Arts Scene

BY WENDY ELLIOTT

welliott@kentvilleadvertiser.ca

NovaNewsNow.com

Granny concert

The Annapolis Valley Grandmothers and Others for Africa, which is affiliated with the Stephen Lewis Foundation, has organized a benefit concert for later this month.

A host of well-known performers are taking part. They include: MC Jim Keats, Emily Levy-Purdy, Rose Vaughan from Halifax, JoeAnne Dobbelstein, Cuckoo Moon with Kate Adams and Kathy Arsenault, Don Osburn, Chris Palmer and Geena Potvin.

Well-known singer Hugh McDonnell has programmed the event. It will benefit grandmothers in Africa who are raising their grandchildren because their parents died of HIV/AIDS.

The concert is set for Oct. 25 at 7:30 p.m. at the Kingston Legion. Tickets are $15.



Reading set

On Wednesday, Halifax writer Jennifer Chapin will do a reading from her new novel at the Box of Delights in Wolfville at 7 p.m.

Chapin calls her novel A Song of Songs: Mary Magdalene Awakes, the fulfillment of a dream that began in New York City, traveled into the mists of Machu Picchu and the desert of the Sahara, wound its way through the Languedoc in France and then finished in Nova Scotia.

It is a novel about the return of Mary Magdalene at the end of time. It tells of her final incarnation as a young woman named Jenna who is born with a birthmark over her forehead shaped like the continent of Africa.

Jenna is irreligious, tough and unhappily immersed in the corporate world. Unbidden, she starts to have dreams and visions of a time with Christ and they become so real she crosses through time to find herself weeping at his feet during the crucifixion.

This is also a story about the Cathars in the Languedoc area of France, adds Chapin. The Cathars believed in reincarnation. For this, and for their belief in direct revelation and a dualistic universe of good and evil, they were destroyed by the Catholic Church in the 13th century. This became known as the first western genocide of Christian against Christian. Because of the Cathars, the church gave birth to the Inquisition.

The Cathars believed Mary Magdalene was the beloved of the Christ and the keeper of his teachings. They also believed that the church had betrayed these teachings. Their story is interwoven with the Knights Templar who were imbedded in the Languedoc, and with Jenna's ongoing odyssey as she comes to full awareness of who she is.

“Ultimately, this is a story about love that does not depend on time. It is also a warning about the end of time.”

Chapin has worked as a freelance writer and researcher in the legal field investigating issues related to international law, the environment, the rights of women and the plight of refugees. She is also a photographer and has self-published a travel anthology that spans several countries. This is her first novel. She is employed at a large Halifax hotel and values her writing time.

Fundy screenings

Fundy Film's Doc series screens My Winnipeg tomorrow. Manitoba born, raised and still resident Guy Maddin writes and directs this strangely amusing tribute to his hometown, weaving fact and fiction into a weird and wonderful docu-fantasia that took Best Canadian Feature Film (TIFF, 2007). It screens at the Al Whittle Theatre, Wolfville. Wed, Oct. 8 at 7 pm.

Coming up is Brideshead Revisited this Sunday. Join two-time Oscar winner Emma Thompson in a stunning period drama as she leads a stellar cast in this retelling of Evelyn Waugh’s classic World War II novel.

It also screens at the Al Whittle Theatre Sunday, Oct. 12, 4 and 7 p.m. and Monday, Oct. 13, 7 p.m. Tickets are ($8) 30 minutes before screening. www.fundyfilm.ca or 542-5157.

Guthro coming

On Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 11-12 at 8 p.m., Bruce Guthro will be at the Evergreen Theatre, East Margaretsville.

Tickets are $25 plus HST. Reservations at 825-6834, evergreentheatre@gmail.com.

Any painted rooms?

The Heritage Trust of Nova Scotia has reintroduced The Painted Rooms Project, an initiative that began some 32 years ago.

The project was created in order to facilitate the documentation and preservation of historical painted interiors and to create public awareness of painted rooms as a part of Nova Scotia’s cultural heritage. In addition, the project also aims to educate owners of the heritage value of their painted surfaces and provide relevant information on maintenance and protection requirements.

This year, a new database was created for The Painted Rooms Project by student Glen Kilian from the NSCC’s Centre of Geographical Sciences. This database will provide the trust with a secure inventory in which all gathered information on historically painted interiors will be stored.

In time, the Trust hopes to make this information available to the public on the Internet. In order to respect privacy concerns, no specific residential addresses will be included unless otherwise requested by the owners.

The trust is interested in a variety of historical painted interiors and surfaces. A painted interior may consist of a painted wall mural, a painted border, stencil work and/or decoratively painted ceilings and floors. Ornately painted furniture, fireplace mantels and faux finishes, such as marbleization and faux wood grain, are also of interest.

Anyone who knows of any painted surfaces is asked to contact Leeann Royat (902) 423-4807 or htns@ns.aliantzinc.ca.

Coming up

Oct. 8

Ray Cronin talk on Burtynsky's photos, Acadia Art Gallery, Wolfville, 2 p.m.

Oct. 10

Jenn Grant, Al Whittle Theatre, Wolfville

Until Oct. 25

The O’Conner Girls, CentreStage Theatre, Kentville, 678-8040

Until Nov. 8

Edward Burtynsky’s photos, Acadia Art Gallery, Wolfville

Until Nov. 27

Erma Walker, Valley Regional Hospital Art Gallery, Kentville