Archive for March, 2010
Posted under alteration & photography
A month ago Jiahui and I did a photographic experiment involving double exposure. Since we quite enjoyed it on our first try, we decided to give it a second go. Last time we used our two different climates as our theme, but this time we chose to experiment with food. I recently went to the sugar shack and captured many succulent dishes. I used those pics and Jiahui shared some meals with a more Asian flair. Like last time, I will post my five experiments here and you can go see Jiahui’s results on her site.
Posted under photography & reviews
In Quebec, we have a sort of springtime tradition involving eating too much food covered in maple syrup. We are in the ideal region for the syrup goodness, so it is something many of us try to do at least once every season. There are many traditional sugar shacks across Quebec, but this weekend I tried out the most extravagant shack I have ever seen. It is called La Cabane a Sucre au Pied de Cochon (Pig’s Feet Sugar Shack) and it is a spin off of a very fancy restaurant in Montreal. The price of one ticket is just shy of 50$, and you have to reserve several months in advance, but it is totally worth it. We ate so much that we had to be rolled out at the end. I doubt any of us will forget the experience.
I took pictures of the whole thing, but I must warn you, your arteries may clog just by viewing them. View at your risk.
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Posted under awesome & juggling & video
Montreal is well known by circus affectionados. Although primarily dominated by the Cirque du Soleil, one venue that I keep going back to in the Tohu. It offers some incredible circus performances in a small intimate setting. I have mentioned several shows I have seen there, but last night I saw one of the best shows ever. It is called PSY and is the newest show from the troupe Les 7 Doigts de la Main. I had seen their previous show La Vie and loved it, so there was no way I was missing this one.
PSY in French is short for psychiatrist. The show’s stars are all suffering from a different psychological issue. Whether it is insomnia, schizophrenia, agoraphobia, dependency or anger issues, they are all there waiting to see their psychiatrist. Some parts of the show are from when they have to interact with each other and others are by their flashbacks. Two of my favourite scenes involved the same guy. In one, he remembered his 8th birthday and everybody appeared as it did so long ago. They were about to play “Pin the Tail on the Donkey”, but instead of a normal knife, they had juggling knives. One actress started club spinning with the juggling knives. There is something hot about women spinning knives and acting psychotic… or maybe I’m just insane as well. The other scene with the guy involved juggling and a cane. It was a scene outside and people would keep passing by where their object was a juggling pin instead of the actual object. A homeless man had a pin inside a paper bag (bottle), one couple were nursing a pin (baby), a dog had a pin in his mouth (stick), etc. He would grab these object and start juggling or balancing them with his cane. It was quite fun to watch. Part of what made this show so enjoyable was the mesh between acting and circus. There was a story being told and the circus elements blended in with the rest. Everybody has their own skill and it was all fleshed out depending on their addiction.
The music was also great. Most of it was a sort of techno/old school recordings and it sometimes felt like I was at a DJ Shadow or Kid Koala concert. The acts all worked in sync with the music playing, and in case I never mentioned before, I LOVE that. I could go on and on about the show, but it just won’t do it justice. It is the type of show you need to see to properly enjoy, but hopefully this video will give you a glimpse of what it is like.
Tonight was the last night it played at the Tohu, but if ever it comes in a venue near you, you really should check it out.