Stage
i think i can Playwright Florence Gibson and choreographer Shawn Byfield collaborate on a piece for young audiences in which tap-dancing speaks louder than words. A group of schoolkids communicates through tap steps rather than dialogue as they deal with cliques, bullying and trying to be the best at the school’s science fair. See listing here.
still here The award-winning Heidi Strauss uses Factory’s Performance Spring Festival to create another solo show, an up-close portrait of a woman in a place where things are not always what they appear to be. See preview here and listing here.
Movies
West Of Zanzibar Tod Browning’s silent film screens with live accompaniment from rockers Fucked Up, at the Toronto Underground, part of the Images festival. See Listings. Read here for more on Images, going into its last weekend.
Jitters This Icelandic entry, screening to day at at Sprockets, is one of the more mature offerings at the festival. For more on Sprockets, see here.
Hanna Catch the first weekend of the girl-powered actioner, with Saorise Ronan and a wicked Cate Blanchett. For an interview with director Jor Wright, see here. See a review of Hanna here.
Art
Ed Burtynsky The gifted landscape photographer opens a new show at the Royal Ontario Museum’s Institue for Contemporary Culture. See listing.
Peter Sibbald NOW Magazine contributor Sibbald’s show, Roughstock, photos of small-town rodeos and the men, women and animals who perform in them, celebrates a subculture that gives a charge of adrenaline to rural life. Reception today at Bau-Xi Photo. See listing.
James Lahey Unlike the hero of the film One Week, Lahey wasn’t dying, but he also took a cross-country motorcycle journey (in his case from Chicago to Santa Monica on Route 66) for the show Eight Days, in which he combines photography and painting of iconic images of riders and signage along the way. A book signing happens Saturday for the catalogue, which includes poetry by Lynn Crosbie. At Nicholas Metivier. See listing.
Sondra Meszaros The Calgary-based artist know for drawn imagery that combines the human and animal world takes a journey with cinematic, folkloric and mythological heroines in Shun, a show of drawings and etchings. At Corkin Gallery. See listing.
Books
Draft 6.5 Giller short-lister Sarah Selecky reads new work alongside Jill Battson, Andrew Daley, Steve McCabe and Halli Villegas at Merchants of Green Cafe. See listings.
Community
Rally for a Toronto for Everyone Time to talk back to the Ford Nation – join a day of action hosted by the union movement and grassroots groups to preserve the public sector and stop cuts, privatization and user fees. 1 pm. Free. Yonge-Dundas Square. March to City Hall. See listing.
Canada Out of Afghanistan Funny how in the middle of an election campaign, no one is discussing Canada’s foreign policy and the failed mission in Kandahar. The Toronto Coalition to Stop the War and Afghans for Peace hope to attract some attention to the wrong-headed deployment. Noon. Free. United States Consulate. See listing.
Music
Fucked Up The Toronto hardcore heroes will be providing a live score to West Of Zanzibar Saturday night at the Toronto Underground Cinema, as part of Images Festival. See listing.
Brodinski You might want to check out Brodinski Saturday night at Wrongbar, even if for no other reason than his genius remix of the Yiddish classic Sha Shtil, which is just too ridiculous to not love. See listing.
The Go! Team If you’re checking out the Go! Team Sunday night at the Opera House, be sure to get there early enough to catch DOM, who’ve been enjoying quite a lot of buzz lately. See listing.
