This weekend was the Arts Alive festival in the Alberta Avenue neighbourhood, where I live. The area around 118th Ave is “revitalizing,” most visibly in the culture sector. A group of awesome local artists has been organizing a festival of music, visual arts, dance, and theatre for three years, along with weekly events at the Carrot Cafe and other summer events.
Kaleido is the big one, though. I volunteered to run the info booth Saturday afternoon, which meant not only being right across from the outdoor stage, but I got to meet a bunch of people who live in my neighbourhood and want to make it more interesting and safe for everyone.
I love the fact that most of the performers are from here. This is pretty much the last affordable area for people like us. Unlike Whyte Avenue, people are willing to buy a house and really invest, long term, in how things go here. This is a big part of it.
Yesterday, people were actually walking along 118th, looking for the various venues where the events (mostly free!) were happening. Kids could make crafts, there was a penny arcade, and a storefront had been turned into an art gallery. The rumour is that that gallery will be converted into a dance studio; another example of artists increasing traffic to the ‘hood.
I watched music all day, then scurried over to see the dance shows. I got there in time to see the last piece from Mile Zero, a duet of women in modified tutus dancing in front of a large bowl of liquid, which was then projected onto a screen behind them. It was gorgeous, almost an underwater feel. And when MZ’s Gerry Morita picked up the projector to manipulate the images, the projection multiplied arms and bodies into a spiral, like an ammolite shell. Then Eryn Tempest took the stage, with another beautifully fluid work, accompanied by live music. The final modern piece was more hard-edged, and featured my friend Amber Bissonette.
I crept away during the ballroom demonstration. There was something about tiny eight year olds doing the rhumba that freaked me out. I mean, I love a sexy dance myself, but at that age it was a little too Jon Benet Ramsay.
After a dinner break, we all went to see the Songs from the Ave show. Or, more precisely, three of us went to perform in the show and I found some pals to sit with in the audience. Seriously, I know so many talented people. Paul played his hockey arena song to much audience appreciation, and Alex “James” Murdoch did his, a lovely number based on old letters he found stashed behind some furniture in his house. I also loved Terry Morrison’s 1942, about girls left behind during the war. And Shannon Johnson on fiddle!
There is no other neighbourhood that could do something like this. We’re really lucky to have such a strong community. It’s like Old Strathcona, except with a sense of commitment. I can imagine more and better events in the future. The Avenue Theatre has been converted to a multi-use performance space, and once the Nina Haggerty moves onto the Ave, it’ll be a centre of gravity for more community-based arts. I am so proud to live here.