at CHRIS RANDLE photo Community members of the mythical Bird Nation come together to help a domestic abuse victim in Loring’s play “Battle of the Birds.” First Nations play takes flight Studio 58 grad’s play on domestic abuse stuns at theatre festival By NICO HERNANDEZ modern society. “You look at the comments sec- tion online, and you will find enough preconceived notions and ig- .sppy norance to last a life-time,” ; a atile of the Birds, a play by award-winning playwright and Studio 58 grad Kevin Loring, was a highlight at this year’s Talking Stick Festival, which showcas- es aboriginal culture through various art forms. Battle of the Birds is based on a Nlaka’pamux tribal story about power abuse and domestic violence. The play tells the story of a community in the mythical “Bird Nation” rallying to re- solve the issues of a domestic abuse victim. Loring’s theatre company Savage Society tells “contemporary aboriginal stories sourcing myth, tradition and contemporary aboriginal perspec- tives.” They aim to attack precon- ceived notions about Aboriginal Peo- ples and portray their values in Loring said. ter art.” tributed successful “You develop a thick skin, and it fuels your g motivation to do bet- | Bruce Kennedy, gf technical director $m at Studio 58, at- Loring’s career to his determina- 4 and past experi- “Loring has been ful in his ability to tell a story,” Ken- “He has been able late his experiences and that’s all you can ask for in this SZ. profession.” Talking Stick Festival presented Batile of the Birds at the Round- 66 ~ house Community Arts & Recre- We want ation Centre on Feb.19 and 20. The . #. annual festival, hosted by Full [i the city JZ Circle, provides a platform to of Van- = aboriginal artists. Margo Kane, founder of Full couver| to re Circle and a leading figure in know that aboriginal performing arts, there is a said there is a need to create . * performance opportunities for creative aboriginal artists. r “We want [the city of Vancou- energy tion ver] to know that there isa cre. Dlossom- ences. ative energy blossoming in their ing in their success- midst,” Kane said. . craft and “This is the territory of the midst nedy said. Coast Salish people, and we need to assimi- to honour and acknowledge that, MARGO KANE in his story, and share their artistic prac- FOUNDER tices as well.” FULL CIRCLE Metro Theatre's bold play creates stir _ -~ OTe DANIEL DADI-CANTARINO photos Top: The cast of Five Women Wearing the Same Dress performs at Metro Theatre. Bottom: Actors Michelle Weinbom and Christine Rein- fort Five Women Wearing the Same Dress highlights women’s issues in a funny and provocative manner By DANIEL DADI-CANTARINO has pushed its own boundaries with Five Women Wearing the Same Dress, a humorous yet thought- provoking play. The play, which lays out the experi- ences of five women at a wedding re- ception, has been described as “Brides- maids crossed with Sex and the City” in a press release. Presenting itself as a comedy on the surface, the play delves into issues women face such as misogyny, ho- mophobia and rape. The play also gives audiences a quick flash of nudity. Anthony Stonechild, stage manager for the production, said Metro Theatre chose the play because it deals with many “hot-button issues.” “We talk about AIDS in this play, we talk about infidelity and all kinds of things, and to hear these topics being addressed by strong women charac- ters, and none of these characters be- ing written as at all stereotypical, it’s very refreshing,” Stonechild said. Director Don Briard said the play might generate interesting reactions from the audience as Metro Theatre has a reputation for presenting pro- ductions with a more conservative fla- vour. Ss: Vancouver’s Metro Theatre “They [playwrights] don’t pull any punches with respect to language, a couple of the characters are a bit foul mouthed, and while they’re people that you guys [youth] would probably rec- ognize, some of our audience would not. It'll be interesting to see,” Briard said. The play was met with cheers and applause from the crowd after the opening night performance. Gwen Mackie, a long-time patron of the Metro Theatre, said she appreciat- ed the production’s message despite its graphic content. “T think it’s very up-to-date with how young people feel these days, so it’s good for us to hear that, but it was still very surprising, we weren’t expecting that,” Mackie said. Five Women Wearing the Same Dress runs until March 12 at Metro Theatre. FAMOUS PLAYS about women THE VAGINA MONOLOGUES (1996) Eve Ensler SAINT JOAN (1923) George Bernard Shaw AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY(2007) Tracy Letts THE GLASS MENAGERIE (1944) Tennessee Williams THE PRIME OF MISS JEAN BRODIE (1966) Jay Presson Allen Residents revel as pubs come to South Van Business is thriving for some new watering holes that have cropped up in South Vancouver By SIMRAN GILL a reason to celebrate as new bars and pubs are popping up in the area. Dublin Crossing Irish Pub, a new pub on Marine Drive, is one of the few plac- es in South Vancouver where residents can get a drink. Greg Yorke, manager of the pub, said he’s unsure as to why there is a short- age of drinking hot spots in South Van- couver, as his pub is doing well. “We have been fairly busy for being a new establishment. We already have a lot of regular customers. People who work in the buildings near by come by often but not a lot of students yet,” Yorke said. Yorke added that South Vancouver residents would benefit from hav- ing more pub-like venues. “Pubs are ideal because they are much more re- Rees: in South Vancouver have MIA SIVIC laxed. You can First-year sociol- meet your friends ogy student for a beer and com- forting food and just hang out,” he said. Mia Sivic, sociology student at Lang- ara College, said she feels it is an incon- venience that she has to go downtown to get a drink. “T wish that there were more pubs close to Langara because I like hanging out and grabbing a bite to eat and some drinks with my friends, and not have to go out of our way to all meet down- town,” Sivic said. Gurpreet Sandhu, a South Vancou- ver resident, said she frequents the Hudson’s Landing Pub in South Van- couver when she wants to relax and not go too far from home. Sandhu said she wishes that there was a wider range of pubs in the area because Hudson’s Landing Pub gets too busy during peak hours since it is one of the few pubs in South Vancouver. “Vancouver is such a foodie city that it’s nice to have pub-style restaurants. You get the same service as in a restau- rant in a more relaxed atmosphere,” Sandhu said. SIMRAN GILL photo Dublin Crossing Irish Pub on Ma- rine Drive is one of the few drink- ing spots in South Vancouver.