Westfest
| June 8, 2012 | to | June 10, 2012 |
Westfest is a party like no other! Each year, more than 100,000 people attend Westfest during our outdoor, three-day celebration of Canadian art and culture. As a free multidisciplinary art festival dedicated to showcasing Canadian artists and their work in an accessible and inclusive setting, Westfest fills 14 city blocks with a variety of artistic disciplines such as music, contemporary dance, visual art, media art, performance art, spoken word, poetry and fiction readings, Aboriginal art forms, children’s entertainment, buskers, street performers, and much more.
In addition to the street level celebration, each year the festival hosts an outdoor main stage which features some of the best acts our country has to offer. Past headliners have included Buffy Saint-Marie, Sloan, Joel Plaskett, Jane Siberry, Cowboys Junkies, Kathleen Edwards, and more. Established in 2004, Westfest is a fusion of community and art, and places a special emphasis on diversity, children, and all families. Taking place annually the second weekend of June, Westfest is proud to be Ottawa’s only festival of its size and scope that is free and open to all!
General information: 613.729.3565
General information email: info@westfest.ca
Location: Westboro Village – Richmond Road (between McRae and Berkley Ave.), Ottawa
Westfest Domicile Main Stage – 190 Richmond Road (behind the Real Canadian Superstore parking lot)
On the Web:
Website: www.westfest.ca
Youtube: www.youtube.com/user/wesfestinfo
Twitter: www.twitter.com/WESTFESTinfo
Others: www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wesfest
Take a stroll through literary Ottawa
From Parliament Hill to Poet’s Hill, it’s a city of letters
Peter Johansen, The Ottawa Citizen
What did you do?
I meandered through Ottawa searching for the city’s literary past.
What literary past?
The one stretching back to French explorer Samuel de Champlain, who wrote about the area in bestselling travelogues in the early 1600s. That tradition remains alive. Margaret Atwood was born here; Elizabeth Hay and Frances Itani still live here. But my literary sleuthing focused on the late 19th century, when many expected Ottawa to become a cultural hot spot.
How did you know where to go?
I didn’t. That’s why I called on Steven Artelle – by day, an analyst at Library and Archives Canada; the rest of the time, a student of local literary culture. He did his PhD on the subject and occasionally leads tours for groups such as literature classes and writing clubs. I joined his fascinating trek from Parliament Hill to Beechwood Cemetery, with a few stops in between.
Parliament Hill? The words there may be loud, but I never found them especially literary.
Perhaps. But Artelle says he begins all his tours there, to gaze upon the river where our earliest writers drew their inspiration. “In fact,” he says, “the Chaudière Falls were so inspiring that it was said even atheists found God there.” But Parliament Hill also signals early efforts to build Ottawa into a cultural capital.
Read more on the Ottawa Citizen website: Take a stroll through literary Ottawa
A boy’s voyage
Steve Mazey, The Ottawa Citizen
OTTAWA WRITER’S FESTIVAL:
■ Monday’s reading was the first of several events to be presented before the fall writers’ festival runs Oct. 20 to 25. Others include an event with chef Michael Smith Sept. 26, Wayne Johnston Sept. 29 and Adrienne Clarkson Oct. 17.
■ Writers scheduled to appear during the Oct. 20-25 festival include Guy Vanderhaeghe, Ian Rankin, Chang Rae-Lee, Anita Rau Badami, Johanna Skibsrud, Miriam Toews and others.
■ Information: 613-562-1243; www.writersfestival.org
OTTAWA — The new book by one of Canada’s literary stars is about an 11-year-old boy named Michael who travels alone by ship from Ceylon to England, much like a trip Michael Ondaatje once took as a boy on his own.
The Cat’s Table tells the story of the boy and his impressions of the sometimes mysterious adults he watches on the ship. It also shifts ahead in time to the boy as an adult, looking back on the trip. But the Booker, Giller and Governor Generals’ Award-winning Ondaatje says the book is a novel and not autobiography.
Writers Festival Update
Dear Friends:The Fall season certainly got off to an amazing start with two huge events – Nick Cave on Thursday and Margaret Atwood on Tuesday. Not only were the crowds huge, and the audience feedback has been glowing. Both events were also big hits with the authors.
Nick Cave said in an interview on Friday: “Last night (at the Ottawa Writers Festival) was I think the best one of those onstage question-and-answer things I’ve done. I really loved it. … it was the most enjoyable one I’ve done, for sure.”
And today on Margaret Atwood’s Blog she says: “At Ottawa’s St. Brigid’s Centre for the Arts and Humanities, I took one look at the stunning backdrop created by designer Thea Yeatman out of old plastic bags, duct tape and string, and thought: Yes! Artists really can make more out of less, and something out of nothing. In doing so, they unify communities and inspire them.”
The special pre-Festival preview events at Saint Brigid’s continue with two events on Monday:
1. September 28th @ 7:00 PM:
LITTLE BROTHER WITH CORY DOCTOROW
Hosted by Kate Heartfield
“A wonderful, important book … I’d recommend Little Brother over pretty much any book I’ve read this year.” -Neil Gaiman
Marcus (AKA w1n5t0n) is taking back the world, one hacked game console at a time … Have you ever felt like the technology you love could be used against you? Or that the government is watching you .. a little too closely? Have you ever felt like you just had to skip school? Do you hate bullies? Have you ever felt the call to fight back- and that the fight was waaaay bigger than just you? Join Cory Doctorow, author of Little Brother, for a look at what could happen when security and individual freedom clash, and how one tech-savvy teenager fights back.
2. September 28th @ 8:30 PM
GREEN METROPOLIS WITH DAVID OWEN
Hosted by Neil Wilson
Why Living Smaller, Living Closer, and Driving Less Are the Keys to Sustainability…
David Owen, a staff writer for The New Yorker whose interests include global ecology, has examined numerous communities across America and discovered one that strikes him as a model of environmental efficiency. That community is New York City, and in Green Metropolis, Owen tdiscusses what green-conscious citizens can learn from Gotham’s example. This promises to be a hugely important event for all of us who want to find ways to reduce our carbon footprint.
I’ll be back in touch again next week with more on Karen Armstrong, Tim Flannery and our other preview events.
I hope to see you on Monday!
All the best,
Sean
Ottawa StoryTellers Story Swap: Open Stage Night
Swap: Open Stage Night
Thursday, September 3, 7:00 – 9:30 p.m.
Library and Archives Canada
Room 156, 7:00 p.m.
Free admission
Ottawa StoryTellers offers Story Swap, an open stage night, on the first Thursday of every month at Library and Archives Canada (Room 156). This is an opportunity to experience the art of storytelling for the first time or for new storytellers to practice before an audience. The evenings also include stories by experienced tellers so that new tellers can learn the art.
People are welcome to come and listen, but anyone wishing to tell a story should register on arrival with the evening’s host, and s/he will be given a time slot. Stories should be no longer than ten minutes and must be told, not read. They may be traditional stories, folk tales, literary stories, or personal stories.
The evening runs from 7:00 – 9:30 p.m. with a short break in the middle. Light refreshments are served during the break.
For those who are interested in becoming a storyteller, information about storytelling workshops will be provided.
Admission is free.
For more information, contact: info@ottawastorytellers.ca
August StoryTelling Events
Stories & Tea Series | TUESDAY, August 11
7:00 pm to 8:45pm – The Tea Party, 119 York St.
Stories & Tea Series – “Stories of Science-Fiction and Fantasy”
Robert Collins and Marie Bilodueau
Presented by Ottawa Storytellers and The Tea Party
Stories & Tea Series | TUESDAY, August 25
7:00 pm to 8:45pm – The Tea Party, 119 York St.
Stories & Tea Series – “Stories for the Young at Heart”
Sheryl-Elaine Brazeau and Aileen Mani
For more information about the Tea Series call 613-731-1047 or visit www.ottawastorytellers.ca
Story Swap | THURSDAY, August 6,
7:00 – 9:30pm – Library and Archives
The next “Story Swap”
Bonfire Stories | FRIDAY’S in AUGUST
7:00 – 9:00 p.m. – Billings Estate National Historic Site, 2100 Cabot St
“Bonfire Stories” every Friday evening
An interactive evening of stories designed for families:
- historical stories of the Billings family;
- stories of old Bytown/Ottawa and area;
- stories that have a national focus with a local tie-in, such as the Great Depression, women’s suffrage,
the lumber business, etc.
Cost: $10, includes roasting stick, marshmallows, and wieners
