Kelowna based food preparation and Entertainment Company known as the Dancing Chefs is proud to announce the start of their unique business here in the Okanagan Valley. World known authors Miriam Cunha (Yonisha) a dance instructor and performer, and professional Chef and performer Robert Rohloff, who are Kelowna residents have combined their exceptional talents and have come up with an in-home and office service business that combines, private cooking lessons, dance classes, weekly meal preparation for busy families, professionals, and the elderly. They also offer interactive cooking or dance parties for adults and children, and customized special dinners or intimate and theme parties hosted in the home or office.

Dancing Chefsν goal is to help clients to make their lives easier and enjoyable through their special arts. Their services will help people throughout the Okanagan Valley to obtain nutritious meals and a unique way of keeping fit through participating in dance.

Dancing Chefs has also come up with the distinctive idea to offer packages to Kelowna companies as employee incentives and year-end bonuses for their staff. They think this just might me the way for companies to attract new workers and keep the staff they have in high spirits.

Miriam Cunha is a dance instructor of many styles of dance that include Belly Dance, Salsa, Latin, Brazilian, and Gypsy, and she teaches for the city of Kelowna and at the Okanagan College.

Cunha and Rohloff just lately received the good news that their Belly Dance Anthology book (Stories from Inside the Mirror.) will be carried in the Kelowna library, and they have recently joined with other Brazilian musicians to form a Brazilian Band in Kelowna that you will hear a lot about in the near future.

For further information, contact Miriam or Robert at (250) 448-5523 or email them at info@dancingchefs.com to answer any questions you might have, or visit their websites at http://www.dancingchefs.com and http://www.yonisha.com.

Cunha and Rohloff also just lately received the good news that their Belly Dance Anthology book (Stories from Inside the Mirror.) will be carried in the Kelowna library.  

For further information, contact Miriam or Robert at (250) 448-5523 or email them at info@dancingchefs.com to answer any questions you might have.

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21 Apr 2008

How Green Was My Valley » Thursday 24 April 2008 | 4:30 pm » Hanna's Lounge, 1392 Water Street An informal afternoon hour showcasing the people and ideas featured in Okanagan Home. Join us as artist, analyst and journalist Don Elzer advocates that the Okanagan needs to understand - and make a commitment to- sustainability. » This is a free event. Refreshments will be available at a modest cost. » Seating is limited, please reserve yours HERE Sponsored by the Arts Council of the Central Okanagan, Wood Lake Books, UBCO-FCCS, and in support of Project Literacy Kelowna Insider Examines the Okanagan's Rocky Road to Prosperity From corporate boardrooms to council chambers, backroom talks have paved the road to the Okanagan's growing population and prosperity almost since the outset. Cultural ecologist Don Elzer makes this argument this coming week at the Okanagan Institute at the presentation How Green Was My Valley? The talk takes place Thursday, April 24 at 4:30 p.m. at Hanna's Lounge in Kelowna. "Short-term profiteering has plagued the Okanagan," Elzer says, pointing to the early days when the CPR promoted the southern BC Interior as a rich area filled with ideal fruit-growing potential, when clearly some parts were not arable at all. Today, the conflicting agendas that surface in the Okanagan Valley tend to come in pairs: rural vs. urban, development vs. ecology, private vs. public. According to Elzer,these conflicts reveal the underlying differences in the way individuals perceive the present and the future of the region. One is a na�ve optimism fueled by economic prosperity, the other is grounded in the landscape and a sense of environmental stewardship that he describes as ecological conservatism. "These are philosophical positions that allow individuals to explain and justify their motivations, cultures, interests and moral values." In the process of examining the journey that has brought the valley to the present day, he also advocates that individuals, groups and communities need to understand - and make a commitment to - sustainability. He proposes a roadmap that presents a number of ways that can be achieved, and examines the roadblocks that could stall the process. Don Elzer has been on the inside of the regional decision-making system looking out, and he has also been on the outside looking in. As a journalist and activist, he has observed and been directly involved in valley-wide issues for the past 25 years and presently works as a researcher and policy analyst examining trends related to bubble economies and the impacts they have on people, communities, culture and the environment. He's presently compiling a book Arid Colas, Desert Cities. How Green Was My Valley? is a free event, and takes place at Hanna's Lounge. It's presented by the Okanagan Institute in association with Wheat King Publishing. Express is sponsored by the Arts Council of the Central Okanagan, Wood Lake Books, UBCO Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies, and supports the work of Project Literacy Kelowna. FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO REGISTER ONLINE CLICK HERE Okanagan Insitute at Hanna's Lounge A hearty feast of lectures, presentations, workshops and showcases celebrating our culture and community. Produced by the Okanagan institute in association with Wheat King Publishing magazines: Okanagan Arts and Okanagan Home. Expresss is a cultural tonic that refreshes the mind. Join us at Hanna's Lounge after work on Thursdays for a free hour of stimulation that will get your synapses tingling with new ideas and fresh images. Designed for inquiring minds looking for, among other things, the wild blue yonder.

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20 Apr 2008

If you are an aspiring comic, a professional looking to improve your leadership skills, or an experienced performer looking to get on top of your game, we invite you to explore Improv in a supportive, exciting, and challenging environment. Whether it's your first class or your continuing from our previous Improv class -- Your Life in 8 Easy Lessons -- you're sure to have a great time! Join instructor Mark Reinelt as he takes you on a journey into your own imagination. Through the use of theatre games and other exciting performance formats, we will give you the confidence and skill to take creative risks, build trust with your fellow performers, develop characters, create stories and enhance stage presence. Completely unscripted, audience interaction makes for an action-packed edge of your seat comedy show in the final class.

Adults 17 and Up (Participants must be able to LAUGH) Tuesdays 7pm to 9pm Class Starts Tuesday, May 13 Final Class and Performance Friday, June 27 @ 7pm

For information, or to register, call 250 862 2867 or visit KelownaActorsStudio.com.

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18 Apr 2008

Imagination and Artistic Passion Ignited

Kelowna Actors Studio is pleased to announce their 2008 Kids’ Summer Camp schedule. The curriculum is focused on engaging students artistically and personally while inciting investigation of the world through the creative process of performance.

“Theatre camps have the added benefit of building confidence and self-awareness,” says Randy Leslie, artistic director for Kelowna Actors Studio. “We encourage students to reach their creative potential, while provoking critical and objective thinking.”

One and two week camps in acting, musical theatre, TV & film and improv run all summer, beginning July 2 through August 29. Camps range in age, with something for all ages 6 – 17. Full and half-day camps are offered, with all full day camps also culminating in a stage performance for family and friends.

The season opens with the classic Charlotte’s Web, a TV & Film class for ages 7 – 11, where techniques for stage and screen acting will be explored, and a special visit to CHBC will give students a behind-the-scenes glimpse at how the pros do it.

Next it’s a class FOR ages 6 - 8, a wonderful chance for young ones to explore their imaginations with creative drama, movement, and games. By focusing on fun and their natural sense of play, students will leap into storytelling.

Some of the best movie musicals started on Broadway, or the movies were inventively adapted for the stage. This theme is explored in the two-week musical review camp for ages 10 – 17. Using movies, such as The Producers, Phantom of The Opera and Hairspray as a vehicle for exploration, this camp will focus on a mix of fundamentals and skills of the “triple threat,” including dance, vocal techniques, choral singing, ensemble work, character creation, and stage presence.

In the Movie Madness and Breaking News camp, kids from 11 - 17 will work as a "crew," and use their imagination to create a movie. In addition, through news stories and on-camera interviews, students act as investigative reporters and news anchors to produce a TV News broadcast. With a little help from the professionals at CHBC, students write their own copy, learn the language of ‘on camera’, and perform script analysis of actual television and commercial copy.

Peter Pan, J. M. Barrie's story about a boy who never grew up inspires the two-week musical theatre performance class for ages 7 - 13. Also offered are a Theatre Variety Pack, where drama, theatre, TV and Film are all explored and the always-popular improv camp. Using theatre games like those in the TV hit show, Whose Line Is It Anyway?, participants will flex their funny bones by developing characters, timing, and instincts useful to all forms of theatre.

“We encourage a fun filled, collaborative, and creative environment, concludes Leslie. “Most of our camps have a final day performance, where the kids have a chance to invite their parents. The feedback is instantaneous, with the closing applause providing the final grade.”

For more information, or to register, please call 250 862 2867, or visit www.KelownaActorsStudio.com.

Event Listings Info: 

July 2 to 11, 2008
9am to 4pm
CHARLOTTE’S WEB – Acting for TV and Film
Ages: 7-11

July 14 – 18
9am to Noon
ACT IT OUT : DRAMA AND PLAY
Ages  6-8

July 14 – 25, 2008
9am to 4pm
MUSICAL REVIEW: MOVIE MAGIC ON BROADWAY
With Songs and Scenes from Rent, The Producers, Hairspray, Les Miserables, Phantom, Chicago and many more!
Ages 10-17

July 28 to August 1
9am to 4pm
MOVIE MADNESS & BREAKING NEWS
Ages 11-17

August 5 to 15
9am to 4pm
MUSICAL THEATRE: PETER PAN
Ages 7-13

August 18 – 22
9am to 4pm
THEATRE VARIETY PACK
Ages: 7 – 11

August 25 to 29
9am to 4pm
IMPROV!  IMRPOV!  IMPROV!  GO!
Ages 10 – 17
 

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18 Apr 2008

Open Studios Open Hearts » Thursday 17 April 2008 | 4:30 pm » Hanna's Lounge, 1392 Water Street An informal afternoon hour showcasing the people and ideas featured in Okanagan Arts. Join us for a discussion about creative spaces featuring three engaging local artists: Shelah Pansegrau, Madelyn Hamilton and Kenna Graff. » This is a free event. Refreshments will be available at a modest cost. » Seating is limited, please reserve yours HERE Sponsored by the Arts Council of the Central Okanagan, Wood Lake Books, UBCO-FCCS, and in support of Project Literacy Kelowna Artists Offer an Inside Glimpse into their Creative World It's one thing to look at a painting on a wall and love it, it's quite something else to discover for yourself how the painting made its way to the canvass. Often the beginning and the end bear little resemblance to one another and it's this inside look at the creative process that's so compelling. This Thursday April 17, at 4:30 p.m. at Hanna's Lounge, the Okanagan Institute presents Open Studios Open Hearts - a discussion about the artist's physical space featuring three local artists - Shelah Pansegrau, Madelyn Hamilton and Kenna Graff. "Opening up our studios to the public gives people a really exciting experience," said Shelah Pansegrau, a contemporary glass bead artist and jewellery designer. The former university college instructor now creates Bella Dolci glass beads - each one individually crafted from molten strands of Italian and German glass, combined with precious metals and enamels. "Visitors get to see fire and glass being melted and it's exciting, even scary." The Arts Council of the Central Okanagan launched its Open Studio concept in September 2006 with a large selection of juried artists. Since then, the studios have been growing, but it's taken a while for the public to realize they really can knock on the artists' doors and take a look. "People think that there is a magical aura connected to artists' studios," said Madelyn Hamilton, who works with a variety of mediums including acrylic, etching, collage and more. "People will ask me in almost whispered tones: could I just see your studio? And what they see is the raw work, and for most artists, that's based on the inner process." Elke Lange, executive director of the Arts Council of the Central Okanagan, says while open studios might be a new concept here, it has a lengthy history in Europe where entire cultural tours are focused on visiting artists' studios - similar to the way people embark on winery tours here. "I think at first artists thought this would bring instant fame, but everything takes time," says Kenna Graff, whose colourful evocative paintings have engendered a following and a place at Hambleton Gallery. Graff says visiting a studio provides people with an intimate understanding of how the creativity transforms into works of art. Both Graff and Hamilton prefer to work in solitude, so opening their doors to the public is an unusual experience, but rewarding just the same. "Most artists love to talk about their work, and every studio is totally unique," Hamilton said. "You get insight and education, and I think people need that." Open Studios Open Hearts is a free event, and takes place at Hanna's Lounge. It's presented by the Okanagan Institute in association with Wheat King Publishing. Express is sponsored by the Arts Council of the Central Okanagan, Wood Lake Books, UBCO Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies, and supports the work of Project Literacy Kelowna. FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO REGISTER ONLINE CLICK HERE Okanagan Insitute at Hanna's Lounge A hearty feast of lectures, presentations, workshops and showcases celebrating our culture and community. Produced by the Okanagan institute in association with Wheat King Publishing magazines: Okanagan Arts and Okanagan Home. Expresss is a cultural tonic that refreshes the mind. Join us at Hanna's Lounge after work on Thursdays for a free hour of stimulation that will get your synapses tingling with new ideas and fresh images. Designed for inquiring minds looking for, among other things, the wild blue yonder.

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13 Apr 2008