Dancing with
monsters
FROM THEATRICS TO PHYSICALITY:
FURIES Alpha 1/24 (The Monsters Within)Choreographer and dancer Estelle Clareton emigrated from France in the late ’80s to dance for Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal and then O Vertigo. Since then, she’s ventured off on her own and developed a choreographic style that often includes theatrical elements, since she regularly collaborates with stage director and playwright Wajdi Mouawad.
Artistic director of Montreal Danse and Clareton’s artistic advisor, Kathy Casey, says Clareton’s work, which earlier on was driven by narrative with elements of humour, has taken a recent shift in direction. With FURIES Alpha 1/24 (The Monsters Within), Clareton concentrates less on the theatrical elements and pushes the physical nature of the choreography. “It’s a super-physical piece and it’s non-stop,” says Casey about the driving work for six that was inspired by the vengeful Furies of Greek mythology and Clareton’s overwhelming experience of touring a concentration camp.
The hour-long show was created in 2005 and runs at the Théâtre de Verdure in Parc Lafontaine for free tomorrow Friday, July 31 and Saturday, Aug. 1 at 8 p.m. Performances will be cancelled in the case of rain so be sure to check montrealdanse.com before heading off.
by MARITES CARINO
Otakuthon!
COMICS COME TO LIFE: Otakuthon ’08
Apparently there’s more to Japanese animation than bug-eyed yellow blobs and anthropomorphic tentacles with an appetite for schoolgirls.
“Anime is really its own genre; there’s anime for children, for adults, there’s romance, adventure, sci-fi,” says Amanda Arrizza, chair of Montreal’s annual anime festival, Otakuthon, which runs July 31 to Aug. 2 at the Palais des Congrès. Over the past four years, the event has been attracting growing numbers of anime nerds—often in full costume—to its workshops, dances and J-Rock shows.
“The Masquerade is definitely the most popular event,” says Arrizza. People present their costumes to judges and the audience and they also have a chance to perform a skit if they like.”
But costumed fans will be doing more than just strutting their stuff. They’ll also be participating in a live action battle (Battle Royale), enacting a game of chess as live pieces (Cosplay Chess) and singing karaoke. “People dress up as anime characters and sing songs from anime shows. They have the words written down phonetically and they sing in Japanese.”
The weekend is rounded out by a dance night, a J-Rock concert and Otakuthon Idol. For the full program, see otakuthon.com
by MATT JONES
Dusty Peas and UFOs
If the title A Journey Through Time & Shapes sounds sufficiently vague to you, that’s because it’s meant to be. Embarking upon a one-week residency in Halifax to “push printmaking to the next level,” the Ontario-based artist collective Dusty  Peas needed a title to fit whatever arose from their collaboration. Eventually, Journey took shape as a silkscreened zine de luxe and a companion paper sculpture of a flying saucer with tractor-beam support.
Individually known as Jamie Q and James Kirkpatrick, Dusty Peas seeks new collaborators on this project—albeit in the form of happy and crafty art-consumers. This Wednesday, Aug. 5 at 7 p.m., the two will launch their colourful 16-pager at Drawn & Quarterly (211 Bernard W.) while patrons assemble the do-it-yourself sculpture, a 3D version of the UFO on the zine’s cover. At one foot in height, the $25 poster-cum-sculpture is likely the cheapest piece of limited edition art you will find (the handmade zine sells for $35).
Art’s accessibility lies near to Dusty Peas’ hearts, as does collaborative effort. “It’s cool that people can be involved in creating the work with us,” enthuse the artists, who sweetly add, “it’s fun to build things.”
by DAVID LEVITZ
Sing-out sisters
“I came up with the idea for the fest last year,” explains Florence S. Larose, co-organizer (along with Myriam Jacob-Allard) of the All Girl Summer Fun Fest II: Édition Karaoké which takes place at le Cagibi (5490 St-Laurent) this Saturday, Aug. 1 at 9 p.m. “I thought it would be nice for artists and students to take a break from all the seriousness of school and the art milieu, while keeping our creative vibe alive during the warm summer days.”
Inspired by their recent obsession with karaoke, the women settled on this activity as the event’s focus, inviting friends, and “friends of friends of friends” to join them onstage. But this isn’t your average night at the local pub. The participants, all women, were asked to make their selections based on a specific set of criteria: performing a love song that was written by a man, but made famous by a woman.
In addition to the fabulous collection of tunes, the evening promises an eclectic array of interdisciplinary delights. From the wide array of costumes and musical stylings to hand-crafted videos, the night offers a bounty of performative treats and an excellent opportunity for group sing-along camaraderie.
by STACEY DEWOLFE
IS IT ART?
CAMO CARPARK: If giving your garage a regular coat of paint seems boring and “uncreative,” then you should check out style-your-garage.com, a company that creates special covers for up-and-over garage doors.
 Based in Munich, Germany, the company produces covers featuring everything from fancy cars to rock bands, oversized kittens and table dancers in various states of undress. Toeing the line between clever and kétaine, the images are made with an “exclusive special material” and measure 210 cm high by 245 cm long. They are rip- and weather-proof and should only take you 15–30 minutes to install the Velcro fastener and hang your chosen masterpiece. Selling for $261 Canadian, these are one way to liven up the city’s alleys.
Arts hole
CANDY-COATED THURSDAYS: The Darling Foundry (745 Ottawa) presents Darling Thursdays, live outdoor events happening throughout August and September at the avant-garde visual arts centre, with live DJs, projects and artistic performances. The latest event Candy & Stars takes place tonight, Thursday July 30 from 5–10 p.m. • ASSEMBLE IN APRICOT: This is the last chance to check out Journey, the group show on view at Galerie Orange (81 St-Paul E.), featuring the work of Rafael Sottolichio, Guy Laramée, Laurent Guérin and Éveline Bouva among others. The show runs until Aug. 2.
Artistat
The amount of ground that’ll be covered at Montréal Champêtre, a story of art at the Mont-Royal Cemetery (1297 de la Forêt), where you’re invited to discover painters, musicians and sculptors, and wander through the grounds this Sunday, Aug. 2 from noon–6 p.m.: 1.2 kilometres
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