Revisiting the
white room
LOSING CONTROL, ALMOST: La Chambre Blanche“La Chambre Blanche is the closest to my physicality and my choreographic signature,” says O Vertigo choreographer Ginette Laurin about the groundbreaking piece she’s decided to revisit and remount.
“When I created it almost 20 years ago, the Polytechnique shootings influenced us in our creative process. Then two years ago, when I thought about redoing it, the Dawson incident occurred. The subject is current,” explains Laurin.
“I wanted to work with the fragility of human beings, and the thin line between being in control of yourself and losing it.”
Keeping the original set, designed by Stéphane Roy, the hour-long work takes place in a cramped, white-tiled space that could easily resemble the interior of a hospital, mental institution or orphanage. Two original cast members Robert Meilleur and Chi Long join seven new dancers who reinterpret the roles to a completely revamped soundtrack by composers Nicolas Bernier and Jacques Poulin-Denis.
The company has been touring Europe for the past year with this piece and stops in Montreal for a two-week run. At Cinquième Salle at Place des Arts (175 Ste-Catherine W.) nightly until Feb. 28, at 8 p.m.
by MARITES CARINO
Bloody drama
DEATH OF A DIVA:
La Terreur as Von Gorgenstein
Feeling a little unromantic or unloved this Valentine’s Day? Or simply want to give this most fabricated of Hallmark holidays the old heave-ho? Then skip the bonbons and rose petals, and head to Articule (262 Fairmount W.) for a murder mystery extravaganza.
Opening this weekend, with a vernissage on Friday, Feb. 13 at 7 p.m. and a special Valentine’s Day performance on the 14th, local interdisciplinary artist Céline B. La Terreur’s The Antichamber of Death offers a bloodier alternative to the weekend’s traditional celebrations of the heart.
Presented as a multimedia installation comprising photographs, found objects and text, the project is built around a nuts and bolts investigation into the mysterious death of La Terreur’s alter-ego: a glamorous albeit fictional diva named Elizabetha Von Gorgenstein.
Paying homage to real-life opera sensation Maria Callas, whose rather mundane death by heart failure was seen as a bit of a disappointment by her drama-starved fans, the work also functions as a commentary on this desire for glorification. And as it was with Callas, important questions will be raised: Did Von Gorgenstein die by her own hand, or was it murder? We may never know for sure, but there will certainly be blood and drama.
by STACEY DEWOLFE
Bizarre love triangle
Cabin fever and rural crazies are on the menu as Montreal co-op foundWave Theatre ready Trout Stanley, the second production from the fledgling company founded last October by playwright, director and Fringe regular Caitlin Murphy.
Vanessa Matsui, Stephanie Breton and Vincent LeClerc star in what the New York Times has already termed a “Canadian Gothic” classic from acclaimed  Toronto-born playwright (and Globe and Mail columnist) Claudia Dey, who wrote the piece inspired by her experiences as a cook in bush camps out west.
It’s the tale of Grace and Sugar—twin sisters un-identical in every way—who live in a shack on the edge of a town dump in the desperate wilds of northern British Columbia. Haunted by the death of their parents and an unborn triplet they call “the ugly duckling,” they prepare to celebrate their 30th birthday when they are surprised by a mysterious drifter, the titular Trout Stanley, a foot fetishist and fake cop looking for the lake where his parents drowned. A surreal love triangle soon follows.
To Feb. 21 at Théâtre Ste. Catherine (264 Ste-Catherine E.).
by NEIL BOYCE
Art you can afford
One of the biggest challenges facing art school graduates is getting that first show at an established gallery off campus. To help ease this transition, Concordia’s MFA program is hosting its annual exhibit this March at Art  Mûr—showcasing the video, print, painting, sculpture and photographic works of some 50 to 70 MFA students.
But such a venture costs money and so the good folks behind the initiative are also hosting Show Your Love for Art, a fundraising party and silent auction that takes place tomorrow evening, Friday, Feb. 13, at the VAV Gallery (1395 René-Lévesque W.) from 6 p.m. onward.
The big ticket item is the silent auction, but party-goers of all ilks and incomes are welcome as there will be food and drink, and a host of miniature art works for sale in the $20 or less category—making this an excellent opportunity to both support emerging artists, and to get going on your own collection.
by STACEY DEWOLFE
Is it art?
TWO IN ONE: Love often starts by one or both parties wanting to get into each other’s pants. So just think how awesome love would be if you could both get into the same pair of pants!
Now, just in time for Valentine’s Day, there’s a resurgence of interest in Fundies:  the underwear built for two. Though they’ve been manufactured for over 20 years, they’ve never once changed their style (they’re classic white lady-like bikini briefs with red trim) or packaging, giving them an added nostalgic kitschy-ness.
Made with four leg holes and two rears, they’re not the sexiest or most practical underwear out there, but they’re likely the only ones that’ll keep you stuck on each other all day long.
shopinprivate.com/fununfortwo.html
Arts
hole
BE(A)ST BEHAVIOUR: New York-based theatre and performance artist Taylor Mac brings his latest show The Be(A)st of Taylor Mac, to the Théâtre la Chapelle (3700 St-Dominique) for its Montreal premiere. Directed by David Drake, the show runs until this Saturday, Feb. 14 at 8 p.m. • ABSTRACT EXPRESSION: Florian Liber’s latest collection of abstract paintings, The Archaic Body, opens at the Contemporary Arts Gallery (2140 Crescent) tonight, Thursday, Feb. 12 from 5:30–9 p.m.• LATE NIGHT LOVE-IN: Comedy troupe Uncalled For presents The Love Machine, a night dedicated to break-ups, hook-ups and slow dancing, at the MainLine theatre (3997 St-Laurent) this Saturday, Feb. 14 at 10 p.m., $6.
Artistat
The year Quebec-born and New York-based artist Claude Simard, whose latest show Réflections is on view at Projex-Mtl Galerie (372 Ste-Catherine W. #212) until March 7, was born: 1956 |
