4 THE DAILY VOICE, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2018 EDITOR WARREN JANE FA atertainment TRICIA LO photo A Movember supporter says to his daughter: “Don’t worry baby, Daddy will only look like this for another couple more days.” Movember skating a success The playoff beard has taken a backseat to the Movember moustache By TRICIA LO n conjunction with the Movember Campaign, the Robson Square Ice Rink hosted its first ever Movember Skate last night. This year marks the 10th anniversa- ry of Movember, which raises funds for men’s health, particularly regarding prostate and testicular cancer. “There are always so many fantastic events that are organized by dedicated Mo Bros and Mo Sistas that are such amazing ways to support,” said Mo- vember spokeswoman Jill Kenney. The inaugural event invited all moustache-sporting men, women and children down to the ice rink for a pub- lic skate from 5 to 9 p.m. Donations for the Movember campaign were collect- ed at the rink’s rental shack as well as the concession stand. The skate offered special bonuses for moustache-wearers in attendance. “Anybody with a moustache gets a free hot chocolate,” said communica- tions manager Adam Stowe. “And if they have their own skates, they can actually get a free skate sharpen too.” “Tt isn’t just limited to guys. If any women want to come down, obviously with a fake moustache, that’s also ac- ceptable.” A competition for the best mous- tache was held at 5:30 p.m. Ryan McE- wan from Brisbane, Australia, was de- claired the winner by the crowd. He was awarded a free pair of skates, but said he can’t even skate that well. “T had no idea this was happening,” said McEwan. “I just came here to skate.” McEwan said he has a cousin who was diagnosed with prostate cancer. “Td encourage everyone to donate to the cancer research,” said McEwan. Dani Laming, an assistant manager at the ice rink, was one of the few wom- en in attendance with a moustache. “It’s actually masking-taped to my upper lip,” said Laming. “I had a staff member draw this for me so I could participate too.” According to Stowe, the ice rink has seen a lot of traffic since opening this year on Nov. 15. “We don’t have any exact numbers back, but it’s pretty much along par with last year.” Last year, more than 56,500 people skated at the rink. Free public skating is available from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thurs- day, and from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Fri- days and Saturdays. It will remain open until the end of February. Ls DANI LAMING Movember sup- porter sporting her ‘stache 66 It’s actu- ally mask- ing-taped to my upper lip. Bring in the holidays with festive tunes Lower Mainland residents need not worry, there will be plenty of Christmas cheer in the form of music By GAVIN FISHER in luck because there are plenty of holiday-themed musical events around Vancouver coming up in the next few weeks. I ove Christmas music? Then you’re Christmas with the Bach Choir - Dec. 1, 2 p.m. at the Orpheum ($25- $59) Come and hear the sound of 400 voic- es singing Christmas favourites, both classic and new. The Bach Choir’s vari- ous choirs will perform, and will be ac- companied by a brass quintet and the Orpheum’s legendary Wurlitzer organ. Vancouver Tree Lighting Celebra- tion - Dee. 6, 5:30 p.m. at the Jack Poole Plaza (FREE) See the tree being lit up for the holi- day season while enjoying performanc- es by the Sarah McLachlan School of Music and the musical ensemble Show- stoppers. A Baroque Christmas - Dec. 6, 8 p.m at the Orpheum ($28-$52) Celebrate Christmas with baroque music. The Vancouver Chamber Choir and the Vancouver Chamber Orchestra will be performing at this event. A Charlie Brown Christmas: A lit- tle jazz and joy - Dec. 13, 8 p.m. and Dec. 15, 3 p.m. at Ryerson United Church ($30-$35) Jazz up your Christmas with music featuring Peanuts characters played by Pacific Theatre actors. The Vancouver Bach Choir: The Messiah - Dec. 14, 8 p.m. at the Or- pheum Enjoy Handel’s Christmas classic, performed by the Bach Choir. The VSO Traditional Christmas - Dec. 12 to 22, 4 p.m and 7:30 p.m. at seven locations in the Lower Main- land ($36 for students) Get into the Christmas spirit with the Vancouver Sympony Orchestra’s annual concert series, with perfor- mances by the UBC Opera Ensemble and vocal ensemble EnChor. Concerts will take place at St. Andrew’s Wesley Church from Dec. 12 to 14. Sing us a song, youre the piano man World-famous pianist impresses the crowd with his talent and affordable ticket prices By VANESSA SZPURKO breath as the last of the notes ring through the air. A moment’s pause, then a warm wave of applause erupts. Rising from his piano stool, world fa- mous pianist Alexander Karpeyev bows humbly in recognition. Up close, Karpeyev seems impossi- bly young, his youthful appearance be- lying his years of training in Russia and England. He has performed around the world at multiple famous venues, including the Barbican and Wigmore Hall in the U.K. This is his first performance on Ca- nadian soil and it’s a small, but packed crowd of 100 or so at West Point Grey United Church. Karpeyev’s Nov. 15 recital was the Te: audience seems to hold its inaugural performance of Milizewest, an ongoing concert series started by Grade Four French immersion teacher Jennifer West. Next in the series are two performances by cellist David Eg- gert on Feb. 28 and March 3. Having lived in Montreal for the past two summers, West was struck by the city’s abundance of affordable art and culture, including dance, theatre and music, compared to Vancouver. “Tt seemed to enhance the commu- nity quite a bit,” said West. In May, West began working with a woman who was eager to start an ac- cessible concert series in Vancouver. However, when health problems pre- vented the woman from continuing, West ended up becoming co-artistic di- rector with fourth year UBC oboe stu- dent Diana Chan. “We have two goals. We want acces- sible ticket prices for amazing concerts with wonderful artists both in Vancou- ver and outside of Vancouver,” said West. “We want young children be- tween the ages of six and 12 exposed to classical music for no price to them- selves, brought right to their class- room.” In addition to his public perfor- mance, Karpeyev held an education outreach concert with West’s class. When Karpeyev spoke, his Russian- accented voice was soft and before be- ginning a series of pieces by one of his favourite composers, he turned to the audience, smiled and said “I hope you enjoy it.” Judging by the thunderous applause afterwards, they did - and will be at- tending more Miizewest events in the future, if this performance was any in- dicator of coming performances. BROOK JONES photo World-renowned pianist Alexander Karpeyev played his first concert on Canadian soil in Kitsilano recently as part of Miizewest, a new concert series focused on providing affordable and accessible classical music to Vancouver residents.