101 things we love about Winnipeg’s entertainment scene
So quit complaining there’s nothing to do
By Lindsey Ward
The Winnipeg Sun - March 4, 2007
WINNIPEG FOLK FEST
1. Winnipeg Folk Festival: It’s too hot, the men wear skirts, and there’s a 90% chance you’ll be rained on. But thanks to an always-eclectic lineup of performers — plus a ’60s-inspired vibe of peace and love — there’s no better place to turn on, tune in, or drop out.
2. Socials: Beer, kielbasa and a DJ. ’Nuff said.
3. Adam Beach: So what if Oscar snubbed him this year? A new stint on Law & Order: SVU should give us ample opportunity to check out his 100-watt grin.
4. Burton Cummings: He’s responsible for some of the most kick-ass anthems in the pantheon of classic rock. Also, the most kick-ass ’tache. Just ask your mom.
5. Randy Bachman: The yin to Burton Cummings’ yang, this Guess Who veteran will always have a special place in our hearts — if only for immortalizing Winnipeg with the lyric “Portage and Main, 50 below!”
6. MTS Centre: And all the big-name acts who come to play there. (Van Morrison, Eric Clapton, Christina Aguilera and Meat Loaf, and that’s just the lineup for March).
7. Falcon Beach: Thanks to Original Pictures’ TV soap, everyone can see our gorgeous Lake Winnipeg.
8. Winnipeg Fringe Festival: Top-notch theatre, hot dog vendors galore and enough profuse sweating (See No. 52) to help us shed a few pounds in the venue-hopping process.
9. Guy Maddin: Who else could reimagine Winnipeg as a snowy, black-and-white dreamscape, replete with top-loading streetcars and gals with beer steins for legs?
10. Royal Winnipeg Ballet: Artistry, athleticism and audience-pleasing creations.
11. The Exchange District: A smorgasbord of entertainment options, and a frequent setting for big-name movie shoots.
12. Frantic Films: Hollywood’s go-to gang for big-screen special effects, even for out-of-this-world blockbusters like Poseidon and Superman Returns.
13. Chantal Kreviazuk: Singing, songwriting, saving the world, switching hair colours in TV ads — it’s all in a day’s work for this former Charleswood gal.
14. Folklorama: Two weeks of multi-culti fun without the bank-breaking plane ticket. Among many other pavilions, you’re bound to find us at No. 85.
15. Cinematheque: Horror movies and rom-coms are all fine and good, but if you really want to impress your date, why not show ’em you’re down with subtitles?
16. Manitoba Theatre Centre: They scored a monster hit with the sleazily spectacular Rocky Horror Show. Now we’re all shivering with antici...pation to see what they come up with next season.
17. The Weakerthans’ John K. Samson: One of the best songwriters of his generation, and arguably the city’s finest lyricist since Neil Young.
18. Burton Cummings Theatre: After 100 years, it’s still the venue-of-choice for performers who like to see who they’re playing to. They don’t call it the Palace of the Prairies for nothing.
19. Ron Paley: A perennial New Year’s Eve big-band leader and combo jazzman, Paley rocked our world with his arrangements of Blue Moon and other standards for the RWB’s A Cinderella Story.
20. Actors acting: Chris Sigurdson, Alison Vargo, Gordon Tanner, Miriam Smith, Kevin Klassen, Ross McMillan, Arne MacPherson and all the other local talents who contribute to the vibrant local theatre scene.
21. Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra: A classical gas, with contemporary savvy — today’s Sunday Symphony features Leonard Bernstein, Dvorak and post-concert shmoozing on the mezzanine.
22. Rainbow Stage: Moonlight, musicals and mosquitoes — not to mention parking lot madness. Indoor theatres are so overrated.
23. The Red River Ex: Cotton candy, corn dogs, and carnies; you claim you’re “not gonna go this year,” but you’re lying.
24. Playwrights who can make us laugh and cry our heads off at the same time: Maureen Hunter (Vinci), Sharon Bajer (Molly’s Veil), Deb Patterson (Head).
25. Buffalo Gal Pictures: This local production house has as slew of TV and movie credits, including Gary Yates’ Seven Times Lucky, Guy Maddin’s The Saddest Music In the World, and the upcoming adaptation of Margaret Laurence’s The Stone Angel.
26. McNally Robinson Booksellers: A cozy locally owned and operated destination for discriminating bookworms. Did we mention it’s locally owned?
27. Crumbs Improv: With their zany improvised antics and flair for freestyle hilarity, it’s easy to see why Crumbs (aka Stephen Sim and Lee White) are the toast of the town.
28. Winnipeg’s Contemporary Dancers: We don’t know what they’re doing but it sure looks cool.
29. Manitoba Opera: Jealousy, madness, murder — no wonder opera is all the rage.
30. Doc Walker: Mamas, don’t let your babies grow up to be cowboys. But by all means, let ’em start up rootin’-tootin’ country-rock combos.
31. Fireworks at The Forks: New Year’s and Canada Day are great, but an event shared by so many ’Peggers oughta bring us together monthly.
32. The RWB’s Tara Birtwhistle, CindyMarie Small, Vanessa Lawson: These ballsy ballerinas are hot — see ’em in flirty mode in The Magic Flute in March.
33. CKY weather goddess Sylvia Kuzyk: If we ever face nuclear winter, you just know Sylvia will see the bright side.
34. Whodunit mystery bookstore owners Henrietta Wilde and Gaylene Chestnut and their poison-pen pals — like Karen Dudley — author of murder-most-fowl novels Hoot to Kill and Ptarmaggedon —and Catherine Hunter (The Dead of Midnight).
35. You will always run into someone you know at a club — whether you know them intimately or somebody you once hung out with knows a friend of somebody who new them from a party a while back.
36. Festival du Voyageur: Proof you can still have fun in the sun when you’re frozen from the nose down.
37. Propagandhi: This band of vegan anarcho-punks garnered global recognition when they launched the DIY record label G7 Welcoming Committee.
38. Bif Naked: Our hottest riot grrrl export, complete with a whack of radio hits and more tattoos than a Suicide Girl. Plus, she could totally kick your heinie.
39. Director Sean Garrity: For bringing us locally shot mind bogglers like Lucid and Inertia.
40. The Perpetrators: They call it “blues for people who hate the blues,” a kitchen-sink mix of punk, rock, roots and even country. We just call it awesome.
41. The Pyramid: Thrill to some of the edgiest new punk, rock, or electro-acts on the scene, then bore all your friends with talk of how you saw them all “before they got big.”
42. Shakespeare In the Ruins: Not a fan? You will be after seeing SIR have its way with the Bard’s work, whether it’s in a ruined monastery, a parking garage, or SIR’s new home at the Assiniboine Park Conservatory.
43. Christine Fellows: Purveyor of moody, atmospheric piano pop, with a flair for incorporating visual artists into her shows. And if that’s not enough, she’s married to No. 17.
44. The Zoo: You won’t find any animals at this heavy metal haunt, aside from grizzly biker-types and the occasional randy cougar.
45. Assiniboine Park Zoo: Where the real animals come out to play. Unless it’s -40 C, in which case, who can blame ’em?
46. Comic Billy Jaye on Freq 107: The only local radio jock with a NYC accent.
47. David Bergen: This author of The Time In Between and other works is one of the best novelists in the country, and he’s got the Giller Prize to prove it.
48. Prairie Theatre Exchange: The intimate setting is ideal for ironing kinks out of this season’s dysfunctional relationships. Next up, infidelity drama Honour makes for an unsettling date night.
49. Into the Music and Music Trader: No condescending record store snobs here, just friendly music-lovers who’ll be happy to help you find albums the mall stores refuse to stock.
50. Carlos and Murphy’s: Frosty pints, spicy wings and the city’s best nachos — all within stumbling distance of a buttload of live music venues.
51. Winnipeg Wine Festival: For classy connoisseurs — or as we like to call them, winos.
52. Fringe Festival flyers — we’re fans, especially in venues without air conditioning.
53. Campus radio stations: The Pussycat Dolls tend to fill us with a murderous rage, so we’ve got UMFM, CKUW, and KICK to thank for keeping us on the straight and narrow.
54. Summer strolls and late-night cocktails on Corydon Avenue: Whether you’re out to see or be seen, there’s no denying the fact Little Italy comes alive in a way the downtown only wishes it could.
55. Out of the Blue, Para Mix and Hush in Osborne Village: Where you’ll find the perfect little outfit for those summer strolls and late-night cocktails on Corydon (see above).
56. Gospel rapper Fresh I.E.: He’s got two Grammy nominations, a handful of Juno nods and a whole lotta heart.
57. Bartenders at the King’s Head Pub: Authentic, super cool, welcoming — just like our brew.
58. Manitoba Museum: It hasn’t changed much since our last class field trip, and we like it that way.
59. Locally made YouTube vids: The creative cybergeek’s cure for winter boredom. Note to the creator of the Dancin’ Gabe montage: You rock.
60. The über-swank Winnipeg Art Gallery: Jazz on the rooftop, art for lunch and the masters, in one locale.
61. West End Cultural Centre: It’s already the city’s most intimate performance space, so needless to say, we can’t wait for Version 2.0.
62. Dean Gunnarson: Those Prison Break dudes could learn a thing or two from Winnipeg’s fave escape artist, last seen emerging from a cement-covered Plexiglas tomb.
63. Miriam Toews: A sad coming-of-age tale (A Complicated Kindness) made for a happy memory when this Steinbach-born wordsmith picked up the coveted Governor General’s Award in ’04.
64. Ballet in the Park: Fresh air, fresh fare — and the RWB School’s annual gift to Winnipeggers is free as a bluebird.
65. Rumor’s Comedy Club: A whole lotta yuks for just a coupla’ bucks. See No. 97.
66. Buskers. (Well, except mimes.)
67. Nü-grass quintet The Duhks: Winnipeg’s newest Grammy nominees (also Juno-nominees, Folk Alliance Award-nominees, etc., etc.)
68. Nia Vardalos: Facing casting roadblocks, she wrote her own ticket — and hit a Big Fat Greek jackpot. In league with Len Cariou, Deanna Durbin, Brendan Fehr, Donnelly Rhodes, Monty Hall, Jeremy Kushnier and other local exports to Broadway and Hollywood.
69. The perma-packed dance floor at Tijuana Yacht Club: Consider yourself lucky if you make it back to your seat without injury.
70. DJs Co-op & Hunnicutt: These joined-at-the-hip turntable heroes have turned party-throwing into an artform.
71. Power 97 DJ’s Wheeler & Hal: For those about to raunch, we salute you.
72. Oscar-worthy animators Richard Condie (The Big Snit) and Cordell Barker (The Cat Came Back, Strange Invaders).
73. Academy Road shopping trips.
74. Totally trippy shows under the stars at the Planetarium.
75. The Gilbert & Sullivan Society for lighthearted operettas — like The Pirates of Penzance; Dry Cold Productions for dark-hearted musicals like Assassins.
76. Earl’s on Main: Not just for pre-gaming anymore. Also not for anyone who doesn’t look like a European supermodel, apparently.
77. Fashion designer Roy Liang: Who else could make Smurf emblazoned T-shirts cool again?
78. Inward Eye: They’re barely out of their teens, but these three brothers have already burned up the local rock scene with their brand of brash, garage-inspired mod-rock.
79. Red River Book Shop: Where one ’Pegger’s literary trash becomes another’s treasure.
80. G Martini Bar on River: A perfectly trendy setting for girlie, Sex and the City-esque gatherings.
81. The roomy, reclining seats at Grant Park Cinema.
82. People who still insist on calling the Burton Cummings Theatre “The Walker.”
83. Howard Mandshein on 92 CITI FM: We dig his encyclopedic knowledge of rock history, and the passion he musters up for even the so-so tracks. But in the end, it’s the voice. Or as Howard would say, “The Voo-i-sssse.”
84. Johnny G and Papa George: The only dudes we’ll be hooking up with after the bar closes.
85. The Greek pavilion at Folklorama: Where all the best-looking people hang.
86. Dancing hippies: Find ’em at No. 1.
87. Movie Village: You won’t find an entire wall devoted to the newest Adam Sandler crapfest. But you will find black-and-white art-house faves, drive-in horror flicks, and all the so-called “cult classics” you can shake a stick at.
88. Beer vendors: Especially the ones that stay open crazy-late for those emergency, post-bar suds runs. Osborne Village Motor Hotel, we’re looking at you.
89. The train at the Manitoba Children’s Museum. Choo-choo-charming.
90. Dominion News: Your best bet for obscure mags, foreign newspapers and plain-brown-wrapper naughty bits.
91. Glow-bowling: A psychedelic last resort for when it’s crazy freakin’ cold outside.
92. The Empire Cabaret’s basement lounge: A soothing, chill-out vibe for late-night mingling, away from the bump-and-grind of the dance floor.
93. The aquarium at Club Regent Casino: Who needs to gamble when they’ve got eels?
94. Ragpickers Antifashion Emporium: Where you’re guaranteed to find an outfit that’s truly one-of-a-kind.
95. Favourite watering holes: Every neighbourhood has one.
96. Times Change(d) High & Lonesome Club: Especially when we get there early enough to actually snag a chair, or stay late enough to toss the rubber chicken.
97. Making fun of the caricatures on the walls at the aforementioned Rumor’s: We’re particularly fond of the oddly coifed Emo Philips.
98. The kilt-clad servers at Dylan O’Connor’s and Shannon’s Irish Pub: Best. Uniforms. Ever.
99. The Albert: Despite what you may have heard, you will not be stabbed, spit upon, or sucker-punched just for setting foot in the city’s seediest venue. But you will be rocked. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.
100. Ace Burpee: Yeah, most of his jokes are so lame even your grandpa is groaning. But between the club appearances, the charity emcee duties, and that Bar-B-Q/peanut butter hybrid, Ace is one of Winnipeg’s most tireless ambassadors, not to mention its biggest cheerleader.
101. Neil Young. You didn’t think we’d make it through an entire Top-101 list without mentioning Winnipeg’s favourite son, did ya? Now if only we could get him to grace us with his presence a little more often.
101 things we love about Winnipeg’s entertainment scene
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