« Les arts, la culture et le patrimoine nous permettent de nous rappeler nos origines, de célébrer notre identité actuelle et de rêver à notre identité de demain, a déclaré le maire Jim Watson. Ces trois domaines continueront de jouer un rôle déterminant dans notre succès, à l’heure où nous nous préparons à célébrer le 150^e anniversaire du Canada en 2017. »

« Le processus de renouvellement a permis d’obtenir une diversité inégalée dans la représentation et la participation en matière de planification culturelle à Ottawa, a expliqué le conseiller Mark Taylor, président du Comité des services communautaires et de protection. Le nouveau plan permettra de réduire les lacunes en matière de culture, de répondre aux besoins émergents et de continuer à accroître l’investissement culturel dans la ville d’Ottawa. »

Le plan comprend quatre stratégies :

• Célébrer l’identité culturelle distincte d’Ottawa et rendre la culture accessible à tous.
• Préserver les lieux et les espaces culturels et créatifs et encourager leur développement.
• Faire connaître la culture locale dynamique et l’identité unique d’Ottawa.
• Investir dans la culture locale et renforcer le leadership culturel.

Ce processus a permis de rassembler des membres des Premières nations, des Inuits, des Métis et des groupes de leurs communautés, des représentants de la mosaïque culturelle anglophone et francophone, des résidents des diverses collectivités rurales, suburbaines et urbaines, des nouveaux Canadiens et des représentants du domaine des arts et du patrimoine et de l’industrie des foires et festivals.

Selon une étude économique récente, l’industrie culturelle d’Ottawa-Gatineau (à but lucratif et à but non lucratif) représente environ 4,1 % du PIB, soit 1,98 milliard de dollars. En 2010, la participation aux activités culturelles locales se chiffrait à 4,1 millions de participants, et 21 861 bénévoles ont offert au secteur culturel d’Ottawa 519 755 heures de bénévolat (d’une valeur de 9,1 millions de dollars).

“Arts, culture and heritage are about remembering where we come from, celebrating who we are today and dreaming about what we can be tomorrow,” said Mayor Jim Watson. “These will continue to be the keys to our success, especially as we prepare to celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday in 2017.”

“The renewal process brought together the strongest diversity of representation and participation ever for municipal cultural planning purposes in Ottawa,” said Councillor Mark Taylor, Chair of the Community and Protective Services Committee. “The plan will close cultural gaps, meet emerging needs and continue to improve cultural investment in the City of Ottawa.”

The plan includes four strategies:

• Celebrate Ottawa’s unique cultural identity and provide access to culture for all
• Preserve and develop cultural and creative places and spaces
• Get the word out about Ottawa’s vibrant local culture and unique identity
• Invest in local culture and build cultural leadership

The process brought together First Nations, Inuit and Métis individuals and communities, representatives of the Anglophone and Francophone cultural mosaic, diverse citizenry from rural, suburban and urban neighbourhoods, new Canadians and arts, heritage, festival and fair representatives.

A recent economic study reported that Ottawa-Gatineau’s cultural industry (non-profit and for-profit) represented approximately 4.1 per cent of GDP, totalling $1.98 billion. In 2010, attendance and participation in local cultural activity totalled 4.1 million, and 21,861 volunteers provided 519,755 volunteer hours (valued at $9.1 million) to the local cultural sector.

I mention all this art/community hand-in-hand stuff because city council will, in a few days, be voting on the municipal arts policy for us to enjoy and struggle with for the next five years. Back in 2003 the city consulted like crazy with art makers and art enjoyers and came up with a 20-year plan, that was to be reviewed and tinkered with and tuned-up or down in five-year chunks.

That review has been taking place online and inline and outlying over the last few months, and then a committee tried to put all that input into a policy paper, and that paper was unfurled a couple of weeks ago. In what I think may be a first, the policy received a rousing cheer from the attending crowd at City Hall. Head over to the city’s website when you have a moment and you can, on a good day, find the cheerful paper in all its detail and have a look, remembering that the primary function of elected councillors is to broker some portion of your hard-earned taxes towards the, to quote the city back at themselves, “development of a renewed Ottawa 20/20 Arts and Heritage Action Plan (which) will influence the future of Ottawa’s cultural development, identity, creative potential, sense of place, economic strength, environmental integrity, and the well-being of its residents.” That’s some lofty rhetoric, but if anything can make it happen it’s the arts and heritage community.

Read the full story: An arts plan for Ottawa

Despite being more than 150 years old, I think Ottawa shares more similarities with a young twentysomething than a supercentenarian.

In fact, I think the nation’s capital and I are a lot alike.

We tend to fall victim to our inferiority complexes. We compare ourselves to others who are older, more attractive, and more experienced than us. We’re concerned we too often sit back and refrain from acting out, or acting on our impulses. And sometimes, we just don’t know who or what we want to be.

Read the full piece on the Ottawa Citizen website: Ottawa needs a better attitude

Canada Day festivities in 2017 should be turned into a weeklong “Canadian Cultural Festival,” says Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson.

The city should work with the National Arts Centre, National Capital Commission, provincial and territorial governments and the private sector to create the event between June 25 and July 1 in the year of Canada’s 150th birthday, Watson said in prepared remarks to an Ottawa Kiwanis Club luncheon.

Full story at Canada.com Ottawa Mayor wants big bang on Canada’s 150th birthday

Mayor Watson said the creation of Invest Ottawa is proof that economic development will be a top priority for his administration.

Among other achievements, the mayor pointed to the Major Events Office that will operate in partnership with Ottawa Tourism. The office will try to bring major events, such as the NHL All-Star Game, the 2012 Juno Awards and possibly the 2015 FIFA Women’s Cup, to Canada’s capital.

Along with the new Convention Centre, he said these major events can help grow the city’s tourism sector.

Full story on the OBJ website: Mayor touts ‘new way of thinking’ about economic development

If you’re the kind of person interested in the way the dozens of festivals in this city are regulated, or if you simply get a kick from public consultations, you may want to drop by Ben Franklin Centre next Tuesday, January 17 at 7 p.m.

That’s when the city’s Delores MacAdam, the program manager of event central office, will give a PowerPoint presentation on the draft by-law that will be tabled with the community and protective services committee next weekend.

City staff have been working trying to pass a by-laws for years, and it’s not such a bad idea. It would standardize the rules and requirements for holding a special event, and in particular, give city officials authority to penalize those who break the rules.

Full editorial: Festival by-law public consult

For Liam and teens like him all across Ottawa, spoken word poetry is helping them find their voice and express how they feel about difficult things they face in their lives or the world around them. Depression, suicide, addiction, bullies, broken hearts and stereotypes are all fodder for poems, but so, too, are death, dictators and dearly beloved family members, in this art form that bursts with creativity, energy and emotion.

The budding poets meet over the lunch hour in Phelan’s second-floor classroom, where they fine-tune and perform pieces for each other. They also drop rhymes at school assemblies and many attend monthly poetry slams held at the central branch of the Ottawa Public Library.

Spoken word poetry has flourished in the city since the first national festival was held here in 2004. Ottawa teams have twice won the Canadian slam poetry title and the brand new youth team, which Liam is on, won the top prize at this year’s festival in Toronto.

Full story: Finding their voice – through poetry

A House Divided: Stories and Songs of the American Civil War

featuring Gail Anglin, Paul Hornbeck, Daniel Kletke, & Tom Lips

NAC’s 4^th STAGE, January 19, 7:30 p.m.

Tickets: $20 from NAC Box Office or ticketmaster.ca

The American Civil War is one of the most talked about conflicts in modern history. With slavery, nationalism, and changing economics at its core, this war saw brother fighting brother. Tonight, we hear stories from both perspectives – North and South, framed with the stirring songs that were sung by soldiers and those who waited for them back home.

Performers:

Gail Anglin has a deep interest in history and relishes turning research into storytelling performance. She loves stories that illuminate the past and songs that still carry the emotions of the men and women who once sang them. She has written her own material for this show, and writes and performs local stories at the Bytown Museum and Billings Estate National Historic Site. Gail has performed in festivals and schools, and on radio and TV, offering a wide range of material from children’s shows to epics. A talented musician, Gail particularly enjoys singing the alto harmony to Tom Lips’ tenor melodies in programs such as the well-received Pete Seeger show that played in Ottawa and Toronto. In addition to being a teller, Gail directs the “Spirits of the Times” murder mysteries and the spring Chautauquas (Victorian tent shows) at the Billings Estate.

Gail’s relatives fought on the Union side in the Civil War.

Captivated by the spoken word at a young age, Daniel Kletke has brought stories to audiences at festivals, schools, museums, and campfires from Toronto to Halifax. He is most often heard telling stories from classical mythology or local history and makes the old epics both vibrant and moving. He also enjoys performing at Ottawa StoryTellers’ annual murder mystery at Billings Estate National Historic Site, this year taking on the role of the famous detective, Philip Marlowe. Daniel has an English degree from the University of Ottawa and also has training as a visual artist.  He lives and works in his home town of Ottawa.

Tom Lips is a gifted singer and songwriter as well as a creative and dynamic teller of traditional and original stories.  Described by Christine Lavin as “a masterful singing storyteller,” Tom writes in an eclectic mix of styles.  His songs have been described as “poignant outpourings of emotion”, but his wry sense of humour is never far away. His CDs, “Made of Sky” and “Practical Man”, have won many friends.  Tom has been an active storyteller for two decades, with numerous performances in the “Stories from the Ages” epic series and the Fourth Stage storytelling series, as well as appearances at Ottawa museums and the storytelling festivals of Ottawa, Toronto, North Bay, and Westport. Visit Tom’s website at www.tomlips.ca.

Paul Hornbeck has been playing old-time banjo for some 40 years. During that period, his musical career has gone all the way from oblivion to obscurity. He has performed, alone and with various accomplices, at numerous coffee houses in Ontario and Quebec, and at the Mariposa Folk Festival, the Winnipeg Folk Festival, and the Leacock Humour Festival. He is also an avid reader of Civil War history and collector of Civil War artifacts, including a splendid sword that was used only once during rehearsals.

Patrick Langston, Ottawa Citizen

OTTAWA — It’s a scramble, but Ottawa actor and playwright Pierre Brault says an unexpected remounting of his acclaimed solo show Blood on the Moon will be ready to roll Jan. 17 at the Great Canadian Theatre Company.

Brault’s award-winning show about James Patrick Whelan, the last man to be publicly hanged in Canada after being convicted in 1868 of assassinating the politician Thomas D’Arcy McGee, was pegged for the January spot after You Fancy Yourself, originally scheduled for the slot, was cancelled just days before Christmas. Maya Ardal, the writer and performer of You Fancy Yourself, had been diagnosed with a serious, still-undisclosed illness and was scheduled for immediate surgery.

“My first thoughts were for Maja,” says GCTC artistic director Lise Ann Johnson in an email from Arizona, where she’s been on holiday since before Christmas. “She’s an incredible person and a multi-talented artist – everyone at GCTC is thinking of her and wishing her a full recovery. My second reaction was ‘Holy mother of God – I need a good replacement show, fast!’ ”

Despite the last-minute rush and having no regular phone or Internet service, Johnson found four possible shows. Brault’s got the nod.