Fortune Gallery’s Winter Show showcases local artists

Fortune Gallery is currently presenting this year’s Winter Show, featuring paintings, sculpture, and other artwork from 21 local artists. Mark Gruenhage is one of these artists; Gruenhage says that while painting, his primary emotion is calmness, because the act of painting is cathartic, allowing him to work out his stress and emotions. “‘Calm,’ honestly, is […]

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Canadian College of Performing Arts brings cabaret series back

The Canadian College of Performing Arts (CCPA) is reviving its in-person Piano Bar Showtune Cabaret series in January and February. CCPA managing artistic director Caleb Marshall says that the series serves as a perfect learning opportunity for his students. “We are trying to train our students in singing, and acting, and dance, and to be […]

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The Stories We Belong To showcases Indigenous artwork

Artwork can be an expression of culture, and that’s what the 2022 Indigenous Emerging Artists Program (IEAP) participants are demonstrating in a new exhibit, The Stories We Belong To. 2013 IEAP alumnus Jesse Campbell is a current mentor and coordinator of the program, and he says that part of the purpose of the program is […]

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New Music Revue: NOFX deliver strong closer with Double Album

NOFX Double Album (Fat Wreck Chords) 4/5  Long-running California-based punk band NOFX is known for their addition of comedy to their songs and taking on controversial topics, but with Double Album, a follow-up to 2021’s Single Album, the band brings in a large storytelling element, mixed with lessons drawn from the members’ life experiences, letting […]

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The Sheepdogs bring classic rock to town

If you happen to be walking past the Royal Theatre on January 15 and you hear what you assume is your favourite rock classics wafting through the air—sounds reminiscent of Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Allman Brothers Band, and Thin Lizzy—you’re in for a rude awakening. It’s not classic ’70s rock, it’s the closest thing happening […]

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Daniel Lapp brings Home for Christmas back for a live audience

The holiday season is quickly approaching, which means local legend Daniel Lapp is preparing for his 19th annual Home for Christmas concerts. Lapp is the artistic director of the Victoria Conservatory of Music’s Chwyl Family School of Contemporary Music, which includes the contemporary music program offered through Camosun College. Best known for his fiddle skills, […]

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One-man A Christmas Carol returns to Craigdarroch Castle

Get ready to get transported back in time to Victorian England as actor Jason Stevens performs his one-man take on Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol at Craigdarroch Castle this month. Stevens studied acting in London, England before moving to Victoria. He was a stay-at-home dad who needed a creative outlet, which is when he re-read […]

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Festive Cantatas celebrates Christmas with Bach performance

In December, Early Music Vancouver Pacific Baroque Series returns to Victoria to present a collection of Bach’s more festive compositions. Festive Cantatas: J.S. Bach Magnificat & Cantata BWV 110 (‘Let Our Mouth Be Full of Laughter’) explores the human side of the Christmas story by blending instrumentation and vocals to create a polyphonic experience. Pacific […]

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Nic’s Flicks: The best and worst movies of 2022

Now, I know that this year isn’t finished and some big movies are still going to drop in 2022. For example, I still haven’t revisited the beautiful world of Pandora in James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water or seen Damien Chazelle’s newest Oscar frontrunner Babylon, both of which come out in December. But deadlines […]

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New Music Revue: Julian Taylor delivers beauty, authenticity on new album

Julian Taylor Beyond the Reservoir (Howling Turtle, Inc.) 4/5 Toronto-based singer/songwriter Julian Taylor’s seventh album, Beyond the Reservoir, fills all the holes left vacant by current top 10s in the music industry. It feels like a Canadian album, in a good way. In 10 tracks, Taylor demonstrates the importance of impactful storytelling in music. The […]

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