This Week In Art/Culture/Entertainment
By John Swartz
The annual Waterfront Festival is happening at the Port of Orillia and Centennial Park this weekend.
Aside from the vendors, more than one hundred, including food, there will be inflatables for kids to play on ($15 to play all day), there will be a couple of events to see and live music to enjoy in the afternoons and evenings.
The annual Cardboard Boat Race happens Sunday at noon. If you missed it last year, it does not happen in the basin next to the Port building, it’ s been moved to the small beach next to the government dock.
The Dock Diving Dogs event happens at noon on Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday. You need to register your mutt; for Saturday’s event do so here and Sunday’s here.
Farrucas will play music each day from noon to 5 p.m. Pat James and the Whole Truth plays Friday at 9 p.m.; The Sandra Good Band Saturday at 9 p.m. and Signature 11 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday.
Also at the waterfront, The Aqua Theatre roster this weekend has Monet & Christian, and Daniel Greaves playing starting at 6:30 p.m., Friday; Movies In The Park has Wayne’s World Aug. 9 at dusk (free, collecting donations of food or cash for the Sharing Place); and the Newmarket Citizens Band plays the Sunday evening band concert at 6:30 p.m.
The High Road
The Orillia Museum of Art and History opened a new exhibit in the main floor gallery this week. Yours To Uncover: An Ontario Road Trip features the work of Peter Fyfe and John Notten.
Yours To Uncover: An Ontario Road Trip at OMAH
This exhibit is an installation type of thing and it’s laid out so you follow along from the front of the gallery to the back. The most obvious thing you will see is a highway of sorts that winds its way through the gallery. It’s made of plywood and twists and turns, goes up and down like any road in Oro-Medonte.
There are sculptural pieces by John and Peter, and some paintings by Peter. The exhibit stems from an idea that the old Ontario – Yours to Discover ad campaign of the early 80s didn’t have any cars in them, or many of the modern things of life in Ontario and focused mainly on places away from civilization or of our past.
There are lots of cars in this show, Matchbox cars, many of them station wagons. The path you follow takes you by sculptures often relating to cottage life. It’s something quite different for the museum and you should stop by to see it. You have until October 18.
Also at OMAH see a permanent exhibit of their acquisitions of items from Gordon Lightfoot’s estate, Gordon Lightfoot: Turning Back The Pages, in the small gallery on the main floor; an exhibit on the second floor of photos taken over the years at the Mariposa Folk Festival by Edwin Gailits (1970s era) and, Deb Halbot called Voices Through Time: A Mariposa Journey; and Orillia: Then And Now a collection of historical photos of Orillia landmarks and buildings contrasted with recent photos of the same by Samantha Vessios.
OMAH has their summer walking tour, Gangs, Guns, and Grog happening every Wednesday evening. You can register to take part here; the submission period for the annual Carmichael Landscape Show – Tradition Transformed is open until August 22. You can get details here. Now is the best time to get tickets for OMAH’s Music For The Museum event, November 1; Jacquie Dancyger Arnold, Hugh Coleman, Ross Arnold, Blair Bailey, Laura Kelly, and Gail Spencer are performing.
While we on the topic of art, Cloud Gallery has the Great Big Summer Show, a collection of new works from gallery members, on all month… Hibernation Arts has new work by Peter Fyfe featured and new work by other gallery members up in August (this is the last month for Hibernation Arts, Molly is retiring and closing the gallery at the end of the month)… Peter Street Fine Arts has art by Patricia Roser featured this month… Starry Night is Aug. 23
The Shorts
- The City of Orillia is going to try out an art project many other communities have done, paint utility boxes. In this case three traffic control boxes have been selected for treatment – Colborne Street at West Street; Coldwater Road at Patrick Street; and University Avenue at the Costco entrance. Selected artists will get $500 for their effort. You can find out submission (by Aug. 12) details here.
- The 25th annual Rotary Classic Car Show is Aug. 16 all day downtown. Crusin’ will be playing the patio at Brewery Bay Food Company.
- Hxmesweethxme has The Straight Goods and Grace 2 playing at ODAS Park Saturday Aug. 23. Tickets are $35 online. All Proceeds go to Jake Beers Scholarship and Orillia Youth Centre creative programs.
- The Orillia Youth Centre has a few fundraising concerts happening in the fall. The Sadies with special guest Terra Lightfoot are lined up for Sept. 20 at St. Paul’s Centre; Kevin Seconds, Lenny Lashley’s Gang Of One, and Nixon Boyd play Oct. 10 at Creative Nomad, and Oct. 11 at the youth center; and Danny Michel with special guest Roger Harvey play at the youth center October22. Get tickets online.
- The Mariposa Folk Festival has their fall Mariposa-in-Concert event happening November 29 at St. Paul’s Centre with Aysanabee. He performed at the 2022 festival and is the first Native musician to win Juno Awards for Alternative Album of the Year and Songwriter of the Year. You can get tickets online right now.
- Moonstone’s Nick Bellingshausen has his song, Overtime, selected by Amazon Music featured in their new series of new Canadian talent called, Northern Echoes.
- Quayle’s Brewery has Jakob Pearce playing Aug. 9; Giants Tomb Aug. 10; Darcy Windover Aug. 11; Erin Blackstock Aug. 14; and Sydney Riley Aug. 15… the Hog ‘N Penny has an afternoon jam session every Sunday with Sean Patrick and others… The noon hour recital at St. James’ Anglican Church (every Wednesday) is with John and Susan Smith on harp and clarinet this coming week (bring your lunch)… Jamie Drake and the Thunderstealers play the legion Aug. 9… Tina Turley & New Boots play the ANAF Club Saturday, Aug. 9.
(Photos by Swartz – SUNonline/Orillia) Main: Orillia. The carnage that is the annual Cardboard Boat Race.
