A little hope on the prairie

Abandoned, slanted barns and never-ending fields were some of the images city-girl choreographer Lin Snelling took away after her first visit to a friend's place on the prairies. From those impressions evolved Extinction, a choreography-documentary she created with artists Michael Reinhart and Lorraine Pritchard.

"The word ‘extinction' says it all," Snelling explains. "It's about a way of rural life that's disappearing - it's inevitable. Also, it's the recognition of an end. We're working with both sides of the word."

Snelling doesn't just focus on disappearing farms in her work, though. She also questions art and its accessibility, asking, "Is art in peril?" To fight that possibility, she strives to bring her work to a wider audience - and she's getting somewhere to, having already performed Extinction with great success to a group of modern dance neophytes in a one-room schoolhouse in Kindersley, Saskatchewan. "Someone asked me if I was doing a sign language with dance," she muses. "I guess I am." Extinction opens at Usine C (1345 Lalonde) tonight, April 15, and runs the 24th, 521-4493. » Marites Carino

Secret agent women

"Every little breeze seems to whisper Louise," sings Maurice Chevalier. Sounds of Morse code emanate from an adjoining room. Old-style suitcases are scattered throughout the space. A film clip from the 1958 movie Carve Her Name in Pride plays. Welcome to a hot "new media" art show.

Toronto artist Nina Levitt remembers female WWII spies with her interactive installation Little Breeze at Oboro (4001 Berri, #301). To activate the piece, she uses a suitcase interface - effective, to me, but I wish the triggered sound and video clips were more directly linked to the real women than to the aforementioned pop-culture references to them. Levitt has recently added a new component to the work that reflects the need to reconnect with the actual gals. On the walls are small pictures of some of them, with a sentence or two describing their ultimate fates, such as "shot," "tortured," "lethal injection" and "firing squad." Don't think Levitt has pushed this piece as far as she is going to, but what is there now is definitely worth checking out. Runs until May 1, 844-3250. » Christine Redfern

Dual launch action

Over the past four years, Montreal lit journal Vallum has been quietly collecting kudos for its eclectic approach to poetry. Edited by Joshua and Eleni Z. Auerbach, the latest issue boasts a funky new design and layout, and includes contributions from an international roster of poets, as well as Canadian heavy hitters like Stephanie Bolster and George Elliott Clarke. Vallum shares the spotlight this Sunday with Mekler & Deahl's new poetry anthology After the Eclipse, and the launch features local scribes, including Bolster, Larissa Andrusyshyn, James Deahl, Jeffrey Mackie and Margaret Zielinski. Sunday, April 18, 7 p.m., at Blizzarts (3956A St-Laurent), free. » Vincent Tinguely

Physical extortion

If you've ever seen the 1929 Hitchcock flick Blackmail, you'll recall the Scotland Yard detective, his girlfriend who goes off to pose for an artist and ends up killing him with a breadknife when he makes advances, and the blackmailer who picks up the murdereress's glove at the crime scene. Taking much of her inspiration from that film, Deborah Dunn presents her own Blackmail, a full-length choreography running at the Théâtre La Chapelle (3700 St-Dominique) until April 17.

Don't expect a complete re-creation of the plot, though; the abridged story is told by a bilingual narrator. "It's really funny," says Dunn. "It's like the airport, and it's totally Canadian." But then, she explains, "We go into the more poetic and abstract and take things into different directions." Dunn's sharp wit and big imagination should make this a compelling whodunnit in its own right. Call 843-7738 for tickets. » Marites Carino

Is it Art?

ROLL OUT THE BARRELS: The highest-browed of boozehounds, quixotic connoisseurs, red-lipped romantics, savants of the savoir faire, lovers of poetry, cheese, violins, horses, cobblestones, rare game and most any other pleasantry of the palate shall come together next weekend to share in savouring at the Montreal Wine and Spirits Show. This year's event promises to tempt aficionados of the drink with some 2,500 products - including a record 1,200 private imports - and will play host to more than 250 producers, vintners and distillers from 30 nations. The $15 entrance fee gets you a tasting glass and event guide; individual tasting costs vary throughout. The show, hosted by local célèbre Vincent Graton, runs from April 22–25, 18 and up. Santé.

ArtsHole

ROME IN THREE DAYS: The Roman Co-op presents staged readings of three Roman plays over three nights, April 15–17, at 8 p.m. at the Geordie Space (4001 Berri). In order of appearance: The Comedy of Errors (Thursday), Julius Caesar (Friday) and Antony & Cleopatra (Saturday). Suggested donation is 10 bucks. • NO STORY THERE: Seventy-four short audio-video works all created under an imposed "no-narrative" structure by a slew of locals will be screened at the Dérapage 5 projection night tonight, Thursday, April 15, 8 p.m., at the École de Design de l'UQÀM (1440 Sanguinet).

ARTISTAT: Number of books, magazines, records and more taken from Montreal's library system collection and on sale for a whopping $0.25–$1, at the annual Amis de la Bibliothèque de Montréal book sale, April 17–25, 1–7 p.m. daily, at the Étienne Desmarteau Arena (3430 Bellechasse): 45,000

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