Magnetic North Fundraising Auction
Show your support for Canada’s national festival of contemporary Canadian theatre in English – plus get some amazing prizes!
[Source: Magnetic North press release]
Like its polar namesake, the Magnetic North Theatre Festival roves around the country, visiting a new Canadian city every second year and returning to its hosts at the National Arts Centre in between. Designed to raise the profile of contemporary English Canadian theatre at home and abroad, Magnetic North is truly one of Canada’s great artistic success stories.
Meet Private Eye Jake Doyle on set in colourful St. John’s, NL
Flight and hotel accommodations included
A return trip to beautiful St. John’s Newfoundland from anywhere in Canada, where you will visit the set of the popular Canadian television series the Republic of Doyle. Enjoy the opportunity to meet the cast and co-star Allan Hawco, Private Eye Jake Doyle, and perform as an extra on the show. Flight and hotel accommodations are included in this auction package.
Private Eye Jake Doyle returns for a raucous third season of CBC’s Republic of Doyle, solving cases, dodging punches and chasing criminals through the hilly, colourful streets of seaside St. John’s. Allan Hawco stars as the charming and irreverent detective who struggles daily to navigate the complications of running the family P.I. business while keeping his very tangly private life in check.
A Taste of Newfoundland!
A private meal for 10 with special guests and music
Enjoy an evening hosted by Peter Herrndorf, President and CEO of the National Arts Centre, and Ann Connors, Executive Director of the Magnetic North Theatre Festival along with special guests. Let them entertain you and nine of your friends with authentic Maritimes cuisine, drinks and live music and see how they party on the Rock!
WRITERS FESTIVAL’S SPRING SEASON SETS THE STAGE FOR A STELLAR FALL
The Ottawa International Writers Festival wrapped up its 2011 Spring season with Fawzia Koofi, an influential Afghan MP and human rights advocate, who spoke about the future of Afghanistan and her plans to run for her country’s presidency in 2014. It was a fitting end to a successful Spring season, and a prelude to a Fall season that
will feature many more big thinkers and acclaimed imaginations.
“It wasn’t ideal to be competing with the federal election, but once again our community came out to welcome all the visiting authors. Attendance was up over last Spring and book sales jumped 30%,” says Sean Wilson, artistic director. “We also hit something of a milestone with our free literacy programs, since we managed to offer fifty of them this time around and reached more than 5,000 kids.”
Some of the highlights of the Spring included three-term U.S. poet laureate Robert Pinsky, Giller Prize-winning novelist Elizabeth Hay, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Chris Hedges and “Survivorman” Les Stroud.
Judging by the authors who have been confirmed so far, the Fall lineup will feature just as much talent and variety. The list includes former Governor General Adrienne Clarkson and Booker Prize-winning novelists Michael Ondaatje and Anne Enright, as well as Irshad Manji (The Trouble with Islam), Wayne Johnston (The Navigator of New York), Anita Rau Badami (Can You Hear the Nightbird Call?), celebrity chef Michael Smith, and renowned editor Douglas Gibson.
“There will definitely be something for everyone, and no shortage of bold ideas,” says Wilson. “We’re also excited to be curating some great events with a focus on songwriting and music.”
Another new development for Fall is the Festival’s change of venue. Most of the Fall Festival will take place at Knox Presbyterian Church at the corner of Lisgar and Elgin. “There’s enough space for a larger on-site bookstore and room to hold most events under one roof,” says community liaison manager Leslie Wilson. “So besides the convenience factor, there should also be a great social atmosphere running through the six days of the Fall edition.”
Fall events will begin in September, with the Fall edition proper spanning October 20 to 25. For more information, please visit www.writersfestival.org or call 613-562-1243.
AMBITIOUS, COURAGEOUS, INSPIRING: FAWZIA KOOFI AT THE WRITERS FESTIVAL
FAWZIA KOOFI, AFGHANISTAN’S FIRST FEMALE DEPUTY SPEAKER OF THE LOWER HOUSE, AT THE WRITERS FESTIVAL
On the day FAWZIA KOOFI was born, her mother left her to die in the wilderness, changing her mind only after the baby had suffered severe burns. This early brush with death may explain the remarkable tenacity of Afghanistan’s most popular female politician. The 35-year-old MP will run for president in 2014 despite serious security threats from Islamic extremists. On May 30, she will discuss her new memoir Letters to My Daughters in an event presented by the Ottawa International Writers Festival and hosted by CBC’s Lucy van Oldenbarneveld.
Twice elected in her home province of Badakhshan, Koofi is the first female deputy speaker of the Lower House in her country. She is a well-known advocate for democracy and for human rights, especially those of women and children. The World Economic Forum recognized her as a Young Global Leader in 2009.
Koofi’s exposure to injustice began at an early age. Her father, also a parliamentarian, was executed by mujahedeen rebels when she was four years old, leaving behind seven wives and twenty-three children. He was a well-respected public servant, but at home he could be “a terrifying tyrant”; Koofi recalls how he would beat her mother, sometimes to the point of unconsciousness, if his guests’ rice was too sticky.
As the first girl in her family to be allowed to attend school, Koofi is part of a pivotal generation of Afghan women who are challenging traditional forms of inequality. Unfortunately, this has resulted in more than one attempt on her life. Last year, her convoy was attacked near Kabul, triggering a shootout that left two policemen dead.
In a letter to her 11- and 12-year-old daughters, Koofi writes, “…I would willingly sacrifice my life if it means a peaceful Afghanistan and a better future for the children of this country. I live this life so that you—my precious girls—will be free to live your lives and to dream all of your dreams.”
The event will take place at Southminster United Church (15 Aylmer Ave. at Bank) at 7:00 PM. Tickets are $15 for the general public, $10 for students and seniors, and free for Carleton students and Festival members. They are available at writersfestival.org or by calling (613) 562-1243.
STORIES OF WAR, KIDNAPPING AND SURVIVAL AT THE WRITERS FESTIVAL
The possibility of being kidnapped at gunpoint is not something the average Canadian thinks about while getting ready for work. Yet in some parts of the world, it is an ever-present threat. On May 17, MELLISSA FUNG and JAMES LONEY will speak about their experiences as captives in Afghanistan and Iraq, respectively. The event, hosted by Kate Heartfield, is presented by the Ottawa International Writers Festival.
In October 2008, CBC reporter Mellissa Fung was kidnapped by armed men as she was leaving a refugee camp near Kabul. She spent twenty-eight days imprisoned in a small hole in the ground with barely enough room to stand. A true journalist, she questioned her captors relentlessly, gaining rare insight into their motives and personal lives. Former Governor General Adrienne Clarkson calls Fung’s book Under an Afghan Sky: A Memoir of Captivity “a must-read for anyone interested in what’s happening in Afghanistan today.”
Born Again at the Writers Festival
The Easter season is the perfect time to re-examine our lives and discover deeper meaning and significance of the profound and the ordinary.
Join us at 8 PM Sunday, May 1 at Southminster United Church for the insights and inspiration of two of Canada’s most radical thinkers. Tom Harpur author of the highly controversial bestsellers The Pagan Christ and Water Into Wine launches his latest book Born Again, My Journey from Fundamentalism To Freedom and Robert Sibley, author of the critically acclaimed Northern Spirits takes the stage with A Rumor of God, Rekindling Belief in an Age of Disenchantment.
With references to literary and philosophical giants such as Blaise Pascal, William James, Virginia Wolf, Martin Buber, Martin Heidegger, Simone Weill, Gertrude Stein, and Philip Larkin to name but a few, Sibley astounds and entertains with his tapestry of profound imagery and pilgrimage set against a backdrop of the disenchantment of our contemporary world.
Tom Harpur, Canada’s leading writer on spirituality and religious issues may well deny the historical evidence of Jesus but, Born Again is a passionate even revolutionary appeal to ‘ordinary’ seekers to challenge the official religious status quo and to look to ourselves and the Christ within for true spiritual enlightenment.
Don’t miss this unique opportunity to hear from and ask questions of two original and brilliant writers.
Memberships, Festival passes and tickets are available online at writersfestival.org and over the phone at 613 562 1243.
The Spring Edition of the Festival runs from Thursday April 28 until Tuesday, May 3. Highlights include Chris Hedges, Elizabeth Hay, Jaron Lanier, Bernhard Schlink, Johanna Skibsrud, Neil Pasricha, John Gray, Les Stroud, Robert Pinsky, Sylvia Tyson, David Adams Richards, James Bartleman and Johanna Skibsrud.
Writers Festival Challenges The Myth of Human Progress and Welcomes The Immortalization Commission
OTTAWA, March 22, 2011 -Elizabeth Hay, Chris Hedges, Parag Khanna, Lorna Crozier, Johanna Skibsrud, Bernard Schlink, Jaron Lanier, Madeleine Thien, and Sylvia Tyson headline the Spring Edition of the Ottawa International Writers Festival which runs from April 28 to May 3, at the Mayfair Theatre, Southminster United Church, the Manx Pub, The NAC and Collected Works Bookstore.
“In the context of the grass roots uprisings taking place in North Africa and our own democratic maneuvering here in Canada, it is timely that the themes of exporting democracy, human rights, salvation, and justice run through much of our fiction and non-fiction this Spring,” says artistic director Sean Wilson. “There’s a stong focus on freedom and on how history affects the future. This Spring’s program really highlights how interconnected we are in the 21st century.”
Poetry is front and center with a House of Anansi Poetry Bash at Collected Works and a Poetry Cabaret with Gillian Sze, Pearl Pirie, and Lorna Crozier. The cherry on the poetry sundae is a master class with Robert Pinsky, who served an unprecedented three times as Poet Laureate of the United States.
Music also plays a staring role this Spring with a Ghazal concert with Lorna Crozier, Rob Winger, Sandra Ridley and Robert Pinsky with the MEL M’rabet Quartet. The ghazal originated in 6th century Arabic verse and was popularized with the ecstatic verses of Rumi and reached cult status with the work of the late Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and his music for Dead Man Walking. One of Canada’s most celebrated songwriters, Sylvia Tyson, joins us for an unforgettable evening of music and her acclaimed novel Joyner’s Dream.
A session on documentary fiction about Canada’s First Nations with David Adams Richards and former Lieutenant James Bartleman also promises to generate lively discussion.
Other highlights include John Gray (who Will Self calls “The most important living philosopher.“) the father of Virtual Reality, Jaron Lanier, and religious scholar Tom Harpur. As always, there’s far too much to cram into a single press release so for more on the Festival’s Spring Edition, please visit us online at writersfestival.org. The new site launches Wednesday, March 30th.
Ottawa’s International Writers Festival presents: ONE ON ONE WITH ETGAR KERET
Photo by Moshe Shai
ONE ON ONE WITH ETGAR KERET
Presented in partnership with the Embassy of Israel
Hosted by CBC’s Adrian Harewood
SUNDAY, APRIL 7 p.m.
Mayfair Theatre (1074 Bank st.)
Tickets: $15/ $10 student or senior
Free for Festival Members
“Etgar Keret is a genius…” —New York Times
“The voice of the next generation.” —Salman Rushdie
Don’t miss an evening of prose, conversation and film with best-selling Israeli writer and filmmaker, Etgar Keret. Hailed as the voice of young Israel and one of its most radical and extraordinary writers, he has won numerous awards and accolaides. An accomplished screenwriter and director, his first movie as a director, along with his wife Shira Geffen, Jellyfish, won the coveted Camera d’Or prize for best first feature at the Cannes Film Festival.
Tickets include a screening of Jellyfish at 5:00 PM.
Province provides more than $2.1-million in funding to Ottawa festivals
OTTAWA—The recipients of 2011 Celebrate Ontario funding have been announced, and this year the provincial government’s commitment to several Ottawa area festivals is over $2.1-million, marking an increase of over half a million dollars from last year’s investment.
The twelve festivals benefiting from this year’s funding are the Canadian Tulip Festival, Cisco Ottawa Bluesfest, Festival franco-ontarien, Music and Beyond, Tim Horton’s Ottawa Dragon Boat Race Festival, Ottawa Folk Festival, Ottawa International Chamber Music Festival, Ottawa International Children’s Festival, Ottawa International Writers Festival, Rideau Canal Festival, Summer Solstice Aboriginal Arts Festival, and the TD Ottawa International Jazz Festival.
“It is very encouraging to see an increased commitment from the province,” says Barb Stacey, Executive Director of Ottawa Festivals, a not-for-profit organization that represents more than 50 not-for-profit festivals, special events and fairs that take place in Canada’s Capital Region, “There is no question that these events have tremendous socio-economic impact on the community by providing affordable access to cultural and community-based activities while also attracting more visitors. These events help showcase Ottawa’s identity while also creating significant economic impact that supports increased prosperity, jobs and opportunities for our community.”
Created to help festivals and events improve their programming and services to attract new audiences, increase visitor spending and create jobs; Celebrate Ontario is investing a total of $20-million in 230 events across the province.
The Decline of the American Empire?
Bestselling author Dambisa Moyo makes her Writers Festival debut with How the West Was Lost, a bold account of the decline of the West’s economic supremacy. Specifically, the book suggests that America is not just in economic decline, but on course to become the biggest welfare state in the history of the West.
How the West Was Lost reveals not only the economic myopia of the West but also the radical solutions that it needs to adopt in order to assert itself as a global power once again.
Readers will remember her previous book Dead Aid a bestselling and devastating take on the cherished myths about foreign aid being a good thing.
Dambisa Moyo received a Ph. D in economics from Oxford University and a master’s degree from Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. She is a former consultant for the World Bank and an investment banker specializing in emerging markets at Goldman Sachs.
Dambisa Moyo takes the stage at Southminster United Church (15 Aylmer Ave. at Bank St.) on February 25, at 7:30 PM. The event is presented with Carleton University’s Faculty of
Public Affairs and Institute of African Studies and is hosted by CBC’s Lucy van Oldenbarneveld.
Tickets are available in advance online at www.writersfestival.org, onsite, or by phone at 613-562-1243. Tickets are also sold at the following locations: Books on Beechwood (35 Beechwood Ave.); Collected Works (1242 Wellington St.); Octopus Books (Cash Only, 116 Third Ave.); and the Ottawa Festivals office (47 William St.)
Other upcoming pre-festival events, include Israeli superstar Etgar Keret (April 3), Penguin Canada’s Extraordinary Canadians featuring Charles Foran on Maurice Richard, Vincent Lam on Tommy Douglas and Andre Pratte on Wilfred Laurier (April 13), and Tim Flannery with his latest Here On Earth: A Natural History Of The Planet (April 14).
Authors’ speeches wrap up writers fest
JOE LOFARO | METRO OTTAWA
Photo by Joe Lafaro for Metro Ottawa
The Ottawa International Writers Festival is wrapping up this week but not without the remaining speeches by a number of renowned authors.
William Gibson was at Mayfair Theatre yesterday giving a speech about Zero History, his latest novel in a sci-fi thriller trilogy.
Full Preview: Authors’ speeches wrap up writers fest
