Join us for these events at this year’s Heart of the City Festival!

It’s that time of year again! Back for their 16th year, Heart of the City Festival will fill the Downtown Eastside with song, drama, visual art, film, workshops, and so much more. With over 100 events at over 40 venues throughout the Downtown Eastside, the 12 days between Wednesday, October 30 and Sunday, November 10 are sure to inspire and delight you. Many of these events are free or by suggested donation.

The theme of this year’s festival is “Holding the Light”, which “emerged from the compelling need of DTES-involved artists and residents to illuminate the vitality and relevance of the Downtown Eastside community and its diverse and rich traditions, knowledge systems, ancestral languages, cultural roots and stories.” 

Given that our mandate is to support public programming in the areas of arts, culture and community; social and environmental justice; and urban issues through different means and partnerships, SFU’s Vancity Office of Community Engagement is thrilled to partner with Heart of the City Festival on three free events, all of which will take place at SFU Goldcorp Centre for the Arts (149 W. Hasting Street). Take a read through and be sure to join us!

WARRIOR ETHOS: DRUMMING NARRATIVES OF INTERCULTURALITY (PERFORMANCE)

Thursday, October 31 | 12:30-1:30 PM | Frances & Samuel Belzberg Atrium (ground floor)

Kage is a Japanese-Canadian taiko artist. Marshall Trammell is an African-American music research strategist and percussionist. Together, they will explore emergent, collaborative narratives in sound utilizing the unique acoustics of inner architecture of the performance space and our individual approaches to new and ancient instruments.

Take a listen to the performance:

THE SPIRIT HAS NO COLOUR (SCREENING AND PANEL)

Friday, November 1 | 1:00-3:00 PM | Djavad Mowafaghian World Art Centre (2nd floor)

The Spirit Has No Colour was a project initiated by Norma-Jean McLaren, who taught at UBC’s School of Community and Regional Planning. Directed by Nicholas Kendall and Keet Neville, the aim of this film is to train BC’s municipal police recruits on the relationship between police and Aboriginal peoples. A panel discussion around the film will follow the screening.

Take a listen to the panel that followed the screening of The Spirit Has No Colour with Nathan Edelson, Rick Lavallee and Jerry Adams:

RECOLLECT: A WORK IN PROGRESS (PERFORMANCE)

Sunday, November 3 | 4:00-5:00 PM | Djavad Mowafaghian World Art Centre (2nd floor)

The Carnegie Dance Troupe presents work that will contribute to the group’s next production Recollect (working title). Since 2006 the principle supporting the Carnegie Dance Troupe is absolute inclusivity. Performances are created through processes of collaboration, seeking to connect us to our body, to our breath, to the energy of the earth, to each other and to our diverse communities. The Carnegie Dance Troupe is part of Karen Jamieson Dance, and partners with the Carnegie Community Centre and SFU’s Vancity Office of Community Engagement.