Artword Artbar

Tuesday June 18, at 9 pm, free admission (sponsored by Hamilton Arts Council and the Downtown BIA). Part of Hamilton Arts Week.
Special event at Artword Artbar: The Capella Intima vocal quartet performs Hamilton, Durand, Pub & Parlour, the story of the founding of Hamilton, with music and readings from early 19th to 20th centuries. Fun, enlightening programme on the city’s early days: settlement, growth, war, court system, pub songs, churches, development. Readings are from Public Library archives. Runs 45 minutes.
Founded by tenor Bud Roach (of Hammer Baroque) in 2008, Capella Intima has carved out a niche for itself in the Toronto/Hamilton early music scene by presenting the vocal chamber music of the 17th century in exciting concerts of rarely-heard gems. With motets and cantatas for up to four voices interspersed with readings from composers, performers and critics of the period, audiences are given context to music

Event, Literary, Spoken Word, Music, Music-Classical, Special event, Storytelling

Friday March 15, 2019, at 9:00 pm, $10. Tiny Bill Cody Sees the Devil. (This is a late show after the 7:30 performance of Langston Hughes vs Joe McCarthy.) Call 905-543-8512.
Tor Lukasik-Foss (aka Tiny Bill Cody) has been delivering off-kilter original songs in this city for two decades, and has recently cut his teeth as a storyteller with the Hamilton Seven. Join him as he presents Tiny Bill Cody Sees the Devil, an interconnected song and story cycle on hesitation, regret, social anxiety, and Satan!

Event, Music, Storytelling

Thursday March 14, 2019, at 9:00 pm, $10 or by donation. (This is a late show after the 7:30 performance of Langston Hughes vs Joe McCarthy.) Call 905-543-8512.
COMBO TICKET $20 with Langston Hughes vs... at 7:30, call or Book online  

The Purple, White and Green: the story of the Scottish Suffragettes. Written to mark the 1918-2018 centenary of (some) women’s right to vote in the UK, this powerful piece of storytelling is both timely and compelling. Storytellers Nicola Wright and Lea Taylor (from Edinburgh, Scotland) present with verve and vigour this mix of historical facts and prose, where deeds and words come together.

Nicola Wright and Lea Taylor performing The Purple, White and Green: the story of the Scottish Suffragettes.

Photo left: performers Lea Taylor and Nicola Wright marching down the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, 2018.

Their performance has enthralled audiences and even played at the Scottish Parliament before MSP’s and children.
They will also be performing this show at the Toronto Storytelling Festival on or near International Women’s Day.

Event, Storytelling, Theatre

Friday Dec. 1, 2017 at 8 pm, tip jar. Mark McNeil with Tales from Hamilton. Celebrated singer-songwriter and longtime Spectator reporter Mark McNeil will give you the inside scoop about the city we love. After 35 years of chronicling Hamilton, Mark knows where the bodies are buried and how to write a great song about them. Come hear about Jacko the Killer Monkey, Evelyn Dick, Rocco Perri, Einstein’s Brain, and many other twisted tales from the “biggest small town on the planet.” Joining him will be harmonica virtuoso Les Smith and tuba wizard Jay Burr. Les, who is also an incredible songwriter and heads the Hamilton Regional Songwriters Group, will do an opening set.

Event, Music-singer/songwriter, Storytelling

Friday June 2, 2017, at 9 pm, $10. The ever-unpredictably wonderful Tiny Bill Cody is back with a solo show:  “tiny bill cody sees the devil“, in which tiny bill cody recounts his incredible true story of seeing the devil, thinking about it too much, and then writing lots of songs. It’s the three ‘s’s: storytelling, songwriting, satan.

Event, Music-singer/songwriter, Storytelling

Seven nymphs of Greek legend transforming into poplar trees, in grief after the death of their brother Phaeton. Their tears became amber. The woodcut is an illustration published in 1499 in The Dream of Poliphilus, a romance by Francesco Colonna.

Sunday March 19, 2017, from 2 to 4 pm. Come listen to stories! In honour of World Storytelling Day, members of The Burlington Storytellers’ Guild tell Stories of Transformation. The tellers are Barb Vollick, Marina Lloyd, Suzanne Burchell, Bob Tadman, with two sets of stories in a coffee-house setting.
Guild members are dedicated to the growth, development and expansion of oral tradition storytelling as an art form.  http://burlingtonstorytellersguild.vpweb.ca/events
World Storytelling Day (March 20th) is a global celebration of the art of oral storytelling, celebrated every year on the equinox. On World Storytelling Day, as many people as possible tell and listen to stories in as many languages and at as many places as possible, during the same day and night.  http://www.freewebs.com/worldstorytellingday/

Event, Storytelling

Friday March 3, 2017, at 8:30 pm, $15. Tiny Bill Cody, vocals and guitar, and his Cowboy Quartet: Vintage Sounds show, with Mimi Shaw vocals/guitar, Orange McFarland bass, Jeff Griffiths drums. They will play your favourite country weepers, cowboy ballads, and early rock crooners. Not to be missed.

Event, Music, Music-singer/songwriter, Storytelling

Wednesday & Thursday, February 15 & 16, 2017, at 8 pm. Artword Theatre presents a remount of “Langston Hughes vs. Joe McCarthy”,  a dramatic reading for Black History Month. Featuring Learie McNicolls, Tamara Buckland, and Howard Jerome. Conceived and directed by Ronald Weihs. On March 24, 1953, Langston Hughes, renowned poet of the Harlem Renaissance, was summoned before the McCarthy Committee investigating communist subversion in the USA. This dramatic reading interweaves some of his testimony with selected poems.

The second half of the evening features Howard Jerome, veteran actor, improviser, gamer voice, former beatnik-hippie-new-ager, who brings on one of his multiple personalities: Dr. Possibilities. The Doctor is making a house call at Artword Artbar. Come and get your out-of-body exam. Have your mind expanded, your heart opened, and your vision illumined. Make your appointment today.

Event, Storytelling, Theatre

Sunday March 20, 2016. Two events to celebrate World Storytelling Day:
** 2:30 to 4:30 pm: Stories of Discovery by participants in the McMaster Discovery Program.
** 5 to 7 pm: Strong Women Burning Brightly, a concert celebrating the wit, wisdom and wonder of Crones and Damsels, by The Burlington Storytellers’ Guild.
Come to one or both. Admission free or by donation. All ages. Read on for details. Read more…

Event, Literary, Spoken Word, Storytelling

Sunday December 6, 2015, matinee at 3 pm, $10 adults, $5 children 12 & under.
Monday December 7, 2015, evening at 7 pm. $10/$5. To reserve, call 905-543-8512.
The First Channukah in Kanata (1759), by Allan Merovitz (singer, actor, storyteller). Allan tells the story of Aaron Hart, sometimes known as The First Jew in Canada, with traditional Channukah songs.
In 1759, Aaron Hart came north from the British colony of New York, during the Conquest of Quebec. He stayed behind in the town of Trois Rivieres on the St. Lawrence River.

Event, Music, Special event, Storytelling

Sunday November 22, at 5 pm, after Toller. Cover $15. Hartzedike-Lider (Heartsongs) features Allan Merovitz (vocals, guitar) and Brian Katz (guitar, piano, vocals). Hartzedike-Lider  brings together new renditions of well-loved Yiddish songs with storytelling, original music, a sprinkling of jazz standards … and ShmElvis!
Former lead singer with the Flying Bulgar Klezmer Band, Allan Merovitz is also a gifted actor, playwright and raconteur. He developed The Wedding Project, a performance exploring the traditional Jewish wedding entertainer, the Badchan, and toured extensively with his one man tour-de-force, If Cows Could Fly (produced by Artword Theatre).
Internationally acclaimed guitarist/pianist/composer Brian Katz, draws on jazz, classical, Jewish and various world music to form his personal sound. He is widely acclaimed for his solo performances and evocative compositions. Brian recently released Leaves Will Speak, a solo recording of original compositions and improvisations. http://briankatz.com/

Event, Music, Music-Jazz, Special event, Storytelling

Wednesday November 4 to Saturday November 7, 2015, four performances. Michael Henley‘s theatrical performance 23:30, “the stark truth about his time in solitary confinement”. At Artword Artbar, tickets $15, 905-543-8512 or 905-912-9083. Arrive by 8:00 pm to be seated and served. Show starts sharp at 8:30 (no latecomers admitted).
Mikey Henley was a troubled teenager. Eighteen years old in 1997, he was sentenced to two years in penitentiary for robbery and assault. Serving his time in Collins Bay, he refused to rat on another prisoner, and in consequence was sent to “the hole”, solitary confinement. Three hellish months in all, locked in a tiny room for 23 hours and 30 minutes a day.
On April 17, 1999, he received his conditional release. Outside, he had a life to start over — and a nightmare that he couldn’t forget.
He had a story to tell, but how to tell it? The result is 23:30, a powerful piece of dramatic art that depicts the stark truth about what happens in solitary confinement to a human spirit.
“23:30 is a story, a play, a musical, a comedy, a nightmare. It is a story of how to think outside the box. A story that asks what do you do when you hit rock bottom, but worse…find yourself in the hole. What would you do? Locked in the hole for an average of 23 and a half hours a day, for over 3 months. How would it affect you?”  Read more…

Event, Special event, Storytelling, Theatre

Saturday June 27, 2015, from 2 pm on, free. Artword Artbar hosts the 2015 Hamilton Zineposium from 2 to 6 pm, followed at 6:30 pm by a special edition for Zine-ists of spoken word open mic PoeMagic (hosted by Klyde Broox) and Campfire Stories (hosted by Tom Dusome, anything-goes storytelling).

Here is the call for submissions from Hamilton Zineposium on Facebook: “Do you make zines, artists’ books, DIY multiples of any kind? Do you make bizarre indie-arts/crafts/prints/comics/graphic novels/electronic arts/3d prints/posters/stickers/t-shirts/buttons/ … Maybe your stuff is too out-there for the X-mas craft fairs, or maybe it is so low key and subtle you feel like people never notice it at all… Now’s the time to get your stuff out into the world…”  Read more…

Event, Literary, Spoken Word, Open Mic and Jam, Special event, Storytelling

Thursday June 18, 2015, 8 pm, free. Campfire Stories. It’s time to fire up your creativity at Artword Artbar. Singer-songwriter Tom Dusome hosts an open stage for spoken word, poetry, song, music, dance, movement, visual art, or anything goes. Everyone has a story to tell. Come share your stories — by any means.

Event, Music, Open Mic and Jam, Storytelling

Saturday June 21, 2014, at 8 pm, $15. (Call 905-543-8512 or book tickets online). Stuart Laughton is back with a new edition of his Radio Dial, with Stuart Laughton on vocals, guitar, harmonica, trumpet, piano.
Guest musicians for June 21 are: Nichol Robertson, guitar; Burke Carroll, pedal steel guitar; Steve Lucas, bass; Martin Worthy, banjo/drums.
Stuart is pleased to be working with Nichol: “Nichol (http://nicholrobertson.com) is a rising star on guitar. He’s a solo artist and plays in the Devin Cuddy band (JUNO nomination this year) which opened for Blue Rodeo on a cross-Canada tour earlier this year.”
Why RADIO DIAL? Because on long car trips, Stuart scours the radio waves for interesting music, and wanted to bring a similarly eclectic presentation to the stage (think Stuart McLean’s Vinyl Café, with the speaking and musical proportions reversed). http://www.radiodial.ca/ Read more…

Event, Music, Storytelling

Friday April 4 and Saturday April 5, 2014, at 8 pm, $20 door, $15 advance (call 905-543-8512 or book advance tickets online via PayPal). Well-known performer, musician and activist Eric Nagler performs Tales from the Attic: A retrospective in story and song. Two-day run! “Brimming with humour and heart, Eric takes his audience on a musical journey through his past and into their future.” [Note: Adult content, not a children’s show.]
Canada remembers Eric from his appearances on The Elephant Show and Eric’s World which dominated Children’s TV in the 80s and 90s. But he began his performing career a decade earlier with Columbia Artists, doing Community Concerts throughout North America. His life experiences have taken him from Washington Square in the hay day of the sixties folk revival, to Bosnia, Spain, Ireland and just about everywhere on this continent. Eric has marched with Martin Luther King, has been tried for draft evasion, directed folk festivals, opened the first Folklore Centre in Canada. Along the way Eric has rubbed shoulders with the likes of Bob Dylan, Bruce Cockburn, Brownie Magee and Sonny Terry, The Reverend Gary Davis, Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs, John Lee Hooker, and a host of others. – and he has a story to tell, a song to sing or a tune to play about each cross road and companion he’s encountered.  http://www.ericnagler.com/
Eric writes about his new show Tales from the Attic:
“I’ve never been more excited about a performance. In many ways it represents the culmination of a life’s adventure in music and personal growth. Read more…

Event, Music, Storytelling, Theatre

Saturday March 8, 2014, at 8 pm, $10, call 905-543-8512 or book online via PayPal. Stuart Laughton’s Radio Dial, with Stuart Laughton on vocals, guitar, harmonica, trumpet, piano; Burke Carroll on pedal steel guitar and Steve Lucas on bass. Why RADIO DIAL? Because on long car trips, Stuart scours the radio waves for interesting music, and wanted to bring a similarly eclectic presentation to the stage (think Stuart McLean’s Vinyl Café, with the speaking and musical proportions reversed). http://www.radiodial.ca/
It helps that Stuart sings and plays a dozen instruments, and that he injects his contagious enthusiasm into a kaleidoscopic amalgam of Read more…

Event, Music, Storytelling, Theatre

Friday November 1 at 8 pm, at 8 pm, pwyc. Singer-songwriter and Artword favourite Mark McNeil has formed a new trio, The Flashbacks, where the accent is on Hamilton history and nostalgia. The group — with Cyndi Devereux on fiddle, Orange McFarland on upright bass and Mark McNeil on guitar, ukulele and vocals — performs songs about everything from the Battle of Stoney Creek, the ghost ships The Scourge and Hamilton, to the city’s long-gone trolley buses. Spiced with some familiar tunes, you’ll hear original ditties about local heroes, villains and eccentrics as well as Mark’s award-winning ballad Private Riley about the Royal Hamilton Light Infantry. If you have a fondness for the city and looking for a fun night out, check out Mark McNeil and The Flashbacks for their unique blend of Hamilton-driven roots music.

Event, Music, Storytelling

Tuesdays at 8 pm, free.  Artword Theatre hosts “Theatre Tuesdays” — readings from new plays, works-in-progress, favourite plays, and/or short theatrical presentations, films about theatre, etc. To get involved, as a writer, reader, presenter, actor, listener… contact us: artword@artword.net
June 7, a reading of Under Milk Wood, a radio drama by Welsh-born poet and writer Dylan Thomas. Thomas died in New York in 1953 after delivering a draft of the work and it was published posthumously in 1954.  The play opens at night, when the citizens of Llareggub are asleep. An all-seeing narrator (First Voice/Second Voice) invites the audience to listen to the dreams and innermost thoughts of the inhabitants of an imaginary small Welsh village. Morning breaks. The characters awake and go about their morning — their gossiping, their nagging, their daydreaming, their longing. Beautiful language, many wonderful characters, some lovely comic parts — plenty for everyone! All readers welcome.
June 14, An advance reading of “Escape” by Robert Savoie, directed by Brian Morton. Cast: Joshua Shutter as Robbie, Chris Cracknell as Older Robert, Carla Zabek as Amelia, Brian Morton as Harry
It’s Halloween night, 1973, and ten year old Robbie finds himself alone in the time out room once again.  But it’s through the eye of an older Robbie, the narrator, that we learn of the circumstances leading up to that incarceration, and the life journey that followed.  Thanks to the help of Amelia, a young social worker, and Harry, a mental patient in the St John New Brunswick Insane Asylum, that journey was not one of escape from life but to life.
See “Escape” in the Hamilton Fringe Festival, July 14 to 24, at the DAC Studio,  28 Rebecca Street, Tickets: $9.00,  Show Length: 80 minutes, Company: Majik Man Productions.
June 21: Come and help us read The Devil’s Disciple by George Bernard Shaw. Set during the American Revolution, this play is full of Shaw’s love of paradox. A man who glories in repudiating the puritan morality of the day (the Devil’s disciple) chooses to sacrifice himself to save a minister of God. There is a fascinating and amusing depiction of the British General “Gentleman Johnny” Burgoyne. All readers and listeners welcome.
June 28: cancelled.

Event, Storytelling, Theatre