For my last stop on the this trip across Southern Ontario I'm stopping at the Shakespeare capital of Ontario, Stratford. Most people now a days probably associate Stratford with a certain world wide popstar but putting that aside this town is a beautiful spot to catch various kinds of plays and theatre shows.
The biggest festival that happens every year here is the Stratford Shakespeare Festival which is recognized worldwide and often includes some of Canada's more well known theatre actors. The festival showcases about a dozen different plays ranging from the classic Shakespearean numbers to some more modern pieces and runs from April to November every year so there is a lot of time to catch one or two. The theatre in which the plays are performed in are quite unique themselves and if you're going to see a play this would definitely be the place to catch one. I once visited Stratford to watch West Side Story during the festival season and was amazed at the layout alone, the audience surrounds the stage almost all the way around in a 360 degree fashion, this way you are seeing the performance and actors from all sorts of angles.
Even though this years festival is reaching a close it doesn't hurt to get a leg up on next years event since tickets often sell out fairly quickly and seeing as they have already released next years line up of plays you can know what you're getting into. The 2013 season looks to be one of the best featuring the following:
Romeo and Juliet
The Who's Tommy
Othello
Fiddler on the Roof
The Three Musketeers
Just to name a few! Visit the official website for updates and more information on next years big event here.
I can't leave Guelph without mentioning my favourite event not just in the Guelph area but probably out of all of southern Ontario - Hillside Festival. This takes place every summer on the last weekend of July and it is absolutely one of the most fun festivals I have been too. It's a great place to discover local talent within the music community but it also offers the opportunity to get up and close to some of Canada's greatest bands. Some notable bands that have played here in the past include: Metric, Tokyo Police Club, Arkells, Dan Mangan, Sloan, Bombay Bicycle Club, Gord Downie of The Tragically Hip, Shad, Sheepdogs, Hollerado, and so much more.
Hollerado performing at Hillside photo taken by me
I have gone to this festival for the past four years (volunteered twice) and I can say with all honesty it is extraordinarily run, very organised, and I far as I can see things go on without a hitch. The event is built around being environmentally friendly as well this means there is very little garbage found in the park, all dishes and cutlery are reusable and continuously being washed by the volunteered dishwashers on site. There are also dozens of workshops that you can participate in from yoga to hula hooping as well as a spoken word stage where anyone can get involved. Festival goers have the option of camping on the grounds too since it takes place at the Guelph Lake Conservation Area, this way you're always a few steps away from the music and the party is always known to continue on into the wee hours of the night here even after the music has stopped. I could go on and on about how great this event is from the food to the vendors selling hand made products to the personal level you experience with the musicians.
Before I end this post I wanted to share a personal story of mine that I have with Hillside, though I have many this is the one that I've always connected with the most: It was my first year attending Hillside, I had just turned 16 and was trying to get my community hours for high school filled out so obviously I decided I would volunteer with Hillside because I always wanted to go and this way it would be free which is just an added bonus. So me and my friends decided to do it all together but because of certain conflictions they all bailed and I was left to go there all by my lonesome but this turned out to be alright since everyone there is super awesome and friendly and are there to have the same kind of fun as you. The entire weekend ended up being constant rain and by the end of the first night the whole park was a complete mud hole but even though it was raining it was never bad enough to shut anything down - until the last night. On the Sunday night of the festival everyone was gearing up to watch Owen Pallett, who at the time was going by the name Final Fantasy, he came out and played a few songs but unfortunately had to cut it short because of the intense wind and rain. After waiting a few minutes the rained actually stopped long enough for Owen to make a reappearance and complete his set but once again this was foiled by the rain, this time much more severe and accompanied with thunder and lightning. Not wanting to get got off again he continued on to perform one of the best songs I've ever witnessed live, it was like the lightning was a part his show, the only word to describe it is magical.
Thankfully someone was there to capture the moment in video form so you can watch it here to get an idea of what it was like though you can't really see the thunder or exactly how hard it was raining it still looks wicked. *
Check the website for more info on next years festival as well as their more recent winter spin-off called Hillside Inside which takes place downtown February 1-3.
*I would also like to mention that I got to tell the lead singer of Tokyo Police Club where to throw out his garbage that year while I was volunteering - no big deal.
'Portrait of Guelph' by Grade 12 John F. Ross Students 2011 Photo taken by Karen Silverstone
'Begging Bear' by Carl Skelton
Being from Guelph myself I was brought up in a community of artists and I myself have always been interested in the arts - above is a banner made by my Gr. 12 art class that is meant to symbolize the city. Guelph is full of artistic aspects, the downtown has some great graffiti spots and of course there's Ken Danby a very popular artist who lived here and has created some great pieces depicting the beauty of Guelph, my house actually has about 5 different paintings of his located throughout. For as long as I can remember there were always different options to view the local art one of the most well known by us Guelphites is the sculpture park at the MacDonald Stewart Art Centre. Some of the most well known symbols of the city can be found here like the Begging Bear - which gets dressed up by the public for various events throughout the year, the Mask, and the Push Pin found right outside the centre. There is so much more found in and around the area it's definitely worth a walk around.
'Push Pin' by Derek Sullivan
'Mask' by Even Penny
One of the bigger events that happens every year is called "Art in the Streets", it takes place downtown, usually mid- July, and it features artwork from dozens of local artists selling their original works. I always love coming here because there are some really amazing pieces ranging from paintings to photography, jewelry to printmaking and a more popular stand found here that has wood-workings.
Paul Szwec's wood work studio http://www.masterpiece.on.ca/public_html/Home/Home_files/shapeimage_1.png
This booth can be found at the event every here, the artists name in Paul Szwec and he is known for his "Wonkies" which are essentially dressers that have been uniquely carved and shaped. He has plenty of other wood pieces as well that you can check out at Art in the Street or on his website.
Another lesser known event that takes place in Guelph is the Artist Tour, you could compare this to Art in the Street in that you are viewing the artworks of local artists but instead of them all being located downtown you travel to their studios to view and possibly purchase the pieces. This is an excellent experience for anyone wanting to get a behind the scenes look at how professional artists work and what their environment typically looks like. This event usually takes place in the early fall.
Aside from being a very picturesque town with the beautiful gorge and quarry there is also a small art community found here that many people might not known about. To be honest I didn't know about it until I visited the Elora Centre of the Arts a few years ago during a class trip. The centre is located in a transformed school house a short walk away from the Elora gorge and offers classes for children and adults.
I'm not much of a dramatic person, I don't act or perform in things and I'm not particularly the biggest fan of participating in the dramatic arts but I had so much fun when I partook in the acting class. The centre is built around giving kids and adults opportunities to explore all different mediums of art from arts and crafts to performance plays and teaching them techniques that they can utilize in the future. This isn't exactly an attraction that visitors from outside Ontario can visit per say but if you live in the area I would highly recommend taking a class here, not only are the teachers here very interactive and enthusiastic but it's a great way to get kids thinking creatively and allowing them to explore their talents. You can register online for the classes here. If you did just want to visit though the building also has art exhibits and galleries located throughout.
Moving away from Toronto now heading down a little south to Hamilton you will find another arts and music festival known as Supercrawl (or Art Crawl). The fest takes place on the streets of downtown Hamilton more specifically along James Street which is where the city's art district can be found.
The festival hasn't been around for to long, it's going into it's fourth year, but it has been able to attract over 3000 art and music lovers from around the GTA to view different varieties of art. This includes installations, galleries, video art, performance, music from some of Canada's more best up-and-coming bands, and more. There's also a lot of activities for families and kids to take part in so everyone can be entertained.
Unfortunately though this is one thing you'll have to wait for because the festival has already taken place this year, back in September, but make sure to check the website regularly for updates and information on next years party.
There is one last post I wanted to make regarding art in Toronto, this one is the most accessible and I guarantee that it is also the cheapest. If you walk almost anywhere, not necessarily in just Toronto, you will be sure to walk by some 'public art' per say or as it's know to be called: Graffiti.
There is of course controversy behind the concept of graffiti - is it considered vandalism or just a way to express yourself on a larger scale that is made available for everyone to witness? I personally think it depends on the subject matter portrayed, if it's simply a tag or disrespectful and meaningless then perhaps it can be put up for debate but there are some truly beautiful pieces of art around the streets of Toronto that showcase the talents of the average Joe.
Now it is true you can see this kind of art anywhere in T.O but there are some notable works that might be cool for you to check out. If you've ever watched The Rick Mercer Report on CBC then you probably know that he often does his famous rants in what is known as "Graffiti Alley" and it is exactly what you think it is, an alley full of graffiti from local artists. There are also seven different pieces painted by arguably the most famous graffiti artist in the world right now, UK native Banksy, from when he was here promoting his movie "Exit Through The Gift Shop". Here are the addresses if you wish to view them:
Graffiti Alley- In the Fashion District, Queen St. West from Spadina
Banksy- All seven are in different locations, to see them all click here
We all know that Toronto is a large hub where you can: 1- see your favourite band and 2- discover your next favourite band. That's what is so great about the city, there are multiple options for the music lover to go and see a show. A few posts ago I linked a website that listed dates for basically any and every event happening in Toronto, including concerts and such, but of course finding the time and money to go to all these amazing shows can be a hassle.
Well thankfully Toronto has a solution to these problems in the creation of North by North East!
The Canadian answer to the successful South by South West festival that takes place in Austin, Texas every year, this is a week long festival that takes place throughout downtown Toronto. Roughly 800 bands of all kinds of varieties and status play shows in local bars, clubs, and even on the streets, for cheap too! Since it all takes place over a week and there are so many artists performing it is nearly impossible to be left with nothing to do or see. Many well known bands have played here, almost too many to mention, and it's also a great chance to see small bands get their start. Here's the poster from last years line up just so you can see the magnitude of this large block party.
Along with all of the music there are also a number of films that are shown here written and directed by GTA natives. If you want to check this fest out you have to wait till next summer as it won't be happening till June 2013 but this just gives you more time to plan and research the area so you can be prepared to travel to all the different venues to catch your favourite act.
