Radio Newscast: October 4, 2011

On that day, I was a newscaster. Radio Newscast OCT 4 by lboucicaut

The Future of BIXI?

This is a radio piece on the future of BIXI in Montreal.

  Bixi in Montreal by lboucicaut

Repercussion's Macbeth is a ‘play' on modernity

Here is an article I wrote on Repercussion Theatre's performance of Macbeth for The Westmount Examiner. Unfortunately, the Westmount Examiner has since closed down, therefore I'm pasting my story directly here.

August 3, 2011

Nestled in the crook of manicured Westmount Park hedges, stood a black and chrome two-tiered stage. A cool breeze greeted people of all ages as they lounged on blankets and camping chairs. From children to elders, the atmosphere was festive and relaxed. This was the setting for Repercussion Theatre’s production of Shakespeare-in-the-Park’s Macbeth Tuesday night. 

Suddenly the sound of thunder and lightning filled the air and three male witches dressed in colourful lingerie declared Macbeth’s fate. This was our introduction to what would be a modern take on a classic tale of ambition, greed, guilt and revenge. Director Arianna Bardesono approached this story in a way that would emphasize the challenges in today’s societies: recessions, wars, environmental disasters… The ability to fuse an old tale with modern elements demonstrated how relevant and timeless these issues are.

“I like the idea that they’re trying to do something modern and that they’re bringing in the ideas of the stock market and the environment,” said Robert Newton, an avid Shakespeare-in-the-Park spectator. He’s been attending Repercussion Theatre productions for nearly 20 years. “They’re kind of mixing those ideas of what goes wrong in the kingdom, goes wrong if the king is not governing properly. I thought that was an interesting take on things.”

Repercussion Theatre has been bringing classical theatre to Montreal audiences for 23 years. The cast and crew took on their roles with the professionalism and passion the theatre has built its reputation on. Notable mentions go out to the stunning performances by Anana Rydvald (Lady Macbeth), Karl Graboshas (Banquo), Tim Hine (Duncan) and Paul Hopkins (Macbeth).

In addition to playing the lead role, Paul Hopkins is also the theatre’s artistic director. The choice to present a tragedy to the Montreal public was a good decision, he thought. “We haven’t done a serious tragedy like this since 1998,” he said.  “It’s a little bit risky. But I think the audience seems rapt. They seem to be hanging on to each word and I think they really appreciate the different tone.”

With television, stock market and cell phone sound bites, this interpretation of Shakespeare’s classic tale has taken on a corporate feel that many audience members appreciated.

Jean Cadrin is a first-time Shakespeare-in-the-Park goer. He enjoyed the modern twist. “The choice was interesting, with regards to present-day society,” he said.   “We can interpret it in the way we want and I think that’s a good thing.”  He highly recommended the play. “It’s a great night, a great initiative to have Shakespeare-in-the-Park in Montreal parks.”

Repercussion Theatre’s production of Macbeth will be on tour until August 21 throughout the greater Montreal area. The tour ends here in Westmount Park with back-to-back shows on August 20 and 21. For more information, visit their website at www.repercussiontheatre.com.

CIBC 401 Bike Challenge

Here is an article I wrote for The Westmount Examiner on the CIBC 401 Bike Challenge. Participants biked from Toronto to Montreal in 3 days to raise money for children with cancer. Unfortunately, the Westmount Examiner has since closed down, so I'm posting the story here.

August 10, 2011

The CIBC 401 3-day Bike Challenge begins Wednesday where 26 cyclists will ride from Toronto to Montreal to raise money for children battling cancer at the Montreal Children’s Hospital as well as Toronto’s Sick Kids Hospital.

Gerald Wiviott is one of the many intrepid riders to take on this year’s bike challenge. A 70-year-old psychiatrist from the Allan Memorial Institute, Wiviott embarks on his second year of the ride and looks forward to this experience with renewed fervour.

“Last year, I signed up for the 401 because I thought of it as a cycling challenge,” he said.  “After doing so, I met somebody I work with and discovered that her daughter was in fact treated on Sarah’s ward. This year when I signed up to do the ride again, it was to a large extent to continue being an active supporter of that project.”

The CIBC 401 Bike Challenge began in 2005 when CIBC Wood Gundy Investment Advisor and Vice-President Gene Piccoli decided to give back to the community after his wife had successfully battled cancer. Since then, the number of cyclists, as well as the number of donations, has steadily risen. To date, the Bike Challenge has raised over $230,000 for the Sarah Cook Fund, an organisation created to help children with cancer have a better living experience while at the Montreal Children’s Hospital.

Geoff Farnsworth is the bike challenge events coordinator. He has been involved with this project for over four years.

“There are so many rides now and they’re all kind of representative of the challenge that people face,” he said. “Ninety-four percent of our proceeds go to the patients. While some of the other rides take on management companies, we are grass roots. We understand that people’s money is hard earned and if they donate a hundred bucks, we want 94 of those bucks to go directly to the cause, not 75.”

Wiviott has inspired people with his boundless energy and determination. His age has caused many to sit back and look upon him with wonder. “He is one of the strongest riders we have,” said Farnsworth.  “He’s amazing. There aren’t a lot of people like Gerry.”

Wiviott on the other hand, is humble. “I don’t think of my age until someone mentions it,” he said. “I’m a specimen and I guess that’s good. I don’t mind representing something, whether I’m doing work as a psychotherapist, or whether I’m riding with people who feel it’s inspiring to ride with somebody who’s old,” he chuckled.

This ride is two-fold, according to him. “First, it is a wonderful cause,” he said.  “People can feel that when they’re raising money for this ride, it’s going to help the people we say it’s going to help. Second, it provides a focus for getting in shape. Cycling is such a great exercise for people who are getting older. There is less strain on the joints and if you do it with a certain intensity, then it’s a terrific cardiovascular sport.”

This 576km ride begins on Wednesday in Toronto and ends at the Montreal Children`s Hospital on Friday, August 12, where there will be refreshments by Juicy Lotus, a concert by the band Swerving Buffoon and speeches by CIBC sponsors and riders as well as a word from Sarah Cook, the inspiration for the fund. Everyone is encouraged to participate in the homecoming festivities, which will begin at noon on Friday. For more information on the CIBC 401 Bike Challenge, visit their website at: http://401bikechallenge.info.

Home:Immigrants

This is a radio documentary on the meaning of home from the viewpoint of immigrant Tijana Stojkovic.




Home: Immigrants by lboucicaut

Occupy Montreal

Pilgrimage to Montreal – An American Point of View

Imagine walking into a space where circus acts, Minotaurs on stilts and jets of cool water rising right out of the ground are commonplace. Add to that wine and beer stands, piping hot poutine and juicy hotdogs and you’ve got yourself many happy people. Pile on top of that 11 indoor concert venues and five outdoor stages where musical acts infuse the air with trippy drum taps, haunting woodwind instruments and voices that inspire chills and you’ve entered the wonderland that is the Montreal Jazz Festival.

This 10-day festival attracts people from across the globe; from enthusiastic performers to music lovers. This uniquely bilingual city has established itself as the place to be, especially for Americans who make the pilgrimage here.

Connecticut-based Gerald Clark has been coming to the Jazz Festival since 2001. His feelings are clear. “Montreal’s Jazz Festival is head and shoulders above all other jazz concerts. Its breadth and quality is unsurpassed, even when comparing it to Newport, which in the US is usually considered top of the food chain,” he says.

Featuring hundreds of concerts, most of which are free, summer in Montreal is a hub for music lovers everywhere. And though it is called a jazz festival, Walter Bond from New Jersey has a different perspective for the kind of music represented every June in this vibrant city. “To me it’s more of a world festival. A lot of the concerts are by artists from a variety of countries and they tend to exhibit music that’s part of their culture, so there’s plenty of jazz, but there are a lot of other types of music too,” he says.

From Blues to traditional jazz, African and Latin American-inspired tunes to Dixieland, rock to reggae, the Jazz Festival has something to offer every melomaniac out there. Despite the impressive musical line-up represented over the past 32 years, however, it is not only jazz that keeps Americans coming back.

Serena Shulman is a newcomer to Montreal. A New Yorker, she decided to come to Montreal at her friends’ recommendation. “I’m not a real jazz fanatic,” she says.  “I was just listening and appreciating it practically for the first time myself.  The experience of being there: lying in the grass, just listening to jazz, it was nice.”

Her impressions of the festival, however, were eclipsed by her perception of Montreal as a whole. “I would definitely come back,” she says. “People here are so nice. In New York, people are like monsters. They don’t have common courtesy.”

Allison Man, another New Yorker, also felt Montreal’s unique heartbeat. “I think the city is very well organized,” she says.  “It gives tourists a great opportunity to choose what we want to see so it isn’t overwhelming.  They have a nice mix of different types of jazz musicians and it is very in line with what I expected.”

The Montreal Jazz Festival has become a popular destination for Americans. Couple local and international talent with a welcoming and cosmopolitan city and our friends south of the border will keep coming back for more.

Bicycle Paths in Montreal

Bicycle Paths by lboucicaut

Haiti and Soccer

Quidditch and Harry Potter

Welcome to the World of the Healthcare Professional

Quebec’s healthcare system has been criticized in recent news reports, but few people get a chance to hear what service assistants experience on a day-to-day basis and how these issues affect their work.

News outlets in Montreal have been covering the recent explosion in the number of emergency room patients. Many hospitals are dealing with overcrowding at over 100 percent capacity, St. Mary’s Hospital recording the highest level of overcrowding at 187 percent capacity.

Monica, an emergency room nurse’s assistant at St. Mary’s, can see the origin of the problem. "It’s mostly older people living in nursing homes or residences," she says. Many of the residences for the elderly are sending their patients straight to the emergency room for ailments that could easily be taken care of at those facilities. "For every little thing, they send them to the hospital," she says. "We’re overflowed with stuff like that."

Despite the current spike in emergency room occupancy across the island of Montreal, service assistants in all areas of the healthcare system are concerned with other, more long-term issues.

Lou Di Scala is president of the CSN union at Catherine Booth Hospital. He represents service assistants, which include nurses, nurse’s assistants and orderlies. When asked what service assistants were most concerned with, his answer is immediate. "For sure: contracting out," he says. "A lot of agency nurses are paid better than regular nurses, but the problem is that when you have agency nurses who are not familiar with hospital protocols, quality control is diminished."

Not only is there a decrease in the quality of the service, he adds, but agency nurses are placed in hospitals on a short-term basis and are subsequently less invested in their patient care role.

Salary is another issue. Quebec is known to have among the lowest paid healthcare professionals in the country. Despite that, many people take pride in their work and some patients feel it.

Cornelia Brandt gave birth to her two children in hospital. "I had a great experience," she says. "I had an endless army of nurses and nurse’s aides coming in and out of the room to check in on me and my kids. I was very lucky."

Other people have not been so lucky. "A friend of mine was at the same hospital a month later and she had an awful experience," Brandt adds. "Her husband had to go looking for help."

This may be an indication of the severe lack of service assistants available in Quebec’s healthcare system. Healthcare professionals have been dealing with the very real problem of being overworked and understaffed for years and there is little indication this problem will end soon.

Audrey Levesque is a technical assistant at the St. Luc Hospital pharmacy. She is also a patient. Looking at the healthcare system from both sides of the coin, she has many thoughts on Quebec’s healthcare.

"Service assistants are exhausted," she says. "Nurses work for 16 hours at a time and it’s unfortunately a regular occurrence. That’s why so many people fall into depression and burnout. It’s crazy how few people there are in this industry."

Despite the shortage of staff and the stress associated with it, some service assistants still find joy in their work. "Half the time, the appreciation is more towards the nurses than the doctors because we’re the ones who are around the patients 95 percent of the time," she says. It is a labour of love that Monica wouldn’t give up for the world.

Written on July 14, 2011

The Fine Art of Improvisation

B-boy Greg ‘Krypto’ Selinger presented the unique improvisational theatre performance, Body Slam, last week at the Montreal Fringe Festival.

Inspired by contemporary dance pioneers, 27-year-old Selinger explores interactions between dancers and the spoken word.

“I've been working with having things that I want to communicate and stage performance is a great place to work towards getting it out, through movement and verbal language,” he said.  “I wanted to share this opportunity with other dancers.”

As the audience walked into the small, dark, starkly decorated room, dancers were already on stage writhing and twisting like worms in the earth. With no marked beginning to the show, the eclectic audience was forced to let go of convention and enter a world where breakdancers, poets, musicians and contemporary dancers interacted directly with them.

Selinger had started with more structured performances, but decided to forgo that in the last two shows. “I really felt like the structure that we were trying to tack on to the show added some unnecessary stress and prevented us from getting to see what was going on with everybody else,” he said. “I felt like there was an artificial separation between the pieces.”

Some pieces worked better than others. Musical accompaniment included a saxophone, a melodica and an electric guitar, all of which would join in as dancers and poets changed their rhythm. A more complete ‘band’ would have provided a better platform for improvisation, as some of the dancers and poets seemed less cohesive.

Other performers really stood out, showing their love for improvisation through their actions. ‘Krypto’ demonstrated incredible strength and flexibility with his headstands, handstands and lifts. Musician Vincent Stephen-Ong showed wonderful discretion and rhythm as he infused the pieces with his personal style. Slam poet Andre Prefontaine was a sublime addition to the group, doling out freestyle poetry based on words provided by the audience.

The show was indeed an exercise on improvisation, and with a more discerning eye on the right choice of performers and opportune moments for transition between acts, Selinger will have a strong and inspiring concept on his hands. “I would love to keep this project going,” he said.  “I really hope that people from the show, and maybe people from outside the show, want to help get this out there.”

written on June 20, 2011