SCA | Quick News | January 24, 2025
Wei takes the prize!
SCA PhD student Casey Wei is the winner of the 2025 Philip B. Lind Emerging Artist Prize, administered by The Polygon Gallery. Described by The Polygon as the "country’s largest accolade for emerging visual artists," which now includes a $25,000 prize and the promise to produce a project with The Polygon, Wei was announced at an awards ceremony on January 23, 2025, with members of the Lind Family in attendance. With Wei, the other nominees included SCA alumnus Mena El Shazly, Karice Mitchell, Dion Smith-Dokkie, and Parumveer Walia. Read The Polygon's full announcement HERE. The Lind Biennial, which features the work of Wei and the other nominees, runs to February 2, 2025, at The Polygon (101 Carrie Cates Ct., North Vancouver).
TPE play Undine Smith Moore
The Turning Point Ensemble, which has the SCA's Owen Underhill as Artistic Director and conductor, is recognizing Black History Month this February "by shining a spotlight on the incredible Undine Smith Moore, the 'Dean of Black Women Composers.'” TPE will be performing Moore’s Afro-American Suite and Before I’d Be a Slave as part of their concert on February 22 & 23, 2025, at the Annex Theatre (823 Seymour St, Vancouver). Get tickets HERE.
Marks talks to Theory Today
The SCA's Laura U. Marks is giving a virtual talk on Thursday, February 13, 2025, from 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM (PST), presented by the "Theory Today: Between Past and Present" working group at the University of Southern California. More HERE.
Gruben's Film Studies
The SCA's Patricia Gruben is hosting Film Studies: Adaptation, Innovation & Evolution, the first Film Studies series of 2025 at the VIFF Centre (1181 Seymour St., Vancouver), on Mondays at 2:00 PM (with screenings at 2:30 PM), from February 3 – March 10, 2025. Here's how it's described: "In this six-week course, combining 30-minute talks, film screenings and group discussion, Patricia examines how Jane Austen, Shakespeare and Virginia Woolf have been translated to the screen, and shows works by film giants like Stanley Kubrick, Atom Egoyan and Akira Kurosawa." Sounds good! More HERE.
Stir on Postcards from the Heart
Read Stir Vancouver on the upcoming exhibition, Postcards from the Heart: Selections from the Brigitte and Henning Freybe Collection, featuring work by the SCA's Kathy Slade, which is set to run April 18 – October 5, 2025, at the Vancouver Art Gallery (750 Hornby St., Vancouver). Read it HERE.
Momo hosts Sparkling Imagination
SCA MFA student Mohammadreza (Momo) Akrami is hosting Sparkling Imagination, an improvisation/dance workshop by Horacio Macuacua (Mozambique/Spain), from February 17 – 21, 2025, daily from 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM in Room 4525 (the Courtyard Studio) here at the School for the Contemporary Arts (149 W. Hastings St., Vancouver). More HERE.
Absolute Unit at the Fox
John Korsrud's Absolute Unit, an 18-piece outfit that includes the SCA's Stefan Smulovitz and SCA alumni Aysha Dulong, is performing on Thursday, February 13, 2025, at 8:00 PM (doors at 7:00 PM), at the Fox Cabaret (2321 Main St, Vancouver). Get tickets HERE.
Tuazon's new work
Oscar Tuazon, our January 2025 Audain Visual Artist in Residence (see his exhibition What Trees Need in the SCA's Audain Gallery, here at 149 W. Hastings St., Vancouver, until February 15, 2025), has a new permanent installation along Seattle's waterfront, running from Columbia Street to Spring Street. More HERE.
Kong on Curve!
Read SCA alumnus Yani Kong on Curve! Women Carvers on the Northwest Coast for Galleries West. Read it HERE.
What is already here?
The folks at VIVO Media Arts Centre asked us to share this call for participation for a residency presented in collaboration with the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival. Here's the quick info:
Applications Open: January 11, 2025
Deadline: January 28, 2025
An Invitation to Join the Conversation with Joseph K. Kasau Wa Mambwe, Majula Drammeh, and Thabiaso Kubheka Persson.
Project Title: What is already here?
Artists: Joseph K. Kasau Wa Mambwe (Democratic Republic of Congo), Majula Drammeh (Sweden), Thabiaso Kubheka Persson (Sweden)
Date: January 28, 4:00 – 6:00 PM
Location: VIVO Media Arts Centre (2625 Kaslo St., Vancouver)
FREE! Limited Space. Registration Required.
More HERE.
Nieto and Medina in the spotlight
The Vancouver International Dance Festival (VIDF), which has SCA alumnus Deanna Peters and Victor Tran as Co-Directors, shared an Artist Spotlight about SCA alumnus Salomé Nieto and Julio Medina, who are presenting the Canadian premiere of Nepantla: Magia Ancestral. Read it HERE. Other SCA people performing as part of the VIDF include SCA alumnus Luciana Freire D’Anunciação and Kelly McInnes (presenting Mouth to Mouth, with music by SCA alumnus Alex Mah), and SCA alumnus Shion Skye Carter and Miya Turnbull (presenting Omote (面), and a workshop on Origami & Movement).The VIDF runs March 5 – 15, 2025, at various Vancouver venues, with OFFSITE programming from March 2 – 22, too.
Two from Morelli
SCA alumnus Didier Morelli has two texts – one on Stephen Schofield and a review of the exhibition Tidelines at Montreal's Fofa Gallery – in the latest issue of Esse arts + opinions on the theme of Plastics. More HERE.
Dances for a Small Stage: Late Night
Read Stir Vancouver on the upcoming Dances for a Small Stage: Late Night shows on February 4 & 5, 2025, at 9:00 PM at Please! Beverage Co. (222 W 5th Ave, Vancouver), featuring current SCA Sessional Instructor Nicole Rose Bond and SCA alumnus Cori Caulfield. Read it HERE.
Santi's Love and Country County Fair 2
SCA alumnus Santi Henderson has organized Santi's Love and Country County Fair 2, a packed multi-day event, including a performance by his group Santi and the Hanky Tanks, running February 13 – 15, 2025, nightly at 7:00 PM, at the The Russian Hall (600 Campbell Ave., Vancouver). More HERE.
Sum in SongBird North
SCA alumnus Amanda Sum is participating in SongBird North, a "bi-monthly showcase, hosted and produced by Shari Ulrich," on Tuesday, February 11, 2025, at 7:30 PM (doors at 7:00 PM) at the Roundhouse Community Arts & Recreation Centre (181 Roundhouse Mews, Vancouver), co-presented by the Roundhouse and Songwriters Association of Canada. More HERE.
Sparvier-Wells in print
SCA alumnus Virginia Jessica Sparvier-Wells shared a quick video on her Instagram introducing two new publications about Indigenous composers that she's included in, the Winter 2025 issue of Piano Magazine and Weaving Sounds: Elementary Piano Pieces by Native and Indigenous Composers. Watch it HERE.
New Year Is Here
Read Pancouver on New Year is Here, a new song to celebrate Luna New Year on January 29, 2025, co-written by and featuring SCA student Van Lefan. Read it HERE.
Yake's Listening in Relation
SCA alumnus Toni-Leah C. Yake is presenting Listening in Relation, a free workshop on Thursday, February 6, 2025, from 4:00 PM – 6:30 PM at Emily Carr University of Art + Design (520 E. 1st Ave., Vancouver), co-presented by The Only Animal, which has SCA alumnus Barbara Adler as Artistic Director, and Emily Carr. More HERE.
PuSh 2025
Running January 23 – February 9, 2025, there are many SCA folks in the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival, who are celebrating their 20th Anniversary, including: A Wake of Vultures (SCA alumni Nancy Tam, Conor Wylie, and Dan O’Shea), who are presenting SEEING DOUBLE: K BODY AND MIND and Walking at Night by Myself, which also includes SCA alumni Mahaila Patterson-O’Brien, Angela Magpantay, Giselle Liu, and Charlie Cooper in different capacities; SCA alumnus Fay Nass, who's the Artistic Director of the frank theatre company, is curating Club PuSh; Chimerik 似不像 (SCA alumni Caroline MacCaull and Sammy Chien) are presenting Inner Sublimity, with SCA alumni Jonathan Kim as Lighting Designer; rice & beans theatre (which has SCA alumni Pedro Chamale as Artistic Director and Angela Magpantay as Interim Artistic Director) and Boca del Lupo are presenting Lasa Ng Imperyo (A Taste of Empire); and SCA alumnus David Mesiha is the co-creator, co-director, and composer and sound designer for Theatre Conspiracy's SWIM, which has SCA student Jillian Jarin as Assistant Stage Manager. Also, SCA alumni Cori Caulfield and current Sessional Instructor Nicole Rose Bond is part of Dances for a Small Stage, the SCA's Erika Latta and SCA alumnus Johnny Wu are on the Board of Directors, and SCA alumnus Brian Postalian is PuSh's Industry Producer. Find out more and grab tickets and passes HERE.
HOLD ON LET GO 2025
Don't miss Theatre Replacement and Company 605’s annual performing-arts festival, HOLD ON LET GO, co-curated by Lisa Mariko Gelley, Josh Martin, and SCA alumnus Maiko Yamamoto, running February 4 – 8, 2025, at the Russian Hall (600 Campbell Ave., Vancouver). HOLD ON LET GO includes SCA alumnus Keely O'Brien's Secret Ingredients as a Main Stage presentation, an In Development presentation of SCA alumnus Anjela Magpantay's it is for when you meet me, SCA alumnus Amanda Sum as curator of the Emerging Artist Series (featuring an Artist Talk, Emergence: Navigating the New, with SCA alumnus Davey Samuel Calderon, and a Panel, Devising Practice: How we make what we do, with O’Brien and Magpantay), a series of Festival Gatherings (including a Accelerator Lab Community Conversation with Kyle Loven, SCA alumnus Aryo Khakpour, Calderon, and O’Brien, SCA alumnus Starr Muranko in conversation with members of Dancers of Damelahamid, and a special screening of Looping, a Company 605 Film Directed by Khakpour), and much more. More HERE.