ITM Model Look North America - Model Search

The 5th annual River Rock Resort ITM Model Look North America event is back!

Be a part of Vancouver's largest model search. ITM is looking for females between the ages of 16 and 26, who are passionate about the fashion industry, and who aspire to become a top international model!

With over $10,000 in prizes, including an all-expense paid trip to China, ITM has something in it for you!

APPLY NOW at www.itmmodel.com
Deadline: April 1, 2009.

Presented by CHMB AM1320

Benefitting BC Cancer Foundation

Sponsored by River Rock Casino Resort, Rogers Wireless, Omni Television, Ferrari Maserati of Vancouver, Red Rain Energy Drink, Bluefly.com, JC Studio, The Art Institute of Vancouver, ToyWatch and [yellow tail].

Supported by explorASIAN

Yes!+ (Youth Empowerment Seminar): "Be the Change You Want to See in the World!"

Develop Leadership & Life Skills
Improve Fitness & Health
Increase Focus & Concentration
Learn Time Management Skills
Challenge Yourself to New Heights!

Vancouver:
Where: UBC (University of British Columbia) March 10th to 15th, 2009

Contact for information & registration: 778-317-6656 or 604-339-0179
Email: yesplusvancouver@gmail.com

Victoria:
Where: UVIC (University of Victoria) March 17th to 22nd, 2009

Contact for information & registration: 250-748-3133
Email: victoriayesplus@hotmail.com

Website: www.artoflivingyouth.ca

Hosted by:
Youth Chapter of Art of Living Foundation, a worldwide educational humanitarian non-profit organization.

The Youth Empowerment and Skills Training Seminar (Yes!+) is specifically catered to the needs and demands of today's youth, teaching valuable leadership and communication skills as well as techniques and processes that allow individuals to overcome personal barriers and joyfully excel in life. This is accomplished through many fun and exciting practices including profound breathing exercises that 'cleanse you of stress', anxiety, and negativity while breaking monotony and adding much dynamism and joy to one's life.Yes!+ challenges young people to reach their highest potential and has made a difference to thousands across the world.

96 % Improved Focus
85% Better Sleep at Night
98% Reduced Stress
99% Improved Mood

TESTIMONIALS

IT IS AMAZING. I feel much stronger. Stronger than ever before. I believe I can do whatever I want to. I believe I can be a change in this world. And I'm so grateful I had this chance to get this wonderful experience and knowledge. I'm so happy. Thank You.
Neringa (Psychology Student, 23 yrs)

Why didn't I discover the Art of Living earlier? I could have prevented so many disasters in my life! My life has changed so much, I wouldn't have believed it if I was told this before. Whether it's frustration, anger, jealousy, shyness, there are so many things that we leave behind us in this course that at the end of the week we are not the same. Today I personally cannot get angry.
Robin (Engineer INSA Strasbourg-France, 24 yrs)

The Art of Living YES!+ course has given me greater strategies for maintaining inner peace. It has helped me love the world more fully because of all the wonderful people that exist together, experiencing and living every day. . . . it has given me greater strength to take on the challenges that life presents.
Elsa Lau (Concordia University)

Unconference 2009, hosted by ACCO

Start Time: Thursday, March 5, 2009 at 11:00am
End Time: Friday, March 6, 2009 at 5:00pm
Location: SUB rm 214, 216 @UBC
City/Town: Vancouver, BC
Email: info@ubcacco.com

for more info, check out www.ubcacco.com

Join in on our *FREE* Unconference
a two day event that consists of six workshops facilitated by our student members. Each workshop tackles a different topic that affects the Asian Canadian community.

Note:
- no sign up required!
- Pop in ANY time! attend any of the topics *mentioned below*
- Food and refreshments will be provided, complimentary of ACCO ;)

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Program:

March 5th, 2009 – Day 1

Opening - 11 am to 11:30 am

Workshop 1 - 11:30 am to 12:50 pm SUB 214

Asian Women are Sooo Exotic
This workshop will open up a nice girly flow of conversation pertaining to the cultural and sexual stereotypes of Asian women in the West. Topics to be addressed include: media representation, family and cultural upbringing, and, sexuality and identity. Led by UBC student Crystal Tai, we invite you to join us in breaking down some of the misnomers that affect Asian women, and help us come up with different ways to counter such misconceptions.

Workshop 2 - 1:00 pm to 2:20pm SUB 214

Asian Man, Take a Stand! Reframing the Angry Asian Man Experience
Are you angry? Asian? Join UBC Students Kenji Shimizu and Mark Lee on a journey of self-discovery. From media portrayals to interracial dating, explore the causes of the angry Asian man phenomenon and discuss practical methods to grow and overcome these problems. Women, non-Asians and the non-angry are also welcome!

Workshop 3 - 2:30 pm to 4:00 pm SUB 214

New versus Old: Conflicts between Immigrants and Canadian-Born Asians
Have you ever wondered where your Asian parent is coming from? Or pondered about what your immigrant and Canadian-Born Asian peers think about one another? UBC student Andrea Chan will explore the culture and value differences between Asian immigrants and CBAs. This workshop will discuss social interactions, thoughts and feelings between those new to Canada and those that are born in Canada and have thus been accustomed to Western culture.

March 6th, 2009– Day 2

Workshop 4 - 12:00 pm to 1:20 pm SUB 214

Drugs, Gangs, and Asian Youth Culture
With the rise of gang-related crimes in the Lower Mainland, the street gang lifestyle has been increasingly associated with Asian Canadians. Police-raided grow-ops have also indicated that Asians own a fair share of these illegal operations. Are these statements a fair assessment? Are Asians really more prone to joining gangs and dealing drugs? UBC students Narith Heng and Angela Wong will lead a workshop examining the association of drugs and gangs with Asian Canadian youths and the social and political consequences it has on the Asian Canadian community.

Workshop 5 - 1:30 pm to 2:50 pm SUB 214

Prudes! Nymphos! Asians?
Ideas of Sex in an Asian Canadian Mindset
Did you grow up in a traditional Asian household where sex was a taboo subject? Did you learn about sex through other outlets besides your parents? Are Asian women really better in bed? Do Asian men make bad lovers? UBC students Angela Wong and Crystal Tai will explore traditional Asian concepts of sex and how the younger Asian Canadian generation bridge traditional and western concepts of sex. Ideas of sexual stereotypes associated with Asians and the implications for Asian Canadians will also be examined.

Workshop 6 - 3:00 pm to 4:30 pm SUB 214

The Rise of Canadian-Born Asian (CBA) Culture
In the vibrant and dynamic multicultural city of Vancouver, you can hardly take one step outside without noticing this relatively new phenomenon: Canadian-Born Asian culture. Bubble tea at the movies, Korean Supermarkets in downtown, Anime Conventions attracting thousands of participants and Bollywood movies rapidly gaining a surprising audience: When did it start and how did it become such a ubiquitous and uniquely "Canadian" culture? In this interactive and thought-provoking workshop, UBC students and CBA connoisseurs Rainie Tian and Kristina Chang will take you through the rise of CBA culture in Vancouver and discuss its social, economic, and political implications.

4:30 - 5:00 pm - Closing

South Asian Family Association SAFA International Women's Day Celebration

International Women’s Day (IWD) is celebrated every year on March 8; globally it connects women all around the world and inspires them to reach their full potential. IWD marks to celebrate the collective power of woman past, present and future.

The South Asian Family Association (SAFA) and presenting sponsor, Simon Fraser University (SFU) will celebrate IWD 2009 at SFU’s Surrey Campus.

This event is free for all to come and celebrate the goddesses in their lives.

Programme:
11:45 Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
12:00 Keynote Speaker: Hon. Senator Mobina Jaffer
Panel Discussions
1:00 Empowerment & Education featuring Jinny Sims, Awneet Sivia, Anne Chopra & Councillor Barinder Rasode
2:00 Financial Health powered by Envision Credit Union
3:00 Women in Media featuring Shushma Datt, Dawn Chubai, Tarannum Thind & Meera Bains
4:00 Lifestyle: Health, Beauty & Wellness featuring Dr. Nirvair Levitt & Nurse Practitioner Karol Ghuman
5:00 Closing Remarks

Free Change Makers Leadership Institute Workshop to be delivered by the WE CAN Stop Violence against Women Coalition. By pre-registration only. What is “We Can” and who are the Change Makers? Workshop on violence against Women, Leadership and Workshop Facilitation Skills

Live entertainment provided by Shez Khan, Shivangi accompanied by Paul Boparai, PCAC Girls Bhangra & Giddha Punjabna Da.

Marketplace throughout the event.

FREE ADMISSION, Sunday March 8, 12:00 - 5:30, SFU Surrey Campus.
Free gift to first 500 guests.

SAFA would like to thanks its sponsors for making this event a reality:
Durga (Presenting) Sponsor: SFU Surrey
Lakshmi (Major Event) Sponsor: Envision Credit Union
Shakti (Community) Sponsor: The Bay
Saraswati (Media) Sponsors: RJ1200, OMNI Diversity Television, The Voice Newspaper, CKNW, Mehfil, South Asian Post, mybindiwest.com

SAFA is also seeking energetic and dynamic volunteers for this event. Preference will be given to secondary school students requiring volunteer credits. Letters of participation will be granted.

For more information please contact the Event Coordinator Cindy Dhaliwal at 778-552-7222 or cindydhaliwal@hotmail.com

OPEN TEXT READING SERIES: ROY MIKI

Sponsored by The Canada Council for the Arts
& the Creative Writing Program at Capilano University

The Spring 2009 OPEN TEXT series at Capilano College continues on Thursday, March 5th, 2009 with a reading by Vancouver critic, editor, poet and teacher Roy Miki:

Library 321 @ 11:30
Capilano University
2055 Purcell Way
North Vancouver

ROY MIKI is the author of Justice in Our Time (co-authored with Cassandra Kobayashi) (Talonbooks 1991), two books of poems, Saving Face (Turnstone 1991) and Random Access File (Red Deer College Press 1995), and a collection of critical essays, Broken Entries: Race, Subjectivity, Writing (Mercury Press 1998). His third book of poems, Surrender (Mercury Press 2001), received the Governor General’s Award for Poetry. His two most recent publications are Redress: Inside the Japanese Canadian Call for Justice (Raincoast 2004), and There (New Star Books 2006), a book of poems. He received the Order of Canada in 2006.

For info:
Reg Johanson
rjohanso@capilanou.ca
604.986.1911 (2428)

SONIC BOOM 2009

A Festival of New Music by BC Composers, Presented by Vancouver Pro Musica
March 19 - 22, 2009 at 7:30 pm
The Western Front (303 East 8th Avenue, Vancouver BC)

Sonic Boom is an annual festival of new music by BC composers. This festival is widely regarded as one of Canada's most important showcases for new work, including pieces by both mature and emerging composers, all performed by top-quality ensembles and soloists. Sonic Boom 2009 will feature the talents of 12-member vocal ensemble musica intima as Ensemble in Residence, and Stephen Chatman as Composer in Residence. Nu:BC is the featured ensemble for our first evening.

Concerts take place over four evenings. This year’s highlights include the world premiere of “Varley Suite” for solo viola by Stephen Chatman, performed by David Harding on Thursday, March 19. Also on that program, Beth Orson performs on oboe for Farshid Samandari's "the mirage bona fide", and Jordan Nobles's "Undercurrents" - an open-score piece with "a single fluid melodic line performed by a soloist while accompanied by reflections and eddies from the remaining ensemble members." Nu:BC is the featured ensemble for Thursday.

Asian flavours accent Friday’s program with Mark Armanini's "Night Wind" for solo erhu featuring Song Yun, one of China's very best performers, as well as Jin Zhang's "Singing in Mid-Autumn" for erhu and harp. David Litke's "Conduits" for clarinet (François Houle) and computer, centres around the concept of transmission - that of the clarinet, and the computer as it expands and responds to acoustic sound. Over the course of the piece, a larger-scale transmission is effected as the harmonic structures gradually shift according to processes based upon an evolutionary metaphor. "Waver / 160 Years of Pressure" is a video by Krista Dragomer, who is currently pursuing a graduate degree in art history, visual art, and theory, focusing on sound art, at UBC. Paul Plimley (piano) and Victoria Gibson (computer) are both featured composers / improvisers in “The Sapphire Choir”.

Come Saturday evening to hear musica intima perform twelve works a capella, including André Cormier's "En monochrome", performed on a single pitch in unison, but with each performer interpreting this note by varying only one of the parameters such as dynamics, timbre, micro-pitch, and duration according to Cormier's semi-graphic score. The vocal ensemble will also perform Iman Habibi's powerful setting of Hart Crane's "Black Riders", Colin MacDonald's "At Sea" (poetry by twentieth-century writer and occultist Aleister Crowley) and Rita Ueda's setting of Harumi Makino's highly onomatopoeic "Tokei no Oto Nimo", which celebrates the sounds of Sapporo.

Yota Kobayashi's "Tensho", which last year was awarded first prize at Musica Nova, the international competition for electroacoustic music organized by the Society for Electroacoustic Music in the Czech Republic, will be featured on Sunday evening. David Mesiha's "Imaginary Friends", dedicated to Vancouver’s Downtown East Side, explores a deep schizophrenia between beautiful tonal melodies and dreamy atonal sequences and colours. Perhaps this is similar to the contradictory and paradoxical nature of the DTES, where humanity and inhumanity seem equally real and where beauty and foe can be found in the same place — where schizophrenia is not only an individual disease and struggle, but also a social and cultural phenomenon to which many can turn a blind eye. Ernst Schneider, who lives in Penticton, is a celebrated German-Canadian composer who has done a great deal to promote Canadian music through many lectures, workshops, and a weekly two-hour radio program, and presents his composition "This Place" with Rebecca Whitling on violin and the Infinitus String Quartet.

Sunday morning’s student composers' master class is free, and will be conducted by Steve Chatman with Tiresias (Mark McGregor, flute and Rachel Iwaasa, piano) as the reading ensemble.

Tickets are $20 General / $15 Students, Seniors, Artists / $35 Festival Pass for all four concerts. Available cash only at the door.

www.vancouverpromusica.ca
info@vancouverpromusica.ca
604.688.6407

A Celebration of Kabir at the University of British Columbia

March 8-10, 2009

Institute of Asian Research,
The University of British Columbia
251-1855 West Mall, C.K. Choi Bldg.

Come together this March to celebrate the poet-saint Kabir, who sang of the ultimate and challenged the people of his time—and us today—to rethink the religious and other boundaries that bind us.

The celebration features a performance of Kabir singers, led by Dalit folk artist Prahlad Tipanya; a series of four documentary films entitled Journeys with Kabir directed by Shabnam Virmani, which move through contemporary spaces touched by the music/poetry of the 15th century mystic-weaver-poet of north India; and two scholarly lectures by leading figures in the study of South Asian devotional culture and literature.

Schedule of events:
Sponsored by the Centre for India and South Asia Research, The Departments of Asian Studies, Art History-Visual Art, and Theatre and Film.

Films Sunday March 8 in Lasserre Auditorium, Room 102
1-3 pm, Film 1: Hadh-Anhadh: Journeys with Ram and Kabir
3-4 pm, Tea and conversation with the filmmaker, Shabnam Virmani
4-6 pm, Film 2: Chalo Hamara Des: Journeys with Kabir and Friends

Monday March 9
4-5:30 pm, Lecture by Christian Novetzke, University of Washington, in Choi 120:
“The Flashpoint of Bhakti and the Genesis of 'Devotion'"
7:00-8:30 pm, Film 3: Koi Sunta Hai: Journeys with Kumar and Kabir, in the Asian Centre Auditorium

Tuesday, March 10
11 am -12:20 pm, Film 4: Kabira Khada Bazar Mein: Journeys with Sacred and Secular Kabir in the Asian Centre Auditorium
4-5:30 pm, Lecture by Valerie Ritter, University of Chicago
“Living Words: The Pleasure in Kabir's Proverb,”
7:00-9:00 pm, Performance of Kabir Singers from India, in the Asian Centre Auditorium

“Indonesia’s Urban Future: Directing Urban Change”

CENTRE FOR SOUTHEAST ASIAN RESEARCH

Wednesday & Thursday 4 – 5 March
C.K. Choi Building Conference Room #120
1855 West Mall, UBC

“Indonesia’s Urban Future: Directing Urban Change”

Ten years have passed since the fall of the New Order and a sense of hope and concern has developed in regard to how things have changed since 1998. Starting from the idea that the city is an “act of will,” this workshop aims to contribute to an understanding of the post-Suharto era in at least two ways: by focusing on the attempts of social groups to represent and transform the city, and by examining the role such attempts play in the formation of social identities. What kinds of visionary ideas, influential programs and activism have been set in motion for the city? According to what rationalities are they put into play? Who was enabled and disabled by the urban programs? This workshop brings together prominent urban scholars from Indonesia, Canada and the US in the purpose of sharing ideas and perspectives, and working toward articulating an understanding of what the future holds for the continuing urbanization of Indonesia.

PROGRAM:

WEDNESDAY, March 4, 2009:

4:00-5:30pm: "Street Tales from Jakarta": Documentary films from Jakarta Arts Council and the Goethe Institute (with English Subtitles)

THURSDAY, March 5, 2009:

[8:30-8:45am: Refreshments/Coffee]

8:45-9:00am: Welcome Remarks:Mr. E. Wibanarto, Acting Consul General of the Republic of Indonesia in Vancouver

9:00-10:30am: Keynote Address: "Competing Visions: Planning the Megacity of Jakarta."

Christopher Silver, Dean of College of Design, Construction and Planning, University of Florida. Editor of Journal of Planning History and author of Planning the Mega City: Jakarta in the Twentieth Century (Routledge, 2008)

[10:30-10:45am: Coffee break]

10:45am-12:15pm: Presentations from the Office of the Governor of Jakarta
M. Suhadyoko, Urban Spatial Management Department (Dinas Tata Ruang) Priyadi Priyautama Ignatius, (Regional Development Planning Board – Bappeda DKI Jakarta)

[12:15-1:30pm: Lunch]

1:30-3:00pm: Session I: Chair and Discussant: Terry McGee (Geography, UBC)
Thematic Panel: Informal Settlements and Evictions

[3:00-3:15pm: Coffee Break]

3:15-4:45pm: Session II: Chair and Discussant: John Friedmann (Community and Regional Planning, UBC)
Thematic Panel: Cities and Citizenship

[4:45-5:00pm: Coffee Break]

5:00-6:30: Session III: Chair and Discussant: Michael Leaf (Community and Regional Planning, UBC)
Thematic Panel: Sustainability

Panelists for all the Sessions above:

Wardah Hafidz, Chief Coordinator of the Urban Poor Consortium (UPC) and Winner of 2005 Gwangju Human Rights Award, and 2008 Dubai Best Practice Award

Jo Santoso, Chair of the Graduate Program in Real Estate and Urban Development and Director of the Center for Metropolitan Studies, University of Tarumanagara, Jakarta. Dr. Santoso was project manager for Bumi Serpong Damai, Lippo Karawaci, and Bukit Semarang Baru. Recent publication includes Menyiasati Kota tanpa Warga (Strategies for the City without Citizens) (Gramedia, 2006) and Arsitektur-Kota Jawa: Kosmos, Kultur dan Kuasa (Javanes Urban Architecture: Cosmos, Culture and Power) (Centropolis, 2008).

Marco Kusumawijaya, Chair of Jakarta Arts Council; Founder of the Green Map Indonesia; and Board Member of Indonesian Heritage Trust; Authors of Jakarta Metropolis Tunggang Langgang (The Runaway Metropolis) (Gagas Media, 2004); Kota Rumah Kita (Our City House) (Borneo, 2006)

The Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra presents PLANETFUL OF SOUND

March 14, 2009 at 7:30 pm
Chan Centre for the Performing Arts – Telus Studio Theatre
http://www.chancentre.com/

Tickets $20/$10 at Ticketmaster 604-280-3311 or www.ticketmaster.ca

The Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra presents sounds of China, the Middle East, India and the West, in works by Vancouver composers Mark Armanini, Moshe Denburg, Lan Tung, Jin Zhang and special guest composer Joel Bons (artistic director of Amsterdam's Atlas Ensemble): music that transcends cultural boundaries, performed on instruments from all over the world. For the first time ever at a VICO concert, the performance will include large-screen video, giving audiences an up-close view of the musicians and their instruments in action.

The VICO is currently the only professional orchestral ensemble in BC (possibly in Canada) devoted to performing inter-cultural music on a grand scale. Planetful of Sound offers VICO musicians and composers an exciting opportunity to connect with Joel Bons, who has been breaking similar ground in Europe with his acclaimed contemporary music group Nieuw Ensemble and the Atlas Ensemble. The latter is described (very similarly to the VICO) as “a unique chamber orchestra uniting brilliant musicians from China, Central Asia, the Near East and Europe, presenting an unheard soundworld of western and non-western instruments.” Like the VICO, the Atlas Ensemble's repertoire consists almost entirely of specially commissioned works, by such composers as Guo Wenjing, Jia Daqun, Faradj Karajev, Fabio Nieder, The o Loevendie , Frangiz Ali-Zade, Bun-Ching Lam, Jack Body, Stefano Bellon, Artjom Kim, Javanshir Guliev and Evrim Demirel. (www.atlasensemble.nl)

Planetful of Sound will feature the North American premiere of Joel Bons’ piece Tour à Tour as well as Floating on the Sea of Serenity (Armanini), Little Suite for Erhu and Harp (Zhang), Market Place, Chapter 1: China (Tung) and Camel Hop at the Caravanserai (Denburg), performed by a 22-member ensemble that includes zheng, sanxian, santur, oud, dizi, bansuri, sheng, suona, flute, oboe, clarinet, marimba, Celtic harp, percussion and Western strings. The programme will also feature a solo by visiting Taiwanese musician Janelle Yichen on satar (Uighur fiddle from northwestern China).

In the VICO, Western-trained orchestral musicians rub shoulders with performers in musical traditions from all over the world…shedding light on the musical traditions of Canada’s many cultures and the myriad bridges between them. www.vi-co.org

Planetful of Sound was made possible through the generous assistance of the Chan Endowment Fund of the University of British Columbia.

New Asia Film Festival Monthly Film Series screens Warrior Boyz

Public Screening of Warrior Boyz and Community Forum on Gang Violence

Saturday, February 28, 2009
Time: 7:00pm - 10:30pm
Location: Richmond Cultural Centre, 7700 Minoru Gate, Richmond, BC

Co-presented by the Richmond Cultural Centre, Cinevolution Media Arts Society and the National Film Board of Canada

A panel discussion will be followed, featuring director Baljit Sangra, Jagdeep and Sukh from the film, as well as social workers, community leaders, and police. This special forum will be a rare opportunity for the public to obtain a deeper understanding of the gang violence. We wish through open and constructive dialogue among different groups of the community, this event will bring new perspectives to this issue and helps to find solutions for the future.

http://www.vnaff.ca./

Vince Mai Project

We're going to groove at the Yale Hotel again. Trumpet based instrumentals with some vocal RnB faves. NO COVER!

featuring:
Daryl Jahnke,
Brent Gubbels,
Darryl Bennett,
Pepe Danza,
Russ Klyne,
Timothy Fuller,
& Vince Mai

Hope you can make it!

The Yale Hotel - 1300 Granville Street, VANCOUVER BC
Thursday Feb 26, 9:45 pm - 1:15 am

Filipino Youth For Social Justice - 2nd Annual Canadian National Day of Action

Join Filipino-Canadian youth in their struggle for equality and social justice!

January 27, 2009 will mark the one year death anniversary of Filipino youth Deeward Ponte who tragically lost his life after being stabbed in Gray's park and later died in the hospital. In one month we will gather in support of his family and in memory of not only Deeward but the other Filipino youth who have lost their lives such as Mao Jomar Lanot who was beaten to death in 2003 at Sir Charles Tupper, and Charle Dalde fatally stabbed outside of his Richmond home last April.

We will continue our call to End Systemic Racism, Social Justice for the Filipino community and the scrapping the racist and exploitative Live-In Caregiver Program!

"Filipino Youth For Social Justice"
2nd Annual Canadian National Day of Action
Friday, February 27, 2009

In Vancouver:
Friday, February 27 at2:00 pm
Sir Charles Tupper Secondary- 419 E. 24 Avenue, Vancouver, BC.
From Tupper we will march to Gray's Park for a candlelight vigil.

Similar actions/activities will take place in Montreal and Toronto.

For more information please contact Niki at Phone: 604-215-1103 or Email: ukpc_fcya@kalayaancentre.net

Divine Performing Arts World Tour comes to Vancouver

The Vancouver Falun Dafa Association and New Tang Dynasty Television (NTDTV), both non-for profit organizations are presenting the Divine Performing Arts performances that will take place at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Vancouver from April 3-8, 2009as part of their grand world tour.

The New York based Divine Performing Arts (DPA) has dazzled audiences the world over with extraordinary dance and music that capture the true spirit of 5000 years of authentic Chinese culture. Inspired by the myths and legends of China's long history, DPA weaves wondrous stories of heavenly realms, ancient heroic legends and
modern-day epics. The show stirs virtue, compassion, courage and hope in audiences' hearts breaking all language and cultural boundaries.

DPA performed over 220 shows during it's 2008 world tour, including 15 at New York's prestigious Radio City Music Hall, reaching a live audience of over 600,000 people in 66 cities. Some of the world's great venues have hosted DPA shows, including Le Palais des Congres in Paris, London's Royal Festival Hall, the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles, the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, and the Sony Centre in Toronto.

Like the Silk Road that connected China with the West for thousands of years, DPA illustrates the great traditions and universal values that have survived across time and space. In New York City, Over 17,000 students and teachers have attended and thoroughly enjoyed the DPA shows. In Canada, critics have described the shows as "breathtakingly beautiful," "inspirational," and "a top-rate family show."

For more info about DPA, please visit: http://www.divineshows.com/vancouver

Fourth Annual Yip So Man Wat Memorial Lecture: Yu Hua, author of “Brothers”

The Department of Asian Studies at The University of British Columbia is delighted to welcome you to the Fourth Annual Yip So Man Wat Memorial Lecture:

With Yu Hua, author of “Brothers”

February 25, 2009, 6pm reception, 7pm lecture in the Asian Centre Auditorium
1871 West Mall, UBC

Yu Hua, one of China’s most prominent contemporary novelists, was born into a family of doctors in Hangzhou in 1960 and grew up in the coastal town of Haiyan, Zhejiang. Following the Cultural Revolution, at his father’s urging, he worked for five years as a dentist before abandoning medicine for literature. He gained national attention in 1984 for a series of short stories distinguished by Kafka-esque scenes of banal cruelty rendered in plain language with surgical precision. Some critics have attributed the preponderance of the macabre in Yu Hua’s fiction to his childhood living near a hospital morgue and overhearing the nightly wailings of bereaved families. (Dentists also surface frequently in Yu’s fiction, notably Yanker Yu in Brothers.) These “experimentalist” stories explored the relationship between memory and the violence of the past through disjunctive narration, denial of character interiority, and other avant-garde stylistics.

Yu Hua’s first novel, Cries in the Drizzle (1990; English translation, 2007), a story about an ostracized boy growing up during the later years of the Mao era, signaled the beginning of a shift from conspicuously formalistic experimentation towards a more realist narrative style. To Live (1992; English translation, 2003), an existentialist masterpiece, is an old man’s account of his and his family’s struggle to survive the vicissitudes of life in rural China from the 1940s through the 1960s. The novel remains Yu Hua’s best-known work to date, having been adapted into a film in 1994, and, more recently, a 33-part television series. Chronicle of a Blood Merchant (1995; English translation, 2003), chronicles the physical and mental debilitation of a town-dweller whose habit of selling his own blood to feed his family eventually becomes an addiction. Like To Live, Chronicle was voted one of China’s ten most influential books of the 1990s by a wide array of critics and is reportedly being adapted into a film. Yu Hua’s works have won numerous literary awards, including Italy's Premio Grinzane Award (1998) and the James Joyce Foundation Award (2002). He lives in Beijing.

About Brothers
Brothers, Yu Hua’s most recent novel and longest work to date, broke sales records in China when its two volumes were published in 2005 and 2006. The epic tale follows two stepbrothers, Baldy Li and Song Gang, from their scrappy childhood during the Cultural Revolution through the economic and social liberalization of the post-Mao era. The novel deepens Yu Hua’s absurdist vision of life in modern China, a direction which has not sat well with all critics. While some have criticized Brothers for merely reiterating the author’s fixation on historical violence, others have been offended by its sensationalistic elements, such as a “national virgin beauty competition” that sets off a stampede for hymen reconstruction surgery among would-be contestants. Critics and fans alike agree that this is a book of extremes. The English translation of Brothers will be published by Pantheon in January 2009.

Asian Studies
The University of British Columbia
Vancouver, BC
Phone: (604) 822-9266
http://www.asia.ubc.ca/

Tibetan monks of Dzongkar Choede Monastery Sand Mandala Exhibition

For five days, the Tibetan monks of Dzongkar Choede Monastery will create a Buddha of Compassion sand mandala at the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Chinese Garden.

What emerges is, for a limited time, a timeless piece of art and a meditative ractice.

Tickets: $10. Good for multiple visits during the creation of the sand mandala.
Garden members are free; a donation to the monks will be most welcome. A portion of the ticket price will be given to the monks to support their monastery.

The experience includes a Tibetan thanka exhibit by Kalsang Dawa

Tuesday February 24,
10am-4pm: Opening Ceremony, monks begin creation

Wednesday February 25,
10am-4pm: Creation continues

Thursday February 26
10am- 2pm: Sand Mandala on display
2pm-8pm: Monks continue creation

Friday February 27
10am- 2pm: Sand Mandala on display
2pm-8pm: Monks continue creation

Saturday February 28
10am-3pm: Completion and closing ceremony

For more information:
Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden
578 Carrall Street
Vancouver, BC V6B 5K2
Tel: 604-662-3207

www.vancouverchinesegarden.com

World Poetry Eighth Anniversary Gala Celebration

The World Poetry Reading Series And the Vancouver Public Library present
the Eighth Anniversary Gala Celebration!

February 27, 2009
7:00 PM
At the Vancouver Public Library, Central Branch (our gracious hosts and supporters)
Alice MacKaye Room

Featuring:
Greetings from the library
Greetings from the City of Vancouver
World Poetry Co-founders and hosts:
Ariadne Sawyer & Alejandro Mujica-Olea
Blessings: Vera Manuel, Godwin Barton First Nations
Douglas Beacon, United Church

World Poetry Life Time Achievement Awards:
Ms. Ahn Bong Ja
Professor Diego Bastianutti

Presenters:
Mr.. Tong Mo Suh,
Consulate General of South Korea

Dr. Alberta Lai, Director of the Italian Cultural Institute; cultural office of the Consulate General in Vancouver

African Canadian Heritage Month Special Tribute
Addena Sumter Freitag
Tanya Evanson

World Poetry Awards:
Volunteer of the year: Jacqueline Maire
World Poetry Radio Show: Guest host Lucia Gorea
Musicians of Excellence: Pancho and Sal
Artist of Excellence: Peter Lojewski
The World Poetry Committee woven word tapestry poem:
The Many Faces of Love
A living wall of poetry from Canada and around the world.
Music by Pancho and Sal
Korean Musician: Moon Sub Park
Letters from the Governor General of Canada
The Prime Minster of Canada
The Premier of British Columbia
Come help us celebrate!
Admission free

Contact Person:
Ariadne Sawyer,MA
World Poetry Media
Phone: 604-526-4729
ariadnes@uniserve.com
www.ariadnescoaching.com

Official VIBC Afterparty

On Saturday, February 21st, right after the Bhangra Competition, A-Town Productions & RJ1200 Present the Official VIBC Afterparty

Some of the biggest names in Bhangra history along side some of the freshest new talent out today, this event will feature full concert-sets by H Dhami, Heera & Apna Sangeet as well as a very special performance by En Karma. This event will be full of tricks and surprises, so get your tickets now!

When: Thursday, February 21, 2009
Where: Centre for Digital Media, 577 Great Northern Way, Vancouver
Time: Doors @ 9pm
Tickets: $45 at TicketWeb.ca or local video stores.
For more information visit www.atownpresents.com

Shava Night

The City of Bhangra festival would not be complete without a few good dance parties!
On Thursday, February 19th, South Asian Arts presents "Shava Night"

Celebrating the performance and promotion of Bhangra in Scandinavia, this night is a fundraiser for Finland's one and only Bhangra band!

When: Thursday, February 19, 2009
Where: Shenanigans, 1225 Robson St., Vancouver
Time: Doors @ 9pm
Tickets: $10 Cover (At the door only! Get there early!)

For more information, visit www.southasianarts.com

The ABCs of Intercultural Music

Music of the Whole World: The ABCs of Intercultural Music

A Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra educational presentation
in collaboration with the Vancouver Public Library and Vancouver Pro Musica

February 17, 2009 at 7pm
Vancouver Public Library Main branch
350 Georgia Street, Vancouver, BC
Alice MacKay Hall, lower level
FREE Admission

VICO composers and musicians present a sneak preview of the ensemble's next major concert, "Planetful of Sound" (March 14th, 2009 at the Chan Centre Telus Studio Theatre), including new pieces written by student participants in VICO’s first ever high school workshop (co-sponsored by Vancouver Pro Musica). The presentation - the third in the VICO's annual six-part educational series "Music of the Whole World: Explorations of World Music Cultures By Canadian Composers" - will include music listening, discussion and live performance, providing a fascinating window into world music cultures and the process of creating music that builds bridges between them.

www.vi-co.org

City of Vancouver Poet Laureate

Call for Expressions of Interest

The City of Vancouver would like to hear from poets interested in becoming the City's second Poet Laureate. The call for nominations and submissions is open until March 11, 2009.

Nominations/applications are invited from published poets who are currently resident in the City of Vancouver and who have either an established body of work or have been recognized for notable contributions early in their career.

The Poet Laureate will be selected for a period of two years, commencing in May 2009. A two-year stipend of $7,000 ($3,500 per year) will be provided to the Poet Laureate, funded by a generous donation by Dr. Yosef Wosk and held in trust by the Vancouver Foundation.

More information, including terms of reference and submission procedure is available at:

www.vpl.ca or at the Official Site of Vancouver's Poet Laureate vancouververse.ca

Epic Elgar, with Kyoko Takezawa

Saturday, February 28, 8pm
Orpheum Theatre

Monday, March 2, 8pm
Orpheum Theatre

Kyoko Takezawa, one of the world's top violinists, performs Elgar's epic Violin Concerto, one of the most extraordinary works ever written for violin. Celebrated conductor Andrew Litton takes the reins in this epic Romantic concert.

Andrew Litton, conductor
Kyoko Takezawa, violin

Walton Crown Imperial March
Elgar Violin Concerto
Rachmaninoff Symphony No.3

Vancouver Symphony Orchestra
601 Smithe Street,
Vancouver, BC V6B 5G1

604.684.9100 VSO Customer Service
customerservice@vancouversymphony.ca
www.vancouversymphony.ca

“Reconstructing the Identities of Chinese-Canadians Across the Pacific: Personal Endeavours and Institutional Depositories”

CENTRE FOR CHINESE RESEARCH

Tuesday 24 February
12:30-2:00pm
C.K. Choi Building Conference Room #120
1855 West Mall

Libraries, museums and resource centres in Canada are major forces driving the recovery, creation, organization, promotion and research of materials about Chinese-Canadians. The dynamics and complex links between institutional efforts to manage archival materials for learning and research and the preservation of family histories by community members for posterity are studied on a number of levels, one of which is the reconstruction of the identities of Chinese overseas.

Eleanor Yuen is Head of the Asian Library, UBC and a board member of the Centre for Chinese Research Management Committee in the Institute of Asian Research. She developed the Historical Chinese Language Materials in British Columbia www.hclmbc.org web page and researched on Chinese-Canadian name forms, geographic names registered in the Head Tax Registers and major family archives. She is invited to participate as the representative of Canada at the 4th International Conference of Institutes and Libraries for Chinese Overseas Studies this coming May

New Works of Tomoyo Ihaya

Drawings - Trees and Water

February 27, 2009 - May 15, 2009
OPENING: Friday, February 27, 2009, 3-6pm, Tomoyo Ihaya in Attendance

Art Beatus (Vancouver) Consultancy Ltd. is pleased to present “DRAWINGS – TREES and WATER” featuring mixed media works by Tomoyo Ihaya. The exhibition will open with an afternoon reception open to the public on Friday, February 27 from 3pm to 6pm, and the artist will be in attendance. Trees and water are recurring subjects in Ihaya’s artworks. In her eyes, they are symbols of growth and life, essential to human and other creatures’ existence. Profoundly influenced by her recent travels and life in India, Ihaya’s new series of works are extremely relevant in today’s eco-conscious world, but more specifically pertain to the artist’s personal journey. The underlying environmental theme echoes insights on the effect of western influence over Indian culture while the importance of living well with insight and an open mind reminds one not to take the basic fundamentals of life for granted.

Wandering around the old markets in the cities and looking at endless landscapes from the train windows, pumping water and carrying it home under the starry sky or driving through extremely remote places in the Himalayas, Ihaya witnessed life in India; its vastness, the lives of people, bareness of life on the streets and influence from ‘our side’ in their natural and human environment. Plastic bottles and other western products could be found everywhere, yet the artist sensed that the strong spirit of the culture would never be spoiled by the overflowing materialism. “Wherever I went, there were trees and water beside people’s lives. They stand and flow strongly no matter what changes will happen in human world.” Ihaya believes there is no other place like India. It touched her life and has greatly influenced her art works.

Art Beatus (Vancouver) Consultancy Ltd.
108 - 808 Nelson Street Vancouver
t: 604.688.2633 e: info@artbeatus.com
www.artbeatus.com

TransFusion

Co-presented by the Vancouver 2010 Cultural Olympiad, TransFusion brings an eclectic blend of contemporary and traditional folk dance styles together in this unique dance production. Set in the multimedia den of light and sound, the footwork and visuals span the subcontinent of India, reaching as far north as Trinidad and Japan, blurring the borders between cultures as well as folk, classical and contemporary music and dance.

TransFusion will feature unique pairings between Kathak, Butoh, Dancehall, Bollywood, Bhangra, Rajasthani, Bharatnatyam, Odissi and more in a 90-minute presentation of folk dances from around the world.

Artistic Director: Tarun Nayer
Assistant Artistic Director: Raakhi Sinha
Visuals & Multimedia: Suez
Lighting Design: Itai Erdal

Performers Include:
Parul Shah - Contemporary Kathak, New York
Jay Hirabayashi - Butoh, Vancouver
Kieran Heralall - Dancehall, New Westminster
Namchi Bazar - Rajasthani Folk & Contemporary, Vancouver
Sitara Thobani - Odissi, North Vancouver
Vicki Virk - Modern Bhangra, San Francisco
Rachelle Graham - Bollywood, Vancouver

When: Saturday, February 14 and Sunday, February 15
Where: Vancouver International Film Centre
Time: Show @ 7pm (Doors @ 6pm)
Tickets: $25

Buy tickets for Saturday, February 14 - TicketWeb.ca
Buy tickets for Sunday, February 15 - TicketWeb.ca

Or call Highlife Records 604.251.6964 & Zulu Records 604.738.3232 for tickets

rePercussion

Co-presented by the Vancouver 2010 Cultural Olympiad, expect a night of fascinating rhythm as percussion meister Sal Ferreras and guests reveal another side of Vancouver’s rumbling heartbeat. Percussion and folk drumming traditions from Asia, Africa and Europe are your musical guides for exploring the city’s rich multicultural fabric.

When: Friday, February 13
Where: Auditorium, Vancouver Community College (Broadway Campus)
Time: Show @ 8pm (Doors @ 7pm)

Tickets $10 through TicketWeb.ca, Highlife Records 604.251.6964 & Zulu Records 604.738.3232

Meet the Stars! H-Dhami, Heera & Apna Sangeet

Rogers Wireless is presenting a once in a lifetime opportunity to get your autographs and pictures with UK singing sensation H-Dhami and legendary Bhangra groups Heera Group and Apna Sangeet!

When: Thursday, February 19th
Where: Amritech Rogers - #7-8430 128 St., Surrey
Time: 6pm – 8pm

This will be the only opportunity to catch all three of these acts in one place, hanging out with their fans. Do not miss it!.
For more information call 604-628-6406 or visit www.vibc.org

The Asian Canadian Culture Organization (ACCO) invites you to AJAM

The Asian Canadian Culture Organization (ACCO) invites you to join us at AJAM -- a fundraising night of good music, cultural performances and awesome food! AJAM will donate half its proceeds to the Asian Society for Intervention of AIDS (ASIA), which aims to raise awareness and prevent HIV in the local community.

Featuring local Asian Canadian artists:
No More Enemies (band)
x: Enders (band)
SVS Choreography (hip hop dance crew)
Off Beat Broadway (theatre)
Elfina Luk (singer-guitarist)
Michelle Pham (singer)
Oker Chen (DJ)
...and more (tbc!)

Come hang out with us on February 20th, 2009 -- from 6:30pm to 9pm -- at the SUB ballroom, UBC. Early bird tickets $9 only. We will be selling tickets at the South Entrance of the SUB (by Pie R squared) from Feb 10-13 from 4-7pm.

Check us out on the web: www.ubcacco.com

VINCE MAI PROJECT @ The Yale Hotel

"We're doing the late shift this weekend at the Yale!"

What: Music Performance
Host: Vince Mai

February 6 to 8
11:55pm to 2:55am

Where: The Yale Hotel, 1300 Granville St

You Can Dance! contest

The glamour, glitter and grace of Dancesport competition is back with the 2009 SnowBall Classic!

On February 13, 14 and 15, top dancers from around the world will be in Vancouver to go for gold! And you can be there to catch all the Ballroom and Latin action!

Send us a video of yourself performing in any dance style… Ballroom, Salsa, Swing, Hip Hop, Two-Step, Disco, Tango, Ballet, Folk, Tap, Nightclub, any genre… any age, by yourself or with a partner or a group, in any setting.

The Fabulous Prize Package:
Fabulous seats at the 2009 SnowBall Classic at the Sheraton Vancouver Wall Centre February 13, 14 & 15
Accommodation for two, February 13 & 14 at the Sheraton Vancouver Wall Centre
Dinner for two at the award-winning nu restaurant + lounge
A gift certificate from Avalon Dance Shop in Vancouver

The Judges:
Brian Dudley, Chairman of the SnowBall Classic
Pamela Podmoroff, Professional Competitor and Instructor with Urban Beat Dance Company

Because any dance style is allowed, the judges will be looking for entertainment value, heart and soul – show us how much you love to dance!

Contest closes at 12 noon Friday February 6, 2009

More details: http://www.cbc.ca/bc/features/snowball/

The City of Bhangra Art Exhibit

Experience the art of Bhangra on canvas at the Art + Soul Gallery. "The Lost Art of Bollywood Movie Posters – Revived" exhibit will showcase aspects of the Indian culture through the eyes of the artist. The artists will create their own vintage Bollywood movie posters highlighting a piece of the past or present in the same manner that drew moviegoers to the cinemas. The spirit of Bhangra will be interpreted and evoked in vibrant displays using acrylic and oil paint, pencil drawings and sculpture. Curated by Ravi Gill.

Artists Include:
- Manjot Bains
- Pauline Basi
- Jon & Tomoki Gomez
- Elena Ilku
- Sakino Sepulveda
- Raman Singh

When: February 1 – 28
Where: Art + Soul Gallery, 1277 Robson St.
Free Event. Open Daily.

For more information visit www.vibc.org/artexhibit

National Day of Action calling for the Social Justice of Filipino Youth and the community

Please join Ugnayan ng Kabataang Pilipino sa Canada/ the Filipino-Canadian Youth Alliance on February 27, 2009 for our National Day of Action calling for the Social Justice of Filipino Youth and the community.

January 27, 2009 will mark the one year death anniversary of Filipino youth Deeward Ponte who tragically lost his life after being stabbed in Gray's park and later died in the hospital. In one month we will gather in support of his family and in memory of not only Deeward but the other Filipino youth who have lost their lives such as Mao Jomar Lanot who was beaten to death in 2003 at Sir Charles Tupper, and Charle Dalde fatally stabbed outside of his Richmond home last April.

We will continue our call to End Systemic Racism, Social Justice for the Filipino community and the scrapping the racist and exploitative Live-In Caregiver Program!

When: February 27, 2009 at 2pm
Where: Sir Charles Tupper Secondary- 419 E. 24 Avenue, Vancouver, BC. From Tupper we will march to Gray's Park for a candlelight vigil.

For more information please contact Niki at the Kalayaan Centre:
451 Powell Street, Vancouver, BC
Phone: 604-215-1103
Email: ukpc_fcya@kalayaancentre.net

Filipino-Canadian Youth Alliance-Vancouver
http://www.ugnayan.net

Two Award-Winning Documentaries Mark Revival of New Asia Monthly Film Series

The showing of two award-winning films at the Richmond Cultural Centre on January 31 will mark the revival of the monthly film screenings leading up to the second annual New Asia Film Festival taking place in May 2009.

Film critics have described both films, Kindergarten from China and Burning Dreams from Taiwan, as cinematic gems. Each were rated at the top of the list for the Audience Choice Award at the first New Asia Film Festival in 2008 – Burning Dreams won.

The films will be shown:
Date: Saturday, January 31, 2009
Time: Kindergarten starts at 7:00 p.m.
Burning Dreams starts at 8:30 p.m.
Location: Richmond Cultural Centre, 7700 Minoru Gate
Admission: Free. However, a one-time $5 membership is required.

Seats are limited, so plan to arrive early.

About the films
Kindergarten (China/ 2004/ Director: Zhang Yiqing/ 69 min/ Beijing Channel Zero Media.) Language: Mandarin + English subtitles.

This film is an intimate portrait of childhood. Shot over 14 months, the film records the everyday lives of children at a boarding kindergarten in Wuhan, Hubei Province. Kindergarten won the 2007 10th Rai International Festival of Ethnographic Film Award, the 2004 Most Innovative Documentary Shanghai International TV Festival Award and the 2004 Grand Prize Guangzhou International Documentary Film Festival Award.

Burning Dreams (Taiwan/ 2003/ Director: Wayne Peng Wen Chun/ 35 min/ Pure Films.) Language: Mandarin + English subtitles.

This black and white musical documentary is the first film about tap dancing and jazz in China. Burning Dreams has won several awards including those from the 2008 New Asia Film Festival, 2004 Hong Kong International Film Festival, 2004 San Francisco International Film Festival, 2004 Sydney International Film Festival, 2003 London Film Festival, 2003 Vancouver International Film Festival, and the 2003 Amsterdam International Documentary Film Festival.

The event is presented by Richmond Cultural Centre and Cinevolution Media Arts Society, sponsored by The City of Richmond, Beijing Channel Zero Media, and Pure Films.

For more information please call 604-247-8300 or visit www.vnaff.ca

About the New Asia Film Festival
The film series builds on the success of the first New Asia Film Festival, held last May. The 2009 film festival is scheduled for May 8 to 10.

Founded by the Cinevolution Media Arts Society and the Richmond Cultural Centre, the 2008 film festival featured 27 new films over the four days, focusing on contemporary, often controversial themes found in Asian cultures from around the world. Most of the films have rarely been screened in Canada prior to the festival.

Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra

February 17, 2009 at 7pm

Vancouver Public Library Main branch
350 Georgia Street, Vancouver, BC
Alice MacKay Hall, lower level
FREE Admission

VICO (composers and musicians present a sneak preview of our next major concert, "Planetful of Sound" (March 14th, 2009 at the Chan Centre Telus Studio Theatre), including new pieces written for non-Western instruments by student participants in VICO’s first ever high school workshop (co-sponsored by Vancouver Pro Musica). The presentation will include music listening, discussion and live performance, providing a fascinating window into world music cultures and the process of creating music that builds bridges between them.

www.vi-co.org

CBC Radio Two Lunar New Year program

An Exciting Chinese New Year for VICO (Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra) Composers
CBC Radio Two Lunar New Year program / Silk Road Music with the Victoria Symphony

February 1 Sun (10 PM - 12 AM) The Signal
February 2 Mon (8 - 10 PM) Canada Live
You can also hear it on CBC Radio Two's Concerts on Demand

The music of VICO composers Jin Zhang, Mark Armanini and Moshe Denburg will be heard across Canada on CBC Radio Two this coming Sunday and Monday (Feb. 1 and 2), when a recent concert by Silk Road Music and the Victoria Symphony Orchestra is featured on The Signal and Canada Live. Tune in to hear the world premiere of Jin Zhang's Country Market (a Canada Council commission), Moshe Denburg's orchestral arrangement of Qiu Xia He's Fire Fire Fire and Mark Armanini's arrangement of a Chinese traditional work entitled Han Yan Xi Shui. The concert promises to be a beautiful fusion of classical Chinese music with the modern symphony orchestra.

Chinese New Year Celebration at the Garden

Chinese New Year
Celebration at the Garden
Sunday, February 1
10am-4pm, by donation

Join us as we celebrate the Year of the Ox!
On January 26, 2009 Chinese people around the world will celebrate a new year, according to the Lunar calendar. Join us at the Garden for a day of family fun and activities. We will have fortune telling, live music, face painting, storytelling, red envelopes, pin wheel making, stilt walkers, and more!
Enjoy a fabulous day of live entertainment and welcome the Year of the Ox!

A Celebration in the Courtyard
February 1st, 10:30-11:30am and 1:30-3:30pm

The Garden is pleased to co-present the Chinese New Year Celebration in the Courtyard as part of the 2009 Cultural Olympiad. The event is quickly becoming a part of the Chinese New Year parade day celebration. Join Silk Road and Friends as they sing, dance and play music under a big tent and take part in the fun art and crafts projects available in the small tents scattered around the Courtyard.

The courtyard-fair atmosphere, coupled with the cross-cultural performances, provide an opportunity for artists from Vancouver’s different cultural backgrounds to display their creativity and collaborate to create new sounds for a traditional festival. We invite Vancouver to celebrate Chinese New Year with a world vision!

YEAR OF THE OX ART EXHIBIT
Jan 9 - Feb 13

To get in the spirit of the New Year, we are proud to present the Vancouver Chinese Artist Federation, which will exhibit a collection of work celebrating the upcoming year of the Ox. It will feature original art in Chinese traditional and contemporary styles.

Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden
578 Carrall Street, Vancouver
http://www.vancouverchinesegarden.com/index.htm

STANCE: A Creative Consensus

An opportunity for local artists and performers with roots in the Filipino culture to share their creative talents and passion.

Opening Night: January 31, 2009
Venue: Chapel Arts
Time: 8:00pm - 1am
Art Exhibit: Jan 31 - Feb 9
NO COVER, Donations will be accepted.

ART • FASHION • LIVE MUSIC • LIVE PERFORMANCES • DJs

CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS:
Reva Diana
Christian Clamonte
Carlo Sayo
Denise Valdecantos
Wing Yap
Brian Taguba
Ethel Farrales
Ayex Bathan
Kim Abis
Mervin Mabini
Bert Monterona
Trish Chu
Elizabeth Chu
Bert Monterona
John Gonzales

PERFORANCES BY: Dianna David, The Airtights with Jill Quinto, Flowethics, SVS, John Phillippe Gatus, Mandy Galang

TURNTABLES: DJ Bles-sed, DJ Adlib, DJ Relik, DJ G

Presented by:
Chapel Arts, Philippine Women Centre, Squint Creative, dub D Entertainment

Nanay: a testimonial play

February 4 – 7, 2009 at 7:00 pm and 8:30pm
February 7, 2009 at 2:00 and 3:30 pm
February 8, 2009 at 2:00 & 3:30pm
Chapel Arts

By Geraldine Pratt and Caleb Johnston in collaboration with the Philippine Women Centre of BC
Director Alex Ferguson
Dramaturg Martin Kinch
Actors Hazel Venzon, Karen Rae, Alexa Divine, Melissa Dionoso, Patrick Keating
Sceneographer Andreas Kahre
Additional Design Tamara Unroe
Costumes Barbara Clayden
Lighting John Webber
Community Coordination Philippine Women Centre

Are you desperate for childcare? Need someone to look after your ailing parents? Have you left your children in the Philippines to find a better life in Canada? Nanay is a testimonial play that puts these different worlds of need and desire into collision. It uses the words of domestic workers, their children, nanny agents and Canadian employers to explore the complexity of live-in care giving in Canada. Realized as a multi-media event, Nanay takes the audience through a series of encounters in search of a deeper understanding of the human costs of Canada’s Live-In Caregiver Program.

Based in Vancouver, Urban Crawl’s vision focuses on producing artistic work that opens up spaces for physical and social dialogue. The company is committed to an artistic practice that is socially engaged and enmeshed in the messy world of everyday life. It works to create art that crosses disciplinary boundaries, crisscrossing sites of aesthetic and political exploration. For Urban Crawl, Nanay represents an opportunity to further the potential of testimonial theatre, and to put theatre to work on an issue of civic importance.

Contact groups@pushfestival.ca for more information. Tickets available through Tickets Tonight phone #604-684-2787 or on-line: www.ticketstonight.ca

Surrey Arts Centre presents Five Elements

Enter a world of myth, philosophy and rhythm. Vandna Sidher creates an eloquent narrative of the five elements: earth, water, fire, air,and space.

Five Elements incorporates projections by Tim Matheson and vocal explanations to make it meaningful and entertaining for all cultures.

Choreography by Srimati Jayalakshmi Eshwar. Performed by Vandna Sidher.

Surrey Arts Centre - the Main Stage
February 7, 2009 at 8pm.
Box Office: 604-501-5566 | www.arts.surrey.ca | 13750 - 88 Avenue
Tickets: Adult $23 | Student/ Senior $20 | Student Rush $10

LunarFest celebrates Lunar New Year with "Lantern-A-Mania" - Feb 1

The 2009 Cultural Olympiad presents LunarFest 2009

Inspired by the ancient tradition of Lunar New Year, LunarFest celebrates Vancouver's cultural diversity with the first ever "Lantern-A-Mania". Prepare to be dazzled by a spectacular sea of lights as thousands of uniquely decorated lanterns brighten the Vancouver Art Gallery plaza. A perfect way to help usher in the Chinese Year of the Ox.

Presented With:
Asian-Canadian Special Events Association
Public Dreams Society
explorASIAN
Village of Cumberland
National Taiwan Craft Research Institute (Taiwan)
World Taiwanese Lantern Association (Taiwan)
Taiwanese Canadian Cultural Society

When:
VANCOUVER: Feb/1/2009 3:00pm to 8:00pm
Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza
West Georgia Street at Howe Street, Vancouver

CUMBERLAND: Mar/21/08 5:00pm to 10:00pm

Free family event

Event Information:
www.lunarfest.org

Taglar Membar, Flaming Tiger-Gods: The Bon Artisitic Tradition of Tibet

Lecture by Jasleen Kandhari
Tuesday, January 27, 2009 5:30 PM

C.K. Choi Building Conference Room #120, 1855 West Mall
UBC Institute of Asian Research, Contemporary Tibetan Studies Program

Bon is the pre-Buddhist religion of Tibet which is not as widely known in the Western academic world and explored by scholars as Tibetan Buddhism. Indo-Tibetan art historian, Jasleen Kandhari will lecture on the artistic tradition of Bon with stylistic comparisons to Tibetan Buddhist, Mongolian and Buryiatian art. She has lectured and published extensively on Indian and Himalayan art including on the exhibition, Bon, The Magic Word at the Rubin Museum of Art, New York in the Burlington and The British Museum’s Tantric Buddhist Sculpture of Tibet collections in Asia. Jasleen Kandhari is an Indian and Himalayan art historian and was a Curator of South Asian Art at the British Library where she curated the exhibition Faith & Brotherhood: Treasures of the Sikhs.

Contact: 604 822-4688 www.iar.ubc.ca

Alvin Erasga Tolentino meets ion Zoo at Dances for a Small Stage 20

January 22nd – 23rd
8 pm

The Legion on the Drive
2205 Commercial Drive, Vancouver.

For more information: www.movent.ca

Music of the Whole World: VICO with Gordon Grdina

The Vancouver Public Library presents
a Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra educational series

Music of the Whole World:
Explorations of World Music Cultures by Canadian Composers

Series 4: Presentation #2
MIDDLE AND NEAR EASTERN
INTERCULTURAL HORIZONS

Wednesday January 14, 2009 at 7pm

The Vancouver Public Library - 350 West Georgia
Alice Mackay room (lower level)

Free admission

Gordon Grdina, composer and leader of Middle Eastern-Persian-Indian fusion band "Sangha", will present a program highlighting his inter-cultural work, with the assistance of VICO musicians. he presentation will include music listening, discussion and live performance, providing a fascinating window into particular world music cultures and the bridges between them.

www.vi-co.org

How to Cultivate a Mass Movement: Buddhism, Education, and the Rise of Soka Gakkai, Japan's Largest Active Religion

By Levi McLaughlin, Department of Religion, Princeton University

Though too often ignored, the growth of new mass religious movements represents an integral part of modern Japanese social development. One organization emerged in the decades following World War Two to dominate Japan's religious landscape: Soka Gakkai, literally the "Value Creation Study Association," a Japanese lay Buddhist movement that is not only Japan’s largest active religion but also the largest active independent organization of any kind in Japan today. Soka Gakkai is well known for its committed membership, its schools, media empire, and particularly for its connection to electoral politics through its affiliated political party Komeito. However, despite Soka Gakkai's prominence, recent years have seen very little reliable scholarship on the movement, and no extended study to date has paid attention to the group's ordinary members. Drawing on archival research and years of non-member participant observation, including months spent living with Soka Gakkai families, studying for and taking the Soka Gakkai doctrinal examination, and playing violin with a Soka Gakkai symphony orchestra, I will introduce life inside Japan's largest lay Buddhist organization. In this presentation, I will consider case studies that exemplify how Soka Gakkai's origins in both Japanese Buddhism and Euro-American educational philosophies inform the lives of its grassroots practitioners. I will also discuss reasons for Soka Gakkai's unprecedented growth in the postwar era and ways Soka Gakkai's distinctive combination of Buddhism with modern educational ideals contributes to its continuing development as a politically active mass movement with millions of adherents.

Levi McLaughlin is a candidate for the Tung Lin Kok Yuen Canada Foundation Chair in Buddhism and Contemporary Society

Wednesday 7 January
12:00-1:15pm

INSTITUTE OF ASIAN RESEARCH, UBC
C.K. Choi Building Conference Room #120
1855 West Mall

Exhibition: Michael Morris, Paul Wong, Attila R. Lukacs, Ignacio Corral

RECENT WORKS by
Michael Morris, Paul Wong, Attila R. Lukacs, Ignacio Corral

Opening Tuesday January 6th @ 6-9pm
556 Seymour St (formerly A&B Sound) Vancouver

Exhibit runs: January 7 - 23 from 1pm - 7pm

ALL YOU CAN LAUGH – 10TH Asian Comedy Night

In partnership with the Roundhouse Arts & Recreation Society, The Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre presents:

ALL YOU CAN LAUGH – 10TH Asian Comedy Night
Friday, January 9th and Saturday, January 10th, 2009
Nightly at 7:30pm

Celebrating 10 years of comedy with VACT, back by popular demand and to make you laugh are Asian sketch comedy teams from across North America that previously performed at VACT’s comedy nights in the last 10 years! Locally renown Assaulted Fish, Vancouver’s reprised Hopsing’s Offspring, Los Angeles’s OPM (Opening People’s Minds), The Kupps from Toronto, and a new team 18 Mighty Mountain Warriors from San Francisco!

With Jeffery Yu, Vancouver’s 2003 Funniest Comic with a Day Job and Host Tom Chin

Buy your tickets early – sells out yearly!

Tickets: $22 in advance, $27 at door
Tickets at the Roundhouse or by phone at 604.713.1800 or online at www.vact.ca
Group Rates, please call 778.885.1973

www.assaultedfish.com
www.opmcomedy.com
www.18mmw.com

A BUNDLE OF LAUGHS DEAL: Two shows for $35!
Etch-YOUR-SketchOFF!#$%!! And ALL YOU CAN LAUGH!

BUY both shows at the same time,
Pay only $35 and SAVE $5!
(Available only online at www.vact.ca and until December 12th, 2008

Etch-YOUR-SketchOFF!#$%!!

Wednesday, January 7, 2009 - Vancouver Rice Bowl Competition
Thursday, January 8, 2009 - People's CHOYS Award
Nightly at 7:30pm

Come CHEER the Etch-Your-Sketchers on!
Wild, ZANY, Gut-aching, peeing in pants - FUNNY! Ask anyone from the 2008 competition. Celebrity Judges award the coveted Vancouver Rice Bowl to one team only - Winner takes all! The second night, teams are judged by the audience - measured by YOUR applause. The highest decibel readings take 1st, 2nd and 3rd prize. This is an event you don’t want to miss! Buy your tickets early – sells out yearly!

Tickets: $18 in advance, $22 at door
Tickets at the Roundhouse or by phone at 604.713.1800 or online at www.vact.ca
Group Rates, please call 778.885.1973

Come and BE IN the SHOW!
So you think you're funny or you've said "I can do that!" well here's your chance to strut your stuff!
Get a team together - Write 6 to 10 minutes of sketches with 2 randomly selected factors - Perform your sketches to a sold-out audience - Wow the judges to win the coveted Vancouver Rice Bowl - Goad the audience and take home the People's CHOYS Award! Check out the Rules & Regulations on www.vact.ca and Register your team by 5pm December 5th, 2008. Your team could win up to $500! Limited to 8 teams only!

(Sketch comedy consultants will be made available to participating teams two weeks before the show.)

Team Entry Fee: $35/team Late fee $50/team
Registration Forms available November 14, 2008

For more information, 778.885.1973 or www.vact.ca

The City of Bhangra Festival

Vancouver International Bhangra Celebration
http://www.vibc.org/cityofbhangra

The City of Bhangra Festival kicks off February 12, with nine days of feet-tapping, high-energy performances and events, ending off with the 2009 Coast Capital Bhangra Competition on February 21th.

For the first time ever, legendary Bhangra UK bands Apna Sangeet and Heera will perform live with H-Dhami at the Coast Capital Bhangra Competition on February 21, 2009. The competition is part of the City of Bhangra 2009 Festival presented by Rogers Wireless and will feature eight of North America’s elite bhangra teams competing for a grand prize of $5000 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Vancouver.

Both old skool 80’s bands, Apna Sangeet and Heera ruled the charts world-wide. They are known for their hits – Soho Road, Holi Holi, Dowain Jaaniya and Maar Chhadapa that changed the indipop scene and paved the road for many new South Asian artists. New generation British Asian singer, H-Dhami is also following in his father’s footsteps and will be joining his dad Palvinder Dhami – lead singer from Heera on stage.

TICKETS
www.ticketmaster.ca to purchase online

Tickets to hit local video stores (Kamal’s Video (Surrey), Ravi Video (Surrey), Tasleem’s (Vancouver) and Grover’s Video (Abbotsford) on January 5, 2009.

KODO brings “ONE EARTH TOUR” to VANCOUVER

January 28, 2009, 8pm

Orpheum Theatre
Smithe St. at Seymour St, Vancouver

Tickets: www.ticketmaster.ca or call 604.280.3311

Since ancient times the taiko has been a symbol of community, serving as a link among people, as well as a link between people and the heavens. Through the 'One Earth Tour,' Kodo continues to bring the sound of the Japanese drum to the ears of the world, and with the taiko's unique ability to transcend the barriers of language and custom, remind us all of our membership in that larger community.

Exploring the limitless possibilities of the traditional Japanese drum, the taiko, Kodo forges new directions for a vibrant living art-form. Kodo last appeared in Vancouver in 2005, with a show that completely sold out the Queen Elizabeth Theatre.

Don’t miss this rare opportunity so see one of the planet’s most exciting and spectacular events.

Since their debut at the Berlin Festival in 1981, Kodo has given over 3100 performances on all five continents, spending about a third of the year overseas, a third touring in Japan and a third resting and preparing new material at their home-base of Japan’s Sado Island.

Artistic Director Mitsuru Ishizuka says, “Kodo's performance transports the body and soul to new heights, creating a unique harmony among humanity, nature and the universe. In such a state, drumming, song, and dance are not just for show; they become an offering of thanks that celebrates humanity and our primal will to live. Kodo's performance, alive with the spirit of life, transcends any borders between drumming and dancing to form a single vital expression.”

Stand Alone III

Zbigniew Karkowski & Atsuko Nojiri + THE RITA
February 27, 2009 8PM

Western Front
303 East 8th Avenue, Vancouver BC
www.front.bc.ca
admission: $15 door / $12 advance / $10 Members/Students

Zbigniew Karkowski (electronics)
Atsuko Nojiri (video)

Renown Tokyo-based master sound manipulator Zbigniew Karkowski and Japanese video artist Atsuko Nojiri present an evening of audacious multimedia collaboration. Karkowski’s relentless attention to detail to the reworking and processing of a collection of original acoustic instrument recordings is integrally and seamlessly paired with Nojiri’s visual interpretations.

Zbigniew Karkowski has studied with composers Iannis Xenakis, Pierre Boulez, Olivier Messiaen, and Georges Aperghis and has produced numerous works in the fields of both acoustic and electronic music including chamber works, pieces for large orchestra and opera. He is also a founding member of the electroacoustic music performance trio Sensorband and has worked with notable underground icons, Francisco Lopez, Daniel Menche and Hafler Trio.

An argument for the indivisibility of sound and vision, or the emergence of a new aesthetic medium? Quite evidently, the answer is both. – Asphodel Records (on Continuity the DVD/CD release by Karkowski and Nojiri)

opening set: THE RITA
Sam McKinlay’s sound art project THE RITA has built a reputation as one of the leaders of the harsh noise genre with visceral, dynamic live performances and an equally abrasive growing discography. He has toured throughout North America and Japan utilizing custom-built analog electronic equipment. His performances connect the immediacy and corporeal power of extreme frequencies, textures and volumes with a performative sensibility that reveals a towering monument to the vehement power of abstracted sound.

Japanese Canadian National Museum presents March to December

an interactive website based on the war journal of Roy Ito
January 16 – March 14, 2009

National Nikkei Museum & Heritage Centre, 6688 Southoaks Crescent, Burnaby, BC
Open Tuesday-Saturday, 11am-5pm. Closed Sunday & Monday
www.nikkeiplace.org

featuring new works by
Kyo Maclear
Julie Tamiko Manning
Baco Ohama

curated by Cindy Mochizuki

Website launch and reception
Friday, January 16, 2009, 7pm

Lecture by Lyle Dick
Saturday, January 24, 2009, 2pm

Curator’s gallery talk
Saturday, February 7, 2009, 2pm

All programs are open to the public and by donation.
Please RSVP to museum@nikkeiplace.org

This project was made possible with the financial assistance of the B.C. Arts Council and the Roy Ito Award.

PuSh International Performing Arts Festival

The annual PuSh International Performing Arts Festival is one of Vancouver’s signature events. Produced over 20 days each January, the PuSh Festival presents groundbreaking work in the live performing arts: theatre, dance, music and various hybrid forms of performance. It attracts acclaimed local, national and international artists and their work.

www.pushfestival.ca

Join us January 20 – February 8, 2009 at venues in and around Vancouver.

Two PuSh shows from Japan this year - a theatre company performing in Japanese with English surtitles, and a dance performance by Hiroaki Umeda.

Five Days in March (Tokyo)
http://pushfestival.ca/index.php?mpage=shows&spage=main&id=71#show

while going to a condition + Accumlulated Layout (Tokyo)
http://pushfestival.ca/index.php?mpage=shows&spage=main&id=60#show

Kevin Chong and Faith Moosang are taking part in the Club PuSh show titled Trampoline Hall, Feb 1: http://pushfestival.ca/index.php?mpage=shows&spage=main&id=89#show

Peter Chin from Toronto is performing another dance piece: http://pushfestival.ca/index.php?mpage=shows&spage=main&id=76#show

Maiko Bae Yamamoto is co-directing a show performed by children, called "That Night Follows Day": http://pushfestival.ca/index.php?mpage=shows&spage=main&id=80#show