aug 2 | jeremy tow benefit | chemainus

On Monday, August 2nd, a group of wonderful artists have stepped forward to volunteer their time to hold a benefit for Jeremy Tow and his family at the Chemainus Theatre Festival. It will be a wonderful evening of songs and readings to raise support for Jeremy in the battle that he is now experiencing with cancer. As you know, Jeremy served as Artistic Director for the Chemainus Theatre from 1999 to 2009 before taking the role
of Artistic Director with Western Canada Theatre in Kamloops.

If you would like more information about his battle & condition a public page titled 'Prayer Vigil for Jeremy' has been set up on Facebook.

I invite you to join us on August 2nd to show your support and love for an individual that has touched & inspired so many through his theatrical talents and quite simply, through life. Please click on the reserve now button to book seats. I look forward to seeing you at this special benefit performance

Randy Huber,
Managing Director, Chemainus Theatre

Reserve Your Tickets Online

or call the Chemainus Theatre Box Office, 250-246-9820 or 1-800-565-7738

jackie faulkner | no sex please, we're british

Jackie Faulkner's an actress (and choreographer - remember the Queen number in I WAS MEANT FOR THE STAGE?) who's around PT a lot, a TWU grad. Here's her latest show!


Royal City Theatre Company
No Sex Please, We're British

White Rock's Coast Capital Playhouse, Jul 29 - Aug 1
Waterfront Theatre, Aug 3-28
Evergreen Arts Centre, Sep 21-26

Tickets & Showtimes

"No Sex, Please is a typical British farce, with a very thin plot that follows the desperate efforts of a young married couple (Jarrod Terrell and Becky Hachey) and their nerdy bank-clerk friend (Sam Gordon) to dispose of unsolicited pornography. Keeping it away from his nosey mother (Wendy Bollard), the pompous bank manager (Douglas Newell) and the visiting police inspector (Adrian Hughes) is bad enough, but when the good-time girls (Nicole Smashnuk and Jackie Faulkner) show up, the silliness slides into sheer hilarity. Alan Cedargreen portrays the hapless visiting bank inspector, Mr. Needham. This talented cast handles the physical comedy very well, and makes the most of this farce." Surrey Now

so you think you can sing?

The Pacifica Singers are a select ensemble of 16-18 voices led by award-winning conductor John William Trotter, Assistant Conductor of the Vancouver Chamber Choir. The ensemble was established in 2009 to provide a performance venue for experienced and motivated choral singers whose goal is to make music at a very high level. In providing direct exposure to the world of professional music making, it offers an experience of exceptional value for singers intending to make music their career. Current members are drawn from throughout the Lower Mainland region, with many also serving as conductors, music educators, and/or professional singers in their communities.

The Pacifica Singers will perform in four concerts with the Vancouver Chamber Choir in the course of the 2010-2011 season, in addition to one independent production. Repertoire will include masterpieces by Vivaldi, Fauré, Schubert, Brahms, Rachmaninoff, and others.

Auditions will be held on selected dates in August 2010. Rehearsals are held Tuesday evenings beginning in September, with additional dress rehearsals as required.

For more information, or to schedule an audition time, email John William Trotter at jwt@vancouverchamberchoir.com

zach christ, superstar

. . .

excerpted from The New Yorker, July 26, 2010

refuge of lies in outer space

David Nykl as Zelenka

in Stargate: Atlantis

Jul 23 | Karyn Guenther | Roots Among the Rocks

If you've seen a TWU show in the past couple years, you've noticed Karyn Guenther, a real presence onstage. This summer she's been on the road, from one end of Canada to the other, making theatre. Here's what she writes...

Roots Among the Rocks (the touring show I'm in this summer) is coming to Vancouver on Friday, July 23 and I would love for you all to come our show. For those of you who don't know what this project is, I will explain.

5 actors and 2 directors went out and interviewed around 70 people from all walks of life. The youngest person was 9 years old and the oldest person was 92, and everything in between. We asked them about God, faith experiences, stories from their lives and anything else they were willing to tell us.

On May 4th we met for the first time as a company and shared stories, ideas, thoughts and began our creative process. We wrote, explored, and played for a month and then we were off on the road with a show.

I am so very excited to share this work and I would be so happy to see you there.

Roots Among the Rocks
Friday, July 23 | 7:30 pm

Christ Church Cathedral
690 Burrard Street
Vancouver, BC V6C 2L1
604 682-3848

Tickets: $5 for youth and $10 for adults. We think anyone age 12 and over will enjoy it.

Roots Among the Rocks seeks to share stories from the people who make up the church in Canada. Based on interviews with Christians from coast to coast, the show brings the Body of Christ home to itself, and asks the question: Who is Church? Characters tell their stories around a kitchen table, friends whisper is church pews, some choose to leave and others choose to stay. Music, poetry, dance and drama combine to explore just what it is that brings us together. Journeying through the themes of Sunday Morning, Identity Crisis, Resilience and Grace, Confession and Absolution, and Finding Home, come hear the stories and meet the characters that make up the church we call home.

Warning: Roots Among the Rocks is a show written for the whole church. In it, the cast confronts issues of identity, community, trust, and forgiveness. It does not contain: violence, swearing, nudity, smoke effects, reality TV hosts, strobe lighting, an obligatory kiss scene, or robots. It does contain: confession, dance, poetry, drug addiction, humour, cancer, biblical stories, St. Augustine, an irreverent tribute to Sunday morning worship, human sexuality, rocks, prayers, hopes, dreams and rap.

Our play does not have a linear plot. It is a series of moments, connected through prayer, music and movement. There are two major components to our show: monologues, based on interviews, and scenes, based on big questions we want to ask of the church.

jul 15-17 | The Last 5 Years| PT apprentice project

For those of you who have been following the blog or the PT season this year, you've probably gotten to know Shalyn McFaul. One of our apprentices, she worked the box office and front of house for the season, helped paint and rebuild the theatre for THE PASSION PROJECT, assistant stage-managed REFUGE OF LIES, and starred as Eileen Brennan in the just-closed GODSPELL. Well, apparently that wasn't enough work for her, because now she's producing and starring in THE LAST 5 YEARS July 15-17 with a pay-what-you-can preview July 14th.

An emotionally powerful and intimate musical about two New Yorkers in their twenties who fall in and out of love over the course of five years. The show's unconventional structure consists of Cathy, the woman, telling her story backwards while Jamie, the man, tells his story chronologically; the two characters only meet once, at their wedding in the middle of the show. JRB won Drama Desk Awards for the music and the lyrics after the Off-Broadway premiere in 2002 starring Norbert Leo Butz and Sherie Rene Scott.

The Last 5 Years

Starring Shalyn McFaul and Joshua McFaul

July 15-17 (preview July 14) at 8pm

Pacific Theatre

Tickets $15

Buy at 604.731.5518 - or on our website.

jul 21-25 | frank nickel | The 4H Club

PT's own Frank Nickel is a core member of Genus, and he can be seen onstage in this next crazy Genus offering...


The Apocalypse or Bust!

Vancouver, BC – Genus Theatre invites its faithful following to take a shockingly comedic trip back through the past century as it premieres its latest production, Frano Marsic’s The 4H Club, at the Neanderthal Arts festival this July. A brazenly comedic look at the follies of the newest Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, the story spans the past century as the dysfunctional quartet of Death (Alex McMorran), Famine (Frano Marsic), Pestilence (Jordan Bodiguel), and War (Kelly Sheridan) barge their way through history. Desperate to rehabilitate their image and successfully bring about the end of the world, the foursome face their biggest challenge yet: each other. The pace is fast and the scope is grand, but the focus is wonderfully and pettily personal, as the 4H Club’s headstrong desires and very human weaknesses inexorably bring humanity closer to the end of the road.

In 2006 a Genus team comprised of Kristian Ayre, Jordan Bodiguel, Frano Marsic, Aidan Maxted, Frank Nickel, and Kelly Sheridan participated in Show Off – Theatre Under the Gun, a 48 theatre festival in which companies are given a prop, a line of text, an image and a sound clip that inspires the creation of a 10-15 minute piece. That process resulted in the first incarnation of this work. The production won an audience choice award and was held over at Performance Works on Granville Island. In 2009, The 4H Club was resurrected and featured in a Best of Theatre Under the Gun anniversary festival. Frano Marsic has based this evolution of The 4H Club on that original creation.

Since 2003, Genus Theatre Company has been presenting original, groundbreaking productions that have incorporated both live theatre and integrated film/media elements. The company has developed a reputation for producing carefully constructed works that are both accessible and provocative. As The 4H Club’s director Heather Doersksen relates: "Genus Theatre has always towed the line between 'dark', and 'comedy', and The 4H Club is no different. I love smart, witty writing, and I love playwrights that don't do what they're 'supposed' to do. That's what attracted me to this play. Here, we explore the inner workings of the four horsemen of the apocalypse while they try their darndest to successfully bring about the end of the world with a deadline of one hundred years. All this, while trying to deal with their own intimate relationships in a very human way. With 14 people in the cast, and different actors playing multiple roles, it's a fast paced jaunt through the last 100 years of our world. I think audiences will laugh and gasp and hold on for the ride."

The 4H Club, a 65 minute show, premieres at the Vancouver East Cultural Center (The Cultch) on the historic stage this July 21, as part of the inaugural Neanderthal Arts Festival. Tickets are $15 and may be purchased at the door or in advance online, or by calling the Cultch box office at 604.251.1363.

The Cultch Historic Stage – 1895 Venables Street, Vancouver

Wed July 21, 9:30
Thu July 22, 7:00
Fri July 23, 9:30
Sat July 24, 7:00
Sun July 25, 4:30

genustheatre@gmail.com | 604.338.3194

july | gallery 7 | theatre camps

Cool theatre stuff at Gallery 7 in Abbotsford this month. The first session has already begun, but if I've got it right, there are new ones starting up throughout the month. By the way, the original email included a billion links, but I'll just give you one: HERE is their website, you should be able to find what you need there...



Gallery 7 Theatre & Performing Arts Society presents
Summer Drama Blast 2010
July 5 – 23, 2010

Theatre camps for kids and teens ages 6 – 18.

Age-specific generalized camps for kids ages 6 – 13. Topic specific camps including Performance Intensive, Playwriting and Directing.

MEI School Campus
4081 Clearbrook Road, Abbotsford.

Summer Drama Blast is an exciting and interactive drama program for children and youth ages 6 - 18. This camp-style program is designed with the whole person in mind and endeavours to help the young budding artist establish strong foundations for a life-long enjoyment of the arts in an environment that is supportive, affirming and encouraging.

Camps are lead by qualified, trained and experienced instructors dedicated to creating a fun and interactive learning experience where the total individual is considered and respected. The focus of Summer Drama Blast is on process rather than the final product, giving children the opportunity to explore the dramatic arts in a non-pressured and fun environment.

And of course, Summer Drama Blast is about fun, fun, fun, making it a not-to-be missed annual summer activity!

Space still available for all camps!

Age Specific Camps

· Creative Explosions - Ages 6 & 7
· Dramatic Rumblings - Ages 8 & 9
· Stage Eruptions - Ages 10 & 11
· Dynamite Playmakers - Ages 12 & 13

Teen Camps

· Performance Blast – Ages 14 – 18
· Playwright’s Circle – Ages 14 – 18
· Director’s Circle – Ages 14 - 18

TEEN CAMP HIGHLIGHTS:

Playwright’s Circle
with Vancouver playwright, Lucia Frangione
July 12 – 19, 2010
1:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Cost: $150/person
Explore how to write a play with award-winning and published Vancouver playwright, Lucia Frangione. This is a very unique and rare opportunity to learn how to write a play from a professional playwright. Explore how to brainstorm, pre-write, develop characters, write dialogue, prepare a script for performance and much more. As part of the camp, teens will have the hands-on opportunity to develop an original short scene to be read on the final day for family and friends.

Director’s Circle
With award-winning professional director, Angela Konrad
July 19 – 23, 2010
1:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Cost: $150/teen
Another rare opportunity for teens to work with a living, breathing, and experienced professional theatre director. Get into the director's chair with this unique camp on how to direct a play. Teens will explore all areas of the job from research to casting to rehearsals to working with actors and designers. Lead by a professional director, this camp will use a short play as a foundation for hands-on practical experience.

Take both camps for just $250! Call 604-504-5940 to register.

2010-2011 at PT

I can't believe how quickly the time flies. It was only a year ago I was writing my first blog post for Soul Food, introducing myself as the newest employee at Pacific Theatre - the publicist. Now I am so thrilled to be announcing our next exciting season! Throughout the summer I'll do a few posts on the individual shows and our second stage and Fringe events, but here's a quick overview of our mainstage season. Subscriptions are available - just visit our website for more info or give us a call at 604.731.5483!

THE BUSY WORLD IS HUSHED by Keith Bunin
September 24-October 16 (preview September 23)
a guest production by one2theatre
When a widowed Episcopal minister hires an agnostic gay man as her scholarly assistant, she may have found the missing link in an estranged relationship with her wayward son. Mixing sexual politics with spiritual contradictions, her motivations are called into question when secrets from the past begin to surface.
Directed by Richard Wolfe. Featuring Gina Chiarelli, Sebastien Kroon, and Adam Bergquist.
“Hearts and souls are tangled and torn, God is abused and praised, and the audience is left in a state of contemplation.” Theatredogs

PLAYLAND by Athol Fugard
November 5-27 (preview November 4)
New Years Eve, 1989. Two South Africans, a black security guard and a white soldier, meet at a travelling amusement park. A powerful exploration of guilt and damnation, truth and reconciliation in post-apartheid South Africa.
Directed by Anthony F. Ingram. Featuring Tom Pickett and Michael Kopsa.
“Cathartic. Soul-cleansing.” British Theatre Guide

CHRISTMAS ON THE AIR by Lucia Frangione
December 10-January 1 (preview December 9)
a guest production by Midnight Theatre Collective
Journey back to the days when radio was king, as Philomena and Percival B. Frank present their annual Christmas show before a live studio audience. On-air magic and off-stage romance combine for a show as comfy as a cup of mulled cider and a plate of sugar cookies.
Directed by Ian Farthing. Featuring Damon Calderwood, Seana-Lee Wood, Lalainia Lindbjer, and Ben Elliott.
“Frangione’s merry little Christmas show overflows with the warmest sentiments of the holiday season.” Canoe.ca

MY NAME IS ASHER LEV adapted by Aaron Posner from the novel by Chaim Potok
January 28-February 26 (preview January 27)
When a young Jewish prodigy paints The Brooklyn Crucifixions, the reaction of his Orthodox community forces a terrible decision – between family and vocation, between his love for God and his desperate need to make art. Heartbreaking, triumphant.
Directed by Morris Ertman.
“A marvelous evening of theatre: intimate, sincere, magical.” Philadelphia City Paper

JESUS HOPPED THE “A” TRAIN by Stephen Adly Guirgis
March 11-April 2 (preview March 10)
a guest production by Glass City Theatre
Rikers Island. Two men sit in solitary confinement, 23 hours a day. Lucius Jenkins is a serial killer who awaits execution, Angel Cruz stands accused of a murder he doesn’t believe was a crime. Visceral, gritty, harrowing – an uncompromising drama about contradiction, contrition, and hypocrisy by the author of The Last Days of Judas Iscariot.
Directed by Angela Konrad.
“Fire-breathing. A probing, intense portrait of lives behind bars, it has the courage of its intellectual restlessness.” New York Times

JAKE’S GIFT written and performed by Julia Mackey
April 6-16
Pacific Theatre presents a Juno Beach production
When a crusty, down-on-his-luck WW2 veteran reluctantly makes the trip to Juno Beach to honour his brother Chester, his encounter with a precocious ten-year-old challenges the old soldier to confront some long-ignored ghosts. The most charming, heart-warming, and laugh-out-loud-funny one-woman show you’ll ever see.
“The most theatrically pure show I have ever seen. A stunning performance.” CBC

THE GREAT DIVORCE adapted by George Drance & The Magis Theatre from the novel by C.S. Lewis
an Emerging Artist Showcase
Hell resembles nothing so much as a dreary industrial city in the north of England, its denizens free to leave whenever they like – aboard a bus bound for a heaven that’s like nothing you’ve ever imagined.
Directed by Scott D. Campbell. Featuring Philip Miguel, Evan Lendrum, Moriah Ophardt, and Bria Crouch.
“Narnia for adults! Beatific, bright-clad, incorruptible spirits are pitted against flawed, monochromatic ghosts. It’s not a fair fight.” Seattle Weekly

jul 1 - 29 | free concerts | regent college

I've been looking forward to the Regent Summer Concerts line-up, and here it is - organized by Jesus himself! Well, sort of: the series is curated this year by Tim Bratton, who played J.C. in our production of GODSPELL (which closes Saturday). All concerts in the Regent College atrium, unless weather permits it to move outside to the plaza on the north side of the school. Take in a free concert, and check out the current show in the Lookout Gallery while you're there...

Thursday July 1 – 12-1pm
Nelson Boschman Trio

Thursday July 8 – 12-1pm
Jeremy Eisenhauer & Sheree Plett

Thursday July 15 – 12-1pm
Fish & Bird

Tuesday July 20 – 12-1pm
Silk Road

Thursday July 22 – 12-1pm
Gypsalero

Thursday July 29 – 12-1pm
Murphy’s Lágh

aug 7 | chris humphreys | writing workshop

Not necessarily any particular Soul Food content here, but a fun Pacific Theatre tie-in. Chris played Henry VIII and Cromwell in A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS, and continues to help us out with fight coaching and such from time to time. If you're interested in writing this sort of fiction, I doubt there's anyone who'd be a better tutor!


WRITING THE ACTION ADVENTURE NOVEL:
A TWO DAY NUTS AND BOLTS WORKSHOP WITH BESTSELLING AUTHOR C.C. (CHRIS) HUMPHREYS -

August 7th and 8th 2010. 10 am - 5 pm

Christianne’s Lyceum of Literature
3696 West 8th Avenue
Vancouver BC

Join Chris Humphreys (Jack Absolute, The French Executioner, Vlad, The Fetch) for a weekend of writing the action-adventure novel.

His objective: to start you writing, keep you writing and set you on the road to finishing that novel you’ve always dreamed of.

Level: The weekend is aimed at all levels of writers - from those who want to just start writing to the author who seeks to dust off the cobwebs and explore some new techniques.

Format: Over two days, Chris will conduct four 3 hour linked workshops, tackling the essentials of action-adventure writing in a series of stages - from initial conception, through the turning of imagination into written words, all the way to pitching a publisher. There will be discussion, demonstration and exercises. (Click WORKSHOPS for more information)

Mission Statement:
“Most Creative Writing classes focus on literary fiction, short stories or the memoir. Yet most people read adventures and that’s what many aspiring writers dream of writing.
Having been one of those dreamers for years, over eleven novels I have worked out techniques to start and then keep me writing even when doubts attack. Ways to banish that destructive inner critic. Ways of forgetting about the summit and just start climbing the mountain one step at a time - till you find yourself standing at the top of a first draft going ‘Wow’!
I believe in simplifying, so that you tackle only what’s in front of you. In creating fascinating characters through action, by what they do and say, and how they react.
I can’t teach imagination. But I can teach how to get someone’s imagination down on paper.”

(Christianne’s Lyceum is a wonderful creative space of book groups and life-long learning run by one of Canada’s foremost childrens’ educators, Dr. Christianne Hayward. It is located in Vancouver’s lively Kitsalano, close to the beaches and with great cafes and restaurants within easy walking distance.)

WORKSHOP FEES: $500 + HST (12%) = $560.00.

PAYMENT: $100 deposit on booking. Balance one week before. (July 31st 2010)
Cheques payable to: Two Hats Creative Inc.

Two Hats Creative Inc.
2865 West 16th Avenue
Vancouver BC
V6K 3C5
(Canada)

Contact: cchumphreys@hotmail.co.uk

charles burchfield | whitney museum of american art, nyc

Ice Glare, 1933

Life in a Small Town:
Charles Burchfield, homebody modernist
reviewed by Peter Schjeldahl in The New Yorker, July 5 2010

"An illuminating retrospective of the mystically inclined watercolor realist... During the Second World War, he experienced a rush of nostalgia for his "Golden Year" (1917) and resolved to pick up where his youthful delirium had left of... Formerly embittered against religion, he embraced his wife's Lutheranism and gave himself over to contemplating nature with spiritual conviction... I used to resist the mystical Burchfield, but the sheer quality of the show's climactic selection of late works overwhelms.... Burchfield said that he liked to think of himself 'in a nondescript swamp, alone, up to my knees in mire, painting the vital beauty I see there, in my own way, not caring a damn about tradition, or anyone's opinion.' And so he did."

Church Bells Ringing, Rainy Winter Night, 1917

These images are taken from a slideshow of paintings in the retrospective. You can find it here.

End of the Day, 1938

Two Ravines, 1934-1943

Black Iron, 1935

Dandelion Seed Heads and the Moon, 1961-65

Pyramid of Fire (Pyramid of Flame), 1929

The Night Wind, 1918

Song of the Telegraph, 1917-1952

godspell | cast

And now from the lovely coconut room high atop the unemployment building in beautiful downtown Burbank, NBC presents Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In. Starring Dan Rowan...

Joel Stephanson

And Dick Martin...

John Voth

And guest stars John the Baptist...

Ron Reed

and special guest, from out of town, direct from the holy land just in from a two week engagement at The Sands in Las Vegas... Jesus Christ of Nazareth...

Tim Bratton

And Ruth Buzzi...

Kyla Ferrier

Pamela Austin...

Kaitlin Williams

Goldie Hawn...

Kat Gauthier

with Arte Johnson...

Benjamin Miller

Jo Anne Worley...

Erin Germaine Mahoney

Eileen Brennan...

Shalyn McFaul

Lily Tomlin...

Julia Church

Judy Carne...

Diana Squires

And yours truly, Gary Owens.

Chris Nash

Also featuring the Production Assistant...

Ben Buckingham

Our Stage Manager...

Laura McLean

And her omni-capable and ever-present Assistant...

Philip Miguel

images created by Shalyn McFaul

jun 30 - jul 30 | stefan brunhoff | lookout gallery

One of my earliest Pacific Theatre memories was meeting Stefan Brunhoff after a performance of our inaugural show, FIRST CHRISTMAS, in 1984. He was an architecture student, and it obviously meant a lot to him to meet other Christians who were serious about both their art and their faith. Clearly Stefan was equally committed to both: decades later, still architecting and painting....

Chasing Presence
new watercolours

Stefan Brunhoff

Wed, June 30 - Fri, July 30
OPENING RECEPTION: Wed, June 30 , 4:30–7:30pm

Jul 15-18: Richard Osler poetry workshop

Upcoming Poetry Writing Retreat at the Honeymoon Bay Lodge with Richard Osler

Thursday July 15^th to Sunday July 18th, 2010

All-in cost: Double Occupancy $360, Single Occupancy $510

“Poems are not . . . simply emotions . . . they are experiences. For the sake of a single poem, you must see many cities, many people and things . . . and know the gestures which small flowers make when they open in the morning. You must be able to think back to streets in unknown neighborhoods, to unexpected encounters, and to partings you have long seen coming; to days of childhood whose mystery is still unexplained . . .; to childhood illnesses . . . to mornings by the sea, to the sea itself, to seas, to nights of travel . . . and it is still not enough.”

From The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge by Rainer Maria Rilke .

For the sake of poetry we are asked to go beyond ourselves, beyond what we know and often, beyond how we see the world. At its best poetry changes us - both when we read it and when we write it. Come and experience this first hand with Richard Osler in the spectacular setting of the Honeymoon Bay Lodge and Retreat Centre on Vancouver Island.

Experience your own surprising words as they appear through "poetic experiments" as the poet Jane Hirschfield calls them. During the retreat there will be five writing sessions. In these sessions you will be encouraged to relax into the sounds and musical language of noted contemporary poets. Then, through carefully chosen "experiments" (assignments) that use powerful examples chosen from poets writing at the top of their craft, you will be invited, and guided, to write your own poems in response. Between sessions there will be ample time for quiet and reflection. Retreatants will be offered also the chance to experience the transforming power of a guided walk through the lodge's labyrinth.

Weekend Structure. We will check in at 2 PM and start with a one and a half hour poetry writing session on Thursday afternoon followed by another one-and-a-quarter-hour session Thursday evening. We will have a two-and-a-half hour writing session on Friday and Saturday morning and a shorter-wrap up session on Sunday morning. On Friday and Saturday evening there will be time to share favorite poems and some of your own writing.

Retreat facilitator. Richard Osler, 59. Poet, workshop facilitator and specialty money manager.

Retreat Centre. The Honeymoon Bay Lodge and Retreat Centre near Cowichan Bay on Vancouver Island (90 minutes from either Victoria or Nanaimo) This centre, owned and operated by a charitable foundation, is a five star facility with an executive chef. All meals are provided ( high quality!) and each room has two queen-sized beds and a three-piece bathroom. Please check out this link www.honeymoonbayretreat.com for a virtual tour.

Cost. Reasonable! Thanks to the great package offered by Honeymoon Bay the all-in cost including all meals prepared by staff at the lodge and selected by the participants (dinners) from a menu selection is reasonable! See above. A non-refundable deposit of $100.00 is required to secure a place. WIth the deposit should be a post-dated cheque dated May 31st, 2010 for the balance owing. The amount of the post dated cheque will be refundable if the cancelled space is filled by another retreatant. Cheques should be made payable to Richard Osler and sent to 1584 Stamps Rd.,Duncan, B.C. V9L 5W2.

Who should come? Anyone who wants a weekend of reflection and unexpected words.

Who to Contact: Email or phone Richard Osler (osler@shaw.ca) or 250 597 7875.

A Tao of Poetry

Each word carefully

tied to the next, the poem

is a net, and no

single knot is strong enough

to bear the burden alone.

Some nets are small, cast

for shrimp or herring. Some nets

are meant to hold whales.

In the ecology of

the poem, the fish is not

prey, but the surprise

catch of the day, a diamond

in the coal, a way

of awakening to something

just beyond what words can say.

Sam Hamill

"Most people…think that writing means writing down ideas, insights, visions. They feel that they must first have something to say before they can put it on paper. For them writing is little more than recording a pre-existent thought. But with this approach true writing is impossible. Writing is a process in which we discover what lives in us. The writing itself reveals what is alive…The deepest satisfaction of writing is precisely that it opens up new spaces within us of which we were not aware before we started to write. To write is to embark on a journey whose final destination we do not know. Thus, writing requires a real act of trust. We have to say to ourselves, ‘I do not yet know what I carry in my heart, but I trust that it will emerge as I write.’ Writing is like giving away the few loaves and fishes one has, trusting that they will multiply in the giving. Once we dare “to give” away on paper the few thoughts that come to us, we start discovering how much is hidden underneath…and gradually come in touch with our own riches.” Henri Noewen

Pacific Theatre Celebrates... HST Day?

No matter what your thoughts are on the incoming HST, starting now it will be a part of all of our lives. So we at PT figured, why not have an HST Day? ALL TICKETS TO GODSPELL TODAY (July 1) ARE $12 (price includes HST).

Hope to see you there!