The BreakFest Blog
News about Ottawa Festivals and our Member festivals, special events and fairs.
A Company of Fools Theatre Upcoming Events
[Source: A Company of Fools]
Twelfth Night Celebration
January 5th, 2012 7:30 pm
Fourth Stage of the NAC
53 Elgin Street
Ottawa, ON K1P 5W1
Tickets available now at the NAC Box Office
Produced by A Company of Fools Theatre
www.Fools.ca
613.421.2720
Every year A Company of Fools Theatre says good bye to Christmas and celebrates the beginning of a new year of Fool-ish fun with a Twelfth Night Celebration. Mirth and mayhem abound as the Fools play with Shakespeare’s classic comedy, Twelfth Night: or What You Will, scenes from audience favourites and more than a little improv! The result is always the same: hilarity! There is food, feasting and frolic; the new King, or Queen of the Fools is crowned and the New Season is announced.
Come join the Fools for an evening of fun, fundraising and the launch of a new Fool-ish year!
NHL unveils Ottawa All-Star weekend festivities
CBC News
The Rideau Canal skateway will be host to a five-kilometre charity skate, a procession of NHL trophies and a junior skills competition on the week Ottawa hosts the NHL All-Star game.
NHL and the Ottawa Senators announced the events Friday as part of the festivities for the 59th annual National Hockey League All-Star Game at ScotiaBank Place on Sunday, Jan. 29, at 4 p.m.
The events begin Thursday, Jan. 26 with a 2:30 p.m. skate down the canal with all the NHL Trophies, including the Stanley Cup, Hart Memorial Trophy and Vezina Trophy.
Casino du Lac-Leamy will also hold an All-Star Fantasy draft that night from 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Read more on the CBC News website: NHL unveils Ottawa All-Star weekend festivities
Hats off to the Ottawa Art Gallery
Patrick Langston, The Ottawa Citizen
The Ottawa Art Gallery might want to throw an appreciation party for its appreciation party, held Thursday at the Arts Court.
It got a big helping hand for the Hats off to You reception it hosted for 125 hatwearing guests. There were Christmas cocktails from Mercury Lounge, beer from Steam Whistle and wines from the Grange of Prince Edward. The OAG’s collection manager, Jennifer Gilliland, prepared the platters of food while U of O music prof Louis Trépanier played guitar.
If guests came bare-headed, no problemo; there were loaner hats from Ottawa Little Theatre.
Artist Jerry Grey’s lid, conveniently fashioned at the crafts table, was embellished by Judith Haney with “found art” in the form of a sprig of greenery plucked from a holiday arrangement donated by Monique Lachapelle.
Gallery director Alexandra Badzak wore a faux fur hat while artist Leslie Reid donned the real thing (a long-ago gift from her mom). Artist Mimi Cabri created her own whimsical chapeau while Stéphane Lauzon from the Council for the Arts in Ottawa talked about regifting his canine-styled cap – a last-second purchase at Paper Papier on Clarence Street.
Read more on the Ottawa Citizen website: Hats off to the Ottawa Art Gallery
Cue the gondolas for summer fun next year
NCC puts out calls for ideas to ‘animate’ Rideau Canal
Chloé Fedio, Ottawa Citizen
Imagine gondola rides on the Rideau Canal and fire-juggling acrobats in the surrounding green space.
These ideas could become a reality, after the National Capital Commission put out an open call for pilot projects to “animate” the canal as early as June 2012.
The request for submissions is intentionally vague, said Marie Lemay, chief executive officer of the NCC.
“We thought it would be interesting to let the creative minds in the capital region really tell us what type of project would be great to animate,” Lemay said. “We’re testing a different approach on this. Why don’t we let the market tell us where the activities should take place and what kind of activities should take place.”
Proposals must include details on the concept, a financial model and can have a timeline of up to three years. The NCC will not fund projects but will offer use of the canal and its shoreline, from Rideau Street all the way to, but not including, Dow’s Lake.
Wi-Fi for downtown Ottawa, Gatineau delayed
CBC News
Plans to equip downtown Ottawa and areas of Gatineau with wireless internet are delayed for a few more months as the National Capital Commission scales back the idea.
The NCC has planned to launch free Wi-Fi Friday to help tourists browse the web on their mobile devices.
The original plan had large zones of free internet access but the costs were far beyond the budget, according to the NCC’s director of digital communications.
Instead, the WiFi will only be in small pockets on Parliament Hill, the National War Memorial and other major tourist sites in the nation’s capital. The new launch date is sometime in June.
“When we opened the financial envelope, it was not necessarily in line with our budget,” said Daniel Feeny.
Read more on the CBC News website: Wi-Fi for downtown Ottawa, Gatineau delayed
Theatre column: Why can’t local theatre get its act together?
Patrick Langston, The Ottawa Citizen
An unusual thing happened at Ottawa Little Theatre last week: Members of Ottawa’s professional and non-professional theatre communities gathered with a common purpose.
In this case, it was the annual Capital Critics Circle awards at which Ottawa reviewers, myself included, honour the previous season’s best in professional and community theatre. This year, winners included NAC English Theatre, Orpheus Musical Theatre Society and others (you can find a list of nominees and winners at capitalcriticscircle.com).
Ottawa theatre companies, like most other arts organizations, are eternally eager to generate more buzz, bigger audiences, increased funding. In fact, one of this year’s professional winners, Third Wall Theatre, had to cancel its current season because of financial problems.
So here’s the question: If these skilled and ambitious folks can pull together to applaud each others’ achievements, whether professional or non-professional, why don’t they do the same to heighten the overall profile of theatre in Ottawa, attract more residents who don’t normally go to live theatre, and scoop up a healthier chunk of Ottawans’ entertainment dollars?
Hundreds of thousands of Christmas lights to brighten Canada’s Capital Region
[Source: NCC press release]
Magical evening will officially kick off the holiday season
Canada’s Capital Region ─ The National Capital Commission (NCC), in collaboration with Manulife Financial, is pleased to invite members of the public and of the media to the launch of the 27th edition of the Christmas Lights Across Canada program. The official illumination ceremony will take place on Thursday, December 1, 2011 at 6 pm on Parliament Hill.
Russell Mills, Chair of the NCC, Marie Lemay, Chief Executive Officer of the NCC, and Donald Guloien, President and Chief Executive Officer of Manulife Financial, will be joined by special guests as they officially switch on the thousands of light bulbs that will illuminate Parliament Hill as well as many institutions, monuments, and other prominent landmarks located along Confederation Boulevard, in the heart of Canada’s Capital Region.
An important national component of the Christmas Lights Across Canada program: many provincial and territorial capitals are also holding their own lighting ceremonies.
“The NCC is proud to work in collaboration with all the provinces and territories to bring their holiday messages to Canadians,” said Marie Lemay, Chief Executive Officer of the NCC. “This link of lights is a symbol of peace, respect, and hope.”
John Baird advises Ottawa to look beyond public service
Mohammed Ahmed, The Ottawa Citizen
OTTAWA — The future of Ottawa as a great capital lies in not just being a government town, but also in diversifying its economy to ensure future prosperity, says Foreign Minister John Baird.
Baird said Ottawa is blessed with a vibrant public sector that has fuelled economic growth, but the biggest challenge facing the city as it looks forward to the future is how to build on the prosperity that has anchored the city’s much-vaunted quality of life.
“The biggest thing for the future of the capital, how we make it a world-class capital, and how we continue to enjoy our pretty quality of life, is how we ensure we are prosperous and attract the jobs of the future,” Baird said in an interview at the grand opening of Algonquin College’s new trades building on Friday.
“The No. 1 issue for me is: how can we diversify our economy, jobs, economic growth. That’s the issue facing every city in the country and I don’t think it is any different here in Ottawa.”
Funding cut to Canada Day jazz programming
Joe Lofaro, Metro Ottawa
Organizers of the TD Ottawa Jazz Festival are looking for new sponsors for their 2012 Canada Day programming after the National Capital Commission (NCC) said it’s pulling its funding.
Funding from a second sponsor, Galaxie, is also up in the air according to the festival’s executive producer, Catherine O’Grady.
The NCC has partnered with the festival since 2005 to provide funding so that it could offer free jazz programming and a Jazz Youth Summit on Canada Day.
Last year, the NCC gave the festival $45,000 and $60,000 the year before. Next year, all funding will be withdrawn.
Read more on the Metro Ottawa website: Funding cut to Canada Day jazz programming
Fair trade festival aids developing countries
Diane Sawchuk, EMC News
For more than 35 years, savvy shoppers have been snapping up unusual items shipped from around the world at Ten Thousand Villages stores and lining up to select special items at their festival sales.
This weekend offers the last opportunity to see what the world has to offer. The festival sale runs Friday, Nov. 25 from 3 to 8 p.m. and Saturday, Nov. 26 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Ottawa Mennonite Church, 1830 Kilborn Ave.
But the items and food products found on sale are so much more than eye-catching wall hangings or colorful pillows, unique jewelry and unusual décor items: by purchasing items that are fairly traded through organizations like Ten Thousands Villages, purchasers help develop sustainable economy for artisans around the world, particularly in third world countries.
Fair trade is based on the principle that trade should have a conscience and highlights the need for change in conventional trade, based on a belief that a successful business can put people before profit.
Read more on the EMC News website: Fair trade festival aids developing countries
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