STREET STYLE: Human Playground

Perhaps it was her degree in communications, coupled with the financially precarious nature of dance post-graduation, which led contemporary dance grad Milan Gervais to create a dance collective/company with a business plan in mind.

This past winter, with the help of a business coach and Emploi Quebec, she formulated the plan for Human Playground. Next spring, the group is collaborating with the Goethe Institut on a campaign to inform the public about cars in the city through dance street activism.

“I had the idea to create a company that used dance performance as a communication tool instead of just creating pieces,” explains Gervais days before their performance at the city’s Transatlantique 2008 Montreal contemporary dance event.

Dancers Sophia Borella, Mélissa Raymond, Justine Ricard, Louliko Shibao and Manuel Shink perform outdoors in a half-hour structured improv, with a special guest artist to be revealed on site. You’ll find them on the sidewalk in front of the NFB’s Cinérobothèque (1564 St-Denis) today, Thursday, Sept. 25 and Saturday, Sept. 27 at 6:45 p.m. just before dance film sessions inside the theatre.

Detailed schedule at www.transatlantiquemontreal.com.

— MARITES CARINO

Improv’s best fest

ANSWERING YOUR CALL-OUT: On the Spot

If the prospect of staying home Wednesday night to watch five decidedly unfunny politicians go at it in the leadership debate sounds less than thrilling, then you’ll be glad to hear that IMFEST (Sept. 30–Oct. 4), Montreal’s annual improv comedy festival, is hitting the city just in time to rescue us from an onslaught of witless electioneering.

“The show is really what the audience makes it. The election will come up if they want it to,” says Terence Bowman of On the Spot, the improv troupe that’s spearheading the festival. “Politicians may think they’re humourless, but we have a different way of looking at them,” he says.

Now in its third year, IMFEST brings together six troupes at three venues, including Edmonton’s Rapid Fire Theatre, local troupes Uncalled For, TSC Improv and Without Annette and Chicago’s Storybox Theatre, who improvise whole plays with original music. “Their style is unique. It’s influenced by Japanese noh theatre and Second City improv,” says Bowman.

Spectators should be ready to participate. “You’re not going to have to come up on stage and be an animal. But you are going to have to shout out suggestions.” Details at www.onthespotimprov.ca.

— MATT JONES

Culture at your disposal

Distroboto, the revamped cigarette machines that dispense miniature artworks, films, music etc., for two bucks a pop, made their first appearance at Casa del Popolo in 2001. Since then, these cultural vending machines have been planted in bars, restaurants and university lobbies across the city.

COMING TO A CULTURAL HOUSE NEAR YOU: Distroboto

This weekend, Sept. 26–28, Distroboto expands again, this time into the lobbies of four Maison de la cultures in Côte-des-Neiges, Hochelaga, Plateau East and Park Ex. “We’re launching them as part of Journées de la culture, so I’ll be at the various locations to explain a little bit more about the project and how it works,” says creator Louis Rastelli. “It’s only for six months, but hopefully it’ll go on for longer.”

Beyond attracting new contributors and participants, the expansion has another hot-topic purpose. Like Expozine, Distroboto is run by Archive Montreal, a non-profit organization that relies in part on government grants. “We’ve applied for an online culture grant, it’ll be the last time the grant is offered, if Harper is re-elected,” he says, “so, ideally, it’s a way to convince the government that this is a legit and important project.”

— SACHA JACKSON

 

24 hour poetry people

Grassroots poetry activist J.J. Locke has been busy all summer organizing this weekend’s (Sept. 26–28) inaugural Montreal Public Poetry Festival, a fest built around the Fringe philosophy of first-come, first-served.

POET BEHIND THE MIC: J.J. Locke

“It allows for a great diversity of poets,” says Locke. “That’s the beauty of the Fringe structure. We don’t judge the poets in advance, but give them an opportunity to present their work and hopefully to make some money.”

More than 30 local and visiting artists will hit the stage at Café Culturel SABA (5124 Sherbrooke W., #A), including Atwater Poetry Project dynamo Oana Avasilichioaei, reading from her new book feria: a poempark, the ubiquitous Throw Collective, and Throw member Chris Masson’s solo show, Rachna Vohra and Rahul Gupta (aka That Brown Bastard!) and poet/muso Erica Ruth Kelly.

“It’ll be really vibrant,” says Locke. “Almost 24 hours of solid poetry over three days!” Check www.publicpoetry.wordpress.com for schedule.

—VINCENT TINGUELY

Is it art?

RETURN OF THE MIXTAPE: Ah, the mixtape, progeny of crushes, budding friendships and road trips. A way of saying “this is me,” without actually saying it.

The art form has been in steep decline since the switch from analog to digital, and even though they don’t get passed around like they used to, they remain highly revered (see High Fidelity.) Given their pop culture status and high school charm, it’s no surprise that in the age of MP3s and downloads, one company is about to bring the mixtape into the 21st century.

The USB Mixtape Memory Stick, which retails for about $20, stores up to 64 megs, enough for 60 minutes worth of music just like the cassettes of old. What really seals the deal, though, is the packaging: the USB comes embedded in a tape-shaped package and includes a quintessential paper cover for liner notes and track listing. www.thinkgeek.com/computing/mp3/9bd7/

Arts hole

OUTSIDE ART: The Dissident Art fest wraps up this week with two end-of-the-week events. Tonight, Thursday, Sept. 25 starting at 7 p.m., Mark Sussman talks about community-based, political and socially minded performances at Puppets as Protest. Artist Dayna McLeod shows her video HotBeaverWetPussy.com as part of the closing reception on Sunday, Sept. 27 at 2 p.m.. Both events at 55 Notre-Dame W. • MIXED TECHNIQUES: Designer Irène Chiasson—who’s best known for placing traditional techniques like crochet and patchwork in a modern context—is honoured with a solo show Between Tradition and Modernity at the Museum of Costumes and Textiles of Quebec (349 Riverside, St-Lambert). The vernissage takes place this Saturday, Sept. 27 at 2 p.m., the show runs until Dec. 7.

Artistat

The amount it’ll cost you to hear British architect Will Alsop, who designed the recent addition to the Ontario College of Art & Design in Toronto, talk about his creative process at the CCA (1920 Baile) next Thursday, Oct. 2 at 7 p.m.: 0