FACE | TIME with Anita Lebeau

Winnipeg filmmaker Anita Lebeau has worked in multiple movie media, but FACE | TIME, presented by MAWA and Cinematheque, will focus on her animated films. This free event will include screenings of Lebeau’s films Louise and Big Drive, an artist talk and Q&A moderated by local artist Diana Thorneycroft and a sneak preview of her current work-in-progress animated film for the NFB. The event runs 7 to 9 p.m. at Cinematheque on March 27.

Labour Protest Songs at the library

Winnipeg Folk Festival founder and Home Routes co-founder Mitch Podolak is an expert on the history of folk music and its connections to labour movements. On March 27 at noon at the Millennium Library, he will host a drop-in discussion on the history of labour protest songs as part of a lecture series held in conjunction with the 100th anniversary of the Winnipeg General Strike. The event is free. Participants may be inspired to write a song protesting the Millennium Library’s new security measures.

Winnipeg Comedy Showcase’s 5th anniversary

The regular Winnipeg Comedy Showcases hosted by Jared Story at the Park Theatre have become an important keystone in the local comedy scene’s resurgence in recent years. March 22 will celebrate five years of great Winnipeg standup with a lineup featuring Ben Walker, Angie St. Mars, Benji Rothman, Andy Noble, Tyler Penner and Dana Smith. Doors are at 8 p.m., and the show begins at 9. Tickets are $10 in advance or $15 at the door and available at myparktheatre.com.

Shakespeare + Phantom of the Paradise = true Winnipeg weirdness

Shakespeare in the Ruins (SIR) has performed the Immortal Bard’s classic works for more than 25 years. Phantom of the Paradise is Brian De Palma’s 1974 pre-Rocky Horror rock opera horror comedy that was a commercial flop everywhere except Winnipeg, where it was a massive hit. As a fundraiser for SIR, the West End Cultural Centre will present Phantom of the Undiscovered Country, the “unofficial Shakespearean parody” of De Palma’s film. Does that sound impossibly weird? Yes. Could it happen anywhere other than Winnipeg? Absolutely not. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. on March 27. Tickets are $25.

International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

March 21 is the annual Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, commemorating the 1960 Sharpeville massacre in which white South African police shot and killed 69 people protesting discrimination. Manitobans for Human Rights Inc. will host a panel discussion on combating racism in Canada, moderated by CBC Radio’s Rosanna Deerchild, featuring speakers Theodore Fontaine (Stolen Lives, Broken Circle), Judy Klassen (MLA for Kewatinook) and Nafiya Naso (Yazidi Community of Manitoba). The event runs 6 to 9 p.m. on March. 21 at Westminster Housing Co-op (145 Maryland St.). Adult admission is $5, and youth get in free.

Published in Volume 73, Number 22 of The Uniter (March 21, 2019)