Walking Tour
TOUT EST ICI: A WALKING TOUR OF THE EARLY FRANCOPHONES OF VANCOUVER with Maurice Guibord
Sunday November 3, 10am – 11:30am
Meet at Victory Square, SW corner of Hastings and Cambie
Among the early settlers of Gastown and Vancouver were Francophone hoteliers, shopkeepers, teachers, entrepreneurs, engineers, and many others. They came from eastern Canada, France, Belgium and Switzerland, and they formed a linguistic community in the new town. This walking tour will take you through Gastown and the Downtown Eastside to see where some of them set up their businesses, and where some changed the landscape of Vancouver. Maurice has been involved in culture and heritage for almost thirty years and is active in the local and national Francophone media as a spokesperson and chronicler. $10 for non-residents, pay-what-you-can for local residents.
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Showcase
HEART OF THE CITY COMMUNITY SHOWCASE
Sunday November 3, 12pm – 3pm
Hastings Urban Farm, 58 West Hastings outdoors, under tent cover
12pm The Swamp Angels Community Choir
Fresh from their appearance at the Kickstart Festival we are pleased to bring The Swamp Angels to the Downtown Eastside. The choir welcomes people of all ages, abilities and levels of experience. Directed by Dorothy Dittrich and Patti Powell, the choir will sing a mix of contemporary, world music and traditional songs.
12:30pm Sticking Our Necks Out
We welcome singer/songwriters from the Carnegie songwriting class led by Dalannah Gail Bowen, accompanied by Mike Richter on guitar.
1pm Tibetan White Crane Martial Art
Sylvia Kwong leads a demonstration of Tibetan White Crane Martial Art with members of her classes. With a long history and distinct philosophy, Tibetan White Crane is practiced to bring out the best of mental and physical states in modern times.
1:30pm African Crossing Drum Ensemble
So many drums, so many cultures, so many rhythms in the Downtown Eastside! Russell Shumsky, long-time DTES resident, drummer and drum teacher, brings the African Crossing Drum Ensemble to their first performance at the Heart of the City Festival. Never mind the weather, the drumming will lead you to warmth.
2pm Drum Circle led by Russell Shumsky
Following the Drum Ensemble, join Russell Shumsky as he leads a drum circle. There will be hand drums, bongos, congas, dununs, hand drums. Listen to the voices of the drums; have fun, call and response. Drums will be available or bring your own! Family friendly, all ages, all rhythms, no experience necessary.
Everyone welcome! Free
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Community Celebration
VANCOUVER JAPANESE LANGUAGE SCHOOL & JAPANESE HALL FOOD BAZAAR
Sunday November 3, 12pm – 3pm
Japanese Hall, 487 Alexander
Come early to the popular semi-annual Japanese feast and eat, eat, eat! VJLS & JH volunteers work feverishly over many days to make and serve a wide variety of menu items, hot, fresh, seasonal and affordable. This fundraising event is always popular, with children’s games corner, door and raffl e prizes, and a silent auction. At 1pm, for a spicy Heart of the City Festival treat, Sansho Daiko will perform. Formed in 2010 Sansho Daiko is a Vancouver-based taiko group that draws on both traditional and contemporary repertoire, and creates a powerful and joyous sound that resonates long after the last beat has been played….Entrance to the Bazaar is by donation.
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Music in the Streets
HASTINGS STREET BAND
Sunday November 3, 1:30pm & 2:30pm
Starts at Pigeon Park Street Market, Hastings & Carrall
Get your dancing shoes ready. Can you hear them coming? It’s music in the streets with the Hastings Street Band. Led by multi-instrumentalist and composer Brad Muirhead, the Band is comprised of enthusiastic Downtown Eastside involved amateur and semi-pro musicians playing with professional musicians from across Vancouver. Fast becoming a community favourite, the band plays upbeat jazz and blues with a taste of New Orleans. Free
Exhibition & Reception
MODERNIZE TAILORS: 100 Years of Dressing the Modern Man
Sunday November 3, 1:30pm – 3:30pm
Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden 578 Carrall
Exhibition November 1 to 30
Modernize Tailors is the last Chinese tailor shop in Vancouver’s Chinatown. Brothers Bill Wong and Jack Wong, whose father first opened the shop in 1913, have run this legendary local business for sixty-five years. As you can imagine, the shop has a long history in the Downtown Eastside; they’ve created suits for all occasions and all walks of life, from movie stars to lumberjacks. In tribute to their achievement, from November 1 to 30 the Garden hosts an exhibition of pictures, words, suits and other artifacts. The opening reception on November 3 features the first public reading of excerpts from Bill’s journal; a diary of daily life in a Chinese village seen through the eyes of a fourteen-year-old boy, accompanied by the evocative ensemble Silk Road Music. By donation to the Garden
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Dance
CONNECT Karen Jamieson Dance
Sunday November 3, 3pm – 4pm
Meet at steps of Carnegie Community Centre, 401 Main
Procession ends at SFU Woodward’s World Art Centre, 149 W. Hastings
Performers from the Carnegie Dance Troupe perform CONNECT, a processional dance performance inspired by personal and traditional music, led by dancer and choreographer Karen Jamieson. This is the completed work of a two-year project featuring live music, poetry, First Nations drumming and cultural dances. Performers are residents of the Downtown Eastside: people of a wide range of cultures, ages, abilities and talents. At 3pm the procession begins at Carnegie and leads down Hastings Street to SFU Woodward’s for the main performance, arriving at the World Art Centre at 3:30pm. If you do not wish to join the procession please be at SFU Woodward’s World Art Centre (2nd floor) at 3:20pm. Free
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Mulitmedia
OUT ON A LIMB Stories about growing up and growing older
November 2 and 3
Hastings Urban Farm, 58 W. Hastings Outdoors, under tent cover
The Only Animal, in association with PHS Community Services and the DTES Heart of the City Festival, presents Out On A Limb, an intergenerational digital storytelling project about growing up and growing older. Twelve youth and elders, in collaboration with six artists, crafted animated video stories that will be projected on the wall of the Portland Hotel at 7:30pm and 8:30pm on Saturday November 2 & Sunday November 3. Conceived by Kendra Fanconi, directed by Eric Rhys Miller, facilitated by David Roche and Vanessa Richards, video designed by Keith Murray, the project launched in 2012 with fifty-two community members whose stories can be seen and heard on The Only Animal’s YouTube channel. All activities and events, Free
Sunday November 3 4pm – 6:30pm
OUT ON A LIMB Workshops
Community workshops in movement with director Eric Rhys Miller, storytelling with Naomi Steinberg, and choral singing with Vanessa Richards. Youth, seniors and elders are especially encouraged to come tell stories about a day when they grew up or grew older. Everyone welcome.
Sunday 3 7:30pm & 8:30pm
OUT ON A LIMB Screenings
Community and professional artists working together to relate the passing of time and coming of age. See and hear what they have lived. Intergenerational. Interactive. Undeniable. Limited seating under the tents.
