Until October 18
Speak the word
Check out the last three days of the annual Canadian Festival of Spoken Word: Beyond the Word, being hosted in Victoria for the second time, with more than 100 artists and slam poets from over 20 Canadian cities. This event will be taking place mostly at the Victoria Event Centre downtown on Broad St., as well as the Rifflandia Headquarters on Douglas and Pandora. Friday and Saturday night events will be taking place at the Alix Goolden Hall. Tickets can be purchased at cfsw.ca or at the doors.
Until October 18
Get wolfy
Wolves play an incredibly important role in our ecosystems, and the week of October 12 to 18 is time to recognize this and help change their desperate struggle for safety. According to experts, these intelligent and socially advanced animals are incredibly misunderstood. In BC there are very few regulations in place to protect them, so wolves are destined for extinction in the near future if the province doesn’t change its lenient laws surrounding trapping and hunting. Visit wolfawarenessinc.org for more information about the week.
Wednesday, October 15
Tequila Mockingbird returns home
Victoria’s Tequila Mockingbird Orchestra hits the stage at 9:30 pm at Upstairs Cabaret with special guest Compassion Gorilla. This gypsy-folk-roots-grass band found musical inspiration on the Gulf Islands and pride themselves on their core values and social consciousness reflected in their music. Tickets to the show can be purchased at Ditch Records or Lyle’s Place for $14.50.
Wednesday, October 15
Free lecture on laughs
Award-winning author, journalist, and screenwriter Mark Leiren-Young will be giving a free lecture in the Human & Social Development Building at UVic regarding the nature of humour and how it’s changing in the 21st century. Leiren-Young is the Harvey Stevenson Southam Lecturer in Journalism and Nonfiction and received the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour for his memoir Never Shoot a Stampede Queen. The lecture is called You Can’t Say That! Comedy, Censorship and Sensitivity and begins at 6:30 pm.
Thursday, October 16
Most hated man in Israel
Join the Social Justice Film Night for a screening of Going Against the Grain, a film by Bilal Yousef about journalist Gideon Levy, who has been called one of the “most hated men in Israel.” The film screens at the BCGEU Hall (2994 Douglas St.) at 7 pm and admission is by donation. Social Justice Film Night takes place the third Thursday of every month and is organized by the Victoria Friends of Cuba. This particular film is sponsored by the Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid.
Saturday, October 18
Vaudeville’s back!
The Mansfield Brother Vaudeville Troupe’s Run Outta Town Tour, travelling from eastern Canada with mystery entertainer Lukas Stark and burlesque dancer Cerise Noir, is hitting up Victoria for a night of variety and burlesque. Also adorning the stage is local boylesque group The Boxers Are Brief. For a night of all-around entertainment, head over to Herman’s Jazz Club on View St. Tickets are $15. Doors at 6 pm and the show starts at 8 pm.
Saturday, October 18
Park restoration time
The CRD is looking for volunteers to help with the Mill Hill Regional Park Broom Sweep restoration project between 9:30 am and 4 pm at 490 Atkins Avenue in Langford. Over 130 volunteers who helped with the project in 2013 removed two metric tonnes of the invasive shrubs that overrun the park’s meadows. The plant material removed from Mill Hill is used as a fuel for energy production.
Tuesday, October 21 through to November 2
Theatre for a new generation
Oak Bay’s Canadian College of Performing Art’s third year performers will be putting on the opening performance of Spring Awakening, a Tony Award-winning musical by Stephen Sater, with music by Duncan Sheik. The production shatters stigmas with themes of adolescence, innocence, and sexuality, and has a similar style to RENT and Hair. This show, running until November 2, promises to appeal to a younger audience and modern theatre-goers. Tickets can be purchased through the Belfry Theatre.
Wednesday, October 22
Leadership development celebration
Students and grads of the Leadership Development certificate program are celebrating its 20th anniversary. Originating in 1994, the popular program has provided students with the practical skills to be leaders in the community and abroad. The anniversary celebration takes place in the third-floor atrium of the Campus Centre building, Interurban, from 5-8 pm. Students and grads are invited to come and help celebrate by RSVPing to program coordinator Patricia Larose at 250-370-4565 or by emailing larosep@camosun.ca.
Thursday, October 23 through to Halloween
This place is a horror show
To celebrate everyone’s favourite holiday (well, it’s a Nexus office favourite, anyway) Craigdarroch Castle will be screening classic horror films on five separate occasions this month. Each evening will begin with a tour of the castle at 6:30 pm, and afterwards films will be shown in the dance hall on the fourth floor. The film schedule is October 23: Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds; October 24: the Changeling; October 25: Creature of the Black Lagoon; October 30: Psycho; October 31: Frankenstein. Tickets are $15 and include the tour, movie, and popcorn. Other refreshments will also be available. Go to thecastle.ca to purchase tickets for these sure-to-be spooktastic nights.
Saturday, October 25
Prog metal meltdown
Come check out a night of prog metal madness at Logan’s Pub, featuring Vancouver’s Quartered and Nanaimo’s The Body Politic. Featuring local support by This Day Burns, Synapse, and Vaultry, this is sure to be one epic night of metal-ness, prog-ness, and hard rock-ness. Tempting to say “bring your earplugs,” but that’s a quick way to lose your metal credibility. $10 at the door, show starts at 8:30 pm.
Monday, October 27
Looking critically at the prince of pot
Check out Citizen Marc, the feature documentary telling the story of Marc Emery, the famed pot activist who was recently released from a US penitentiary after five years for marijuana-related charges. Roger Evan Larry, the documentary’s director, will be in attendance at the first showing of his film at Landmark University Heights Cinema. The documentary examines Emery with a critical eye and questions the motives behind his actions. After opening night, the documentary will be available for viewing regularly at the same theatre from October 31 to November 6.
Tuesday, October 28
Artist talk with Keith Harrison
Join ceramic artist Keith Harrison in a discussion of his work and “process-based” practice. The British multi-disciplinary artist also has an intriguing video performance called Lucie Rie vs. Grindcore, now showing at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria (AGGV), in correlation with the gallery’s display of famed potter Lucie Rie, which runs until October 28. Harrison’s talk takes place at 2:30 pm in the Wilna Thomas Building, Lansdowne and is part of the Visual Arts Visiting Artist Lecture Series, in collaboration with the AGGV. Admission is free.
Wednesday, October 29
The Public Archive open up for a night
Not that kind of public archive: Edmonton’s four-piece indie-folk band The Public Archive have been touring the east coast and are headed west to play alongside the Juno Award-winning band The Strumbellas. The Public Archive are touring in support of their recently released third album It’s All Shaken Wonder and will play Lucky Bar; see Lucky’s Facebook page for info closer to the date of the event.