scene had the four men negotiating a sale of some sort using creative body language and a distinctly Mandarin-sounding gibberish.  But, even these neutral scenes were cast in the context of masculinity thanks to their relationship with the rest of the choreography.

At times Wen Wei's Chinese heritage showed through, and it was interesting watching his five non-Chinese dancers absorb this and transform it in a very Vancouver way.  The most obvious example was the Mandarin gibberish I've already mentioned, but the use of feathers throughout the piece had a very Chinese theatricality to it.  The feathers served as swords, wings, antennae, and helped emphasize and exaggerate the movement of whatever body part they happened to be attached to.

Cock-pit was a wonderfully creative and entertaining show, and, while I've picked it apart for analysis here, its strengths lie in the talent and energy of its dancers and choreographer, not the significance of its theme. The dance is an exploration, not a theory, and it's worth seeing for the feelings it evokes. For me, it evoked the thoughts about maleness that you have just read, but my version is hardly the definitive one. For that, you'll have to go see it for yourself...

Cock-pit played at the Scotiabank Dance Centre from February 24th to 28th. It featured David Raymond, Josh Martin, Scott Augustine, and Edmond Kilpatrick, as well as lone female Alison Denham, and was Choreographed by Wen Wei Wang.

Gung Haggis Fat Choy is always a wonderful event for photographs. Special thanks to our incredible photographers Patrick Tam, Lydia Nagai and VFK. If you like their photos, please contact them and purchase them. We have asked them to put "water marks" on their photos, so that we will advertise and promote them. They help us with our event, because they believe in the community work and social consciousness raising that we do. + PICTURES   more »

In Vancouver Chinatown, the Chinese New Year Festivities always take place on the first Sunday following Chinese New Year Day.

This year, Chinese New Year Day is on Monday, January 26th.... so on Sunday February 1st, come to Vancouver Chinatown.

One of my new favorite activities starting last year.... is to visit the Dr. Sun Yat Sen courtyard at the Chinese Cultural Centre because my friend Qiu Xia He of Silk Road Music is organizing a special Cultural Olympiad show for Chinese New Year.

Last year, I was fascinated by the show, which brought together many musicians and performers from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds: African, Japanese, Chinese, Latin, French-Canadian, and Celtic.  Oh my goodness... but her programming was a like fantastic dream team that I wish I could bring together for Gung Haggis Fat Choy.

But this year, we will be adding something new... a dragon dance by the Gung Haggis Fat Choy dragon boat team!

Feb 1. 09 Sunday. Free public performances.

10:30-11:30 first show

12-1:30pm Chinese New Year Parade

1:30-3:30pm second show

Performers:

Qiu Xia He 何秋霞 - Silk Road Music Artistic Director and Chinese Pipa 

Andre Thibault -  Program assistant and Guitar, Oud and flute 

Jun Rong 戎峻 - Chinese Erhu

Jian Min Pan 潘建明 - Chinese Dizi

Pepe Danza - World instruments and percussion

Bonnie Soon and Uzume Taiko - Japanese drum and percussion

Feng Jun Wang 王凤君 - vocal

Willy Miles - vocal and bass guitar

Jan Walls 王健- Bilingual MC and Chinese Kuai Ban storyteller

Gung Haggis Fat Choy Dragon Boat Team

Still Moon Arts Stilt Dancers

Mt. Pleasant Neiboughood Happy Dancing Group

Jacky Essombe & The Makalas- African Dance

Jessica Jone 钟捷茜, Chengxin Wei 魏成新 and The Lorita Leung Chinese Dance Academy.

More details on the show in Chinese and English:

Check out the following from the Dr. Sun Yat Sen Classical Chinese Gardens website:

http://www.vancouverchinesegarden.com/calendar/2007/2007_feb.htm

Chinese New Year
Celebration at the Garden
Sunday, February 1
10am-4pm, by donation

Join us as we celebrate the Year of the Ox!
On January 26, 2009 Chinese people around the world will celebrate a new year, according to the Lunar calendar. Join us at the Garden for a day of family fun and activities. We will have fortune telling, live music, face painting, storytelling, red envelopes, pin wheel making, stilt walkers, and more!
Enjoy a fabulous day of live entertainment and welcome the Year of the Ox!

A Celebration in the Courtyard
February 1st, 10:30-11:30am and 1:30-3:30pm

The Garden is pleased to co-present the Chinese New Year Celebration in the Courtyard as part of the 2009 Cultural Olympiad. The event is quickly becoming a part of the Chinese New Year parade day celebration. Join Silk Road and Friends as they sing, dance and play music under a big tent and take part in the fun art and crafts projects available in the small tents scattered around the Courtyard.

The courtyard-fair atmosphere, coupled with the cross-cultural performances, provide an opportunity for artists from Vancouver’s different cultural backgrounds to display their creativity and collaborate to create new sounds for a traditional festival. We invite Vancouver to celebrate Chinese New Year with a world vision!

What Scottish clan is CBC TV News anchor Gloria Macarenko from?

Celebrity Media co-hosts are confirmed!
Gloria Macarenko, CBC TV News anchor "Vancouver at Six"
Catherine Barr, Metro News / Radio 650 AM


Gloria Macarenko from CBC TV's "Vancouver at Six"
Gloria first got to learn about deep-fried haggis won ton when I brought some down to her newscast, when CBC was promoting the 2004 Gung Haggis Fat Choy television performance special.

View Clip

I'm really happy that CBC TV news anchor Gloria Macarenko is coming to co-host the 2009 Gung Haggis Fat Choy dinner with myself and Catherine Barr.  It turns out that Gloria and Catherine also know each other and are really looking forward to having some fun at the Gung Haggis dinner.

I looked in a tartan clan wesbite and found MacA'chailles, MacAchounich, MacAdam, MacAdie, MacAindra,  MacAldonich, MacAlduie,  MacAlex,  MacAlister, MacAllen, MacAndeoir, MacAndrew, MacAngus,  MacAra, MacAree, MacAskill, MacAslan, MacAuselan, and MacAy... but no MacArenko!

What clan is Catherine Barr from?  I found there are clans named Barrie and Barron, and of course there is MacNeil of Barra, or the Barra MacNeils.  I know that Catherine's family has a family tartan... In fact, it was her father Robert Barr that introduced me to the Burns Club of Vancouver about 5 years ago.  Last year Cat managed to get 10 kilted men on stage all singing a "Toast to the Lassies" - what will she lead us into this year?

Special musical performers:


Silk Road Music Ensemble:
Qiu Xia He and Andre Thibault have become good friends since I first met them on the set of the 2004 CBC television performance special "Gung Haggis Fat Choy."  I really appreciated what they were doing musically, and they really appreciated what I was doing.  They have performed at the Gung Haggis dinner in 2004, 2007.  Qiu Xia plays virtuoso pipa (Chinese lute) and Andre can play fiery flamenco music - but they also play scottish and french-canadian reels and jigs too!  For their 2009 Gung Haggis performance they are adding a Scottish-Canadian percussionist, Liam MacDonald.

Gung Haggis Fat Choy Pipe & Drums
Last year, Bob Wilkins approached me with the idea of creating a Gung Haggis Fat Choy pipe band... with lion dancers and chinese drums.  Okay... I was hooked.  Our paths have crossed in our mutual appreciation of BC Scottish and Chinese pioneer histories, and Bob has a vision of a multicultural pipe band that could also incorporate BC's Chinese cultural history and traditions. Okay... we have the pipers but are still searching for Chinese lion dancers.


Heather Pawsey opera soprano
Heather sings in Mandarin, Cree, Italian, French, German, Spanish and probably Russian and Scottish too!  Heather has graced stages with Vancouver Opera, Vancouver Symphony and many other ensemble and chamber groups throughout BC. She always lights up the stage when she comes to Gung Haggis dinners, such as 2004 and 2007.  Heather grew up wearing kilts on the Saskatchewan prairies, and she really loves the Gung Haggis concept.  In 2008 she was paired with DJ Timothy Wisdom to create something new and exciting.  She called me up and said "Todd - I've got something for you and Gung Haggis!"

Timothy Wisdom DJ
I only met Timothy last week, when he came to the Gung Haggis Fat Choy rehearsal dinner on January 11th.  He brought with him a dvd of his performance with Heather Pawsey.  What was on it?  Opera with hip hop beats... Scottish and Chinese musical notes and references...  And hopefully Timothy will spin some tunes after the Gung Haggis dinner, so we can party until midnight for a countdown to Chinese New Year! "Best Party Rockin DJ in Vancouver…a sonic genius" - Vancouver Folk Festival  "so much exhilaration in his sets...slaying audiences" - E13 Records

Joe McDonald, our "rapping bagpiper"
I first met Joe McDonald when he performed with a South Asian tabla drummer in 2001.  I saw the kind of world music sounds they were creating and three weeks later, his music ensemble Brave Waves was performing at the Gung Haggis Fat Choy dinner.  Joe has performed at every Gung Haggis dinner since, including the Gung Haggis Fat Choy CBC television performance special too!  A few years ago, we starting "rapping" the Robbie Burns immortal poem "Address to a Haggis."  We created an MP3 file with Trevor Chan of the No Luck Club... and it is going to be played on BBC Radio Scotland's Robbie Burns radio special on January 25th for Burns' 250th birthday - Woo-hoo!

Adrienne Wong - Neworld Theatre actor/writer for "Mixie and the Half-Breeds"
Adreinne is a long time friend of Gung Haggis Fat Choy.  She co-hosted the 2004 dinner, and in 2003 she paddled on the Gung Haggis Fat Choy dragon boat team.  Growing up with Chinese and French ancestry, heritage and culture, Adrienne knows what it's like to walk in both worlds, as well as in-between.  She's written a new theatrical play called "Mixie and the Half-Breeds."  We think it's perfect for a Gung Haggis Fat Choy world... and she's going to give us a sneak preview before the show opens later this year. I saw Adrienne give a stage reading of "My Name is Rachel Corrie" last fall - fantastic!

Special guests include:
Larry Grant, Musqueam Elder
Rita Wong, 2008 BC Book Poetry Prize winner "Forage"
Dr. Leith Davis, SFU Centre for Scottish Studies
Jan Walls, former SFU Director of International Communications
Tommy Tao, poet translator
Chuck Lew QC, keeper for the flame for 49 years of Burns Dinners for the Vancouver Chinatown Lions Club.
+ 1 bottle of 37 year old Famous Grouse scotch - one of only 250 made to be featured at Burns Suppers around the world.

Donna Lee's short documentary film, Broken Family, on the head tax redress movement and my family, is in a CBC Radio Canada contest called Migrations. It's made it to the semi-final rounds of a people's choice online voting competition.    more »

I just checked out the on-line preview of Ping Pong Playa. Forget James Bond and Quantuum of Solace - I want to see THIS movie now!!! http://www.pingpongplaya.com/us/index.html   more »