L’impro comme tremplin pour la jeunesse en immersion

Le 5 juin, dix élèves d’écoles d’immersion française ont brillé sur scène lors du tout premier “Match des étoiles” de la FLIIP, une nouvelle ligue d’improvisation scolaire qui allie humour, spontanéité et passion francophone.

Après quelques essais ponctuels dans le passé, le Conseil jeunesse provincial (CJP) a lancé cette année la première ligue officielle d’improvisation destinée aux écoles d’immersion française du Manitoba. La Fabuleuse ligue d’improvisation immersive et passionnante (FLIIP) a couronné cette première saison par un “Match des étoiles” présenté le 5 juin au Centre culturel franco-manitobain.

Mélanie Bédard, responsable de projet au CJP, explique: “Nous voulions relancer l’idée d’une ligue d’improvisation pour les écoles d’immersion. Nous avons donc envoyé un courriel pour dire que nous étions prêts à les soutenir s’ils voulaient créer des clubs d’impro au sein de leur école.”

Le projet FLIIP avait vu le jour il y a plusieurs années, mais la pandémie avait stoppé net son développement. Cette année, il a enfin pu se concrétiser, avec plusieurs activités et formations déjà en place.

Diversified roles in society shape painter Brian Hunter’s work and process

Brian Hunter’s multiple roles within society inform the works in his current exhibition, On Shaky Ground, at 226 Gallery, located at 226 Main St.

It’s his first solo show in seven years.

The 22 oils, created in response to “the current shifting and uncertain atmosphere,” are a departure from the artist’s previous work.

Nine years ago Hunter snagged top spot at the RBC Canadian Painting Competition. He spent a year in an art residency at the Gwangju Museum of Art in South Korea, and has shown in South Korea, Spain, Montreal and Toronto.

Singer-songwriter Kelly Bado’s music imbued with the richness of her culture

Kelly Bado, a keen observer of the world around her, forged a sense of camaraderie with her new city — with its landscape, its history and its people — at The Forks.

Taylor Swift has regained control of her music, buys back first 6 albums

NEW YORK (AP) — Taylor Swift has regained control over her entire body of work.

In a lengthy note posted to her official website on Friday, Swift announced: “All of the music I’ve ever made now belongs to me.”

The pop star said she purchased her catalog of recordings — originally released through Big Machine Records — from their most recent owner, the private equity firm Shamrock Capital. She did not disclose the amount.

In recent years, Swift has been rerecording and releasing her first six albums in an attempt to regain control of her music.

What to Stream: ‘Mountainhead,’ Bono documentary and Elizabeth Banks and Jessica Biel play sisters

NEW YORK (AP) — “Succession” creator Jesse Armstrong’s satirical drama “Mountainhead” and Elizabeth Banks and Jessica Biel playing dysfunctional siblings in the murder thriller series “The Better Sister” are some of the new television, films, music and games headed to a device near you.

Also among the streaming offerings worth your time, as selected by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists: a new concert special featuring Aretha Franklin, U2's frontman reveals all in the documentary “Bono: Stories of Surrender” and multiplayer gamers get Elden Ring: Nightreign, sending teams of three warriors to battle the flamboyant monsters of a haunted land.

New movies to stream from May 26-June 1

— Armstrong makes his feature debut with the satirical drama “Mountainhead,” streaming on HBO Max on Saturday. The film stars Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman, Ramy Youssef and Cory Michael Smith as tech titans on a boys’ trip whose billionaire shenanigans are interrupted by an international crisis that may have been inflamed by their platforms. The movie was shot earlier this year, in March.

A show inside a cathedral featured raw chickens in diapers. The German president was in the audience

BERLIN (AP) — A performance inside a Catholic cathedral in Germany earlier this month that featured raw, plucked chickens wrapped in diapers onstage — and the country's president and the local archbishop in the audience — has prompted the church and municipal leaders to apologize that the show “hurt religious feelings."

The show, "Westphalia Side Story,” was part of a May 15 celebration to mark the 1,250th anniversary of Westphalia, a region in northwestern Germany.

Video footage shows one woman and two shirtless men singing “Fleisch ist Fleisch” (“Meat is meat”) — apparently spoofing Austrian band Opus' 1984 pop song “Live is Life” — with scythes and dancing with the dead chickens on a stage in front of Paderborn Cathedral's altar.

Performance company bodytalk said in a statement Friday that the show featured work-in-progress excerpts from “Westphalia Side Story" — which references the American musical "West Side Story."

Carrie’s voice is back. So is the show’s soul as ‘And Just Like That…’ grows up

PARIS (AP) — “She’s messy. It can be messy. But it’s real.”

So says Cynthia Nixon — not just of Miranda Hobbes, the character she’s embodied for almost three decades, but of the show itself. “And Just Like That...,” HBO’s “Sex and the City” revival, has come into its own in Season 3: less preoccupied with pleasing everyone, and more interested in telling the truth.

Truth, in this case, looks like complexity. Women in their 50s with evolving identities. Not frozen in time, but changing, reckoning, reliving. Queerness that’s joyful but not polished. Grief without melodrama. A pirate shirt with a bleach hole that somehow becomes a talisman of power.

At its glittering European premiere this week, Nixon and co-star Sarah Jessica Parker, flanked by Kristin Davis and Sarita Choudhury, spoke candidly with The Associated Press about how the show has evolved into something deeper, rawer and more reflective of who they are now.

Protests over ‘please walk on me’ flag artwork prompt its removal from New Zealand gallery – again

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A New Zealand flag printed with the words “please walk on me” and laid on the floor of an art gallery has once again been packed away following public outcry, 30 years after protests forced the removal of the same artwork.

The Suter Art Gallery in the city of Nelson said Thursday it had taken down the work by Māori artist Diane Prince due to escalating tensions and safety fears. The episode mirrored an Auckland gallery's removal of the work amid public backlash and complaints to law enforcement in 1995.

This time, the flag was meant to remain on display for five months. Instead, it lasted just 19 days, reigniting long-running debates in New Zealand over artistic expression, national symbols and the country’s colonial history.

Police told The Associated Press on Friday that officers were investigating “several” complaints about the exhibition.

Billy Joel cancels touring after being diagnosed with a brain disorder

NEW YORK (AP) — Billy Joel has canceled all his upcoming concerts across North America and England after being diagnosed with fluid buildup in his brain that has affected his “hearing, vision and balance.”

Joel revealed on Instagram that he has Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus, “a brain disorder that can affect brain-related abilities, including thinking and concentrating, memory, movement and more,” the Cleveland Clinic says.

“This condition has been exacerbated by recent concert performances, leading to problems with hearing, vision and balance,” according to a statement from Joel’s team. “Under his doctor’s instructions, Billy is undergoing specific physical therapy and has been advised to refrain from performing during this recovery period.”

In an accompanying statement, Joel said, “I’m sincerely sorry to disappoint our audience, and thank you for understanding.”

Paul Reubens tells his story in ‘Pee-wee as Himself.’ Here’s how it came together after his death

Paul Reubens did not tell his director that he was dying.

On July 31, 2023, the news of Reubens' death came as a shock to documentary filmmaker Matt Wolf, who had spent a year trying to convince him to make the ambitious two-part documentary “Pee-wee as Himself,” now streaming on HBO Max, and over 40 hours interviewing him on camera.

But in 2023, the project was in danger of falling apart: The two had been at an impasse for a while over the issue of creative control and they’d finally found a way forward. He had one last interview scheduled, set for the first week of August. Then the texts started coming in. Wolf sat there shaking.

They’d spoken about everything — Reubens' childhood, his complicated relationship with fame, his ambitions, his commitment to his alter-ego Pee-wee Herman, his sexuality, his arrest — except the fact that he’d been battling cancer for the past six years. But after the initial shock, a renewed purpose set in.

The Cannes Film Festival is over. Here’s some key things that happened

CANNES, France (AP) — This year's Cannes Film Festival is over, ending in dramatic fashion with a power outage ahead of the closing ceremony that bestowed the Palme d'Or trophy to Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi's film, “It Was Just an Accident.”

This year's festival included a strong slate as Cannes has become increasingly important to the Oscars’ best picture hopefuls. As the festival drew to close Saturday, it was clear that filmmakers are reckoning with geopolitical doom, climate change and other calamities that closely resemble current events.

This year's festival was an attention-grabbing affair since its start — from new rules for its red carpets, nerves about potential U.S. tariffs and the return of Tom Cruise.

Even in a normal year, Cannes is a lot to keep up with. Here's a handy guide of what's happened so far, what's left and what it may mean.

New music: Blake Shelton, Blondshell, Ingrid Laubrock, Elation Pauls

CountryBlake SheltonFor Recreational Use Only (Wheelhouse)

Blake Shelton’s 13th studio album opens with a fitting declaration for both his latest project and the current state of his career: Stay Country or Die Tryin’.

It would be more accurately phrased like a question.

At this stage, Shelton is a longtime veteran of Hollywood on The Voice stage with a pop superstar wife in Gwen Stefani, far removed from his Nashville roots, all while maintaining the position of one of the most high-profile country stars of the current moment.

‘A political football’: Canadian says his citizenship TV pitch was misrepresented

WASHINGTON - When Rob Worsoff recently dusted off an old idea he had for a reality television show about people on the path to United States citizenship, he had no idea of what he was letting himself in for.

The Canadian-born freelance television producer said he brought his pitch to build a show around aspiring immigrants learning about the culture of their new country to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security under both the Obama and Biden administrations. He even brought a version of it to the CBC.

Worsoff then put his idea forward to the new Trump administration — but this time the 49-year-old got caught up in a global media and political backlash.

"The spirit of my pitch was completely misrepresented and it's been used as a political football," the Los Angeles-based producer said.

‘Special to the world’: Supporters hope to save beloved Drumheller dinosaur

DRUMHELLER - A plan to send Tyra the tyrannosaurus, the popular tourist attraction that towers over the skyline in Drumheller, Alta., into proverbial extinction has sparked demands that she be spared.

The town of 8,400 northeast of Calgary bills itself as the Dinosaur Capital of the World. Home to the famed Royal Tyrrell Museum, the community also has statues of dinosaurs that look like they've crawled out of "The Flintstones" cartoon greeting people on the streets.

There's an extinct reptile riding a motorcycle. A triceratops in a frilly dress sits on a bus bench. Another dinosaur wearing a fireman's hat and holding a hose is poised outside a fire station.

The biggest is Tyra, standing across from the intersection of Gorgosaurus Street and Tyrannosaurus Drive near a visitor information centre. A nearby ice cream stand offers fossils, T-shirts and dino toys.

Crave introduces ad tiers, including $9.99 plan

TORONTO - Crave is introducing two ad-supported tiers that each shave $5 or $10 off the monthly subscription fee.

Bell Media says its new Crave Basic with Ads costs $9.99/month, while Crave Standard with Ads costs $14.99/month. An unchanged ad-free option remains at $19.99/month, and is renamed Crave Premium Ad-Free.

Viewers can watch most shows and movies, including HBO and Max originals, on the ad-supported plans. About one per cent of titles won't be available due to licensing restrictions.

Ads will be 15 or 30 seconds long, totalling about five minutes per hour, and appear before and during some episodes and films.

Former mechanic gives a face to Rainbow Stage's Beast

It’s not exactly a tale as old as time.

About 20 years ago, Christian Hadley was an auto mechanic dissatisfied with the grind of machining auto parts and deflated at the prospect of repairing another tire.

He needed a change, and not the kind involving 5W30 motor oil.

His career pivot was, quite literally, dramatic. At the age of 25, he went to the University of Winnipeg to study theatre arts. He emerged with skills in both set-building and makeup design. And he brings those skills to fruition in the Rainbow Stage production of Beauty and the Beast.

Un festival qui fait confiance aux enfants

Depuis 20 ans, le Festival international de films pour enfants de tous âges Freeze Frame valorise la perspective des plus jeunes et les incite à penser. Le cofondateur du festival, Pascal Boutroy, est un cinéphile de longue date.

“J’ai découvert le cinéma pour enfants dans les années 1990, quand j’ai travaillé comme critique de cinéma à Montréal. Surtout, j’ai découvert quelque chose d’extraordinaire: des films intelligents et sensibles. Et j’ai vu l’effet que cela pouvait avoir sur les enfants. Quand ils sortent de la salle, ils ont appris des choses à propos d’eux-mêmes.”

En 1996, nouvellement arrivés à Winnipeg, Boutroy et sa conjointe, Nicole Matiation, cofondent le festival Freeze Frame. En 20 ans le festival, qui met à l’affiche des films en plusieurs langues, y compris le français, est devenu le festival de cinéma le plus fréquenté au Manitoba, avec entre 6,000 et 8,000 participants chaque année.

Boutroy attribue le succès du festival à la diversité de la programmation.

Saint-Laurent la télé en 2017

Les pêcheurs, chasseurs et trappeurs métis de Saint-Laurent seront bient¥t connus au Québec gr¢ce une série documentaire produite pour le Canal D. De plus, la caméra se posera sur la culture métisse. Bienvenue Au pays des Michifs.

Ce qui étonne Jules Desjarlais n'est pas que Manito Média, l'entreprise de production bonifacienne fondée par Charles et Patrick Clément, ait réussi convaincre le Canal D commander une série documentaire portant sur les Métis de Saint-Laurent. C'est que les Métis se soient laissés photographier par les caméras télé!

Jules Desjarlais en est persuadé: "Nous, les Métis, on est pas mal gêné. Notre vie privée, on y tient. Mais tranquillement, dans les dernières décennies, le public respecte pas mal plus notre culture. Chez nous, c'est l'exposition sur les Métis présentée entre 2004 et juillet 2015 (au National Museum of the American Indian, un des musées du Smithsonian Institution de Washington), qui a fait une différence énorme. On est plus portés dire "oui" quand on nous propose des projets comme la série Au pays des Michifs. On s'intéresse faire connaître notre culture, la faire respecter, pour que les gens nous connaissent plus."

Résultat: Gerry Bruce et Roland Bruce, Norbert Langellier et son fils, Charles et Langellier, ainsi que Laurent Dumont, figureront parmi les chasseurs, pêcheurs et trappeurs présentés dans l'émission, en tournage depuis l'automne 2015. Le natif de Saint-Laurent, vétéran de plusieurs productions hollywoodiennes, notamment la série Docteur Quinn, femme médecin et le film Terrain miné (On Deadly Ground) sera le narrateur et présentateur de la série.

Comment le rêve d’une poignée d’amoureux est devenu réalité

Au début des années 1990, un petit groupe de passionnés se rencontrait pour chanter, prendre un verre et partager leur amour du chant choral de la Renaissance. Un premier concert fort réussi en 1996 a mis l’ensemble, désormais connu sous le nom de Camerata Nova, sur le chemin de la réussite artistique.

Andrew Balfour, le directeur artistique de Camerata Nova, garde de vifs souvenirs des toutes premières années de l’ensemble.

“Nous étions cinq, tous dans la fin de notre vingtaine. Ce que nous avions en commun, c’était l’expérience d’avoir chanté des ouvrages de la Renaissance dans des chorales d’églises locales. Enfant, j’étais membre de la chorale pour garçons de l’église anglicane All Saints, à Winnipeg. Le futur directeur musical de Camerata Nova, Ross Brownlee, a fait partie de la même chorale. On se côtoie depuis bien longtemps!

“Notre petit groupe de cinq chantait parce qu’il aimait cette forme d’expression. À ce point-là, nous avions tous complété nos études universitaires. La joie de faire partie des chorales universitaires nous manquait énormément. Alors on s’est mis a chanter la belle musique de la Renaissance — des motets, des madrigaux, de la musique religieuse des grands compositeurs de cette époque, comme Byrd, Dowland, Monteverdi et Palestrina.

Soirée espagnole sera ‘lyrique, melodique’

La Winnipeg Classical Guitar Society entamera sa saison 2015-2016 le 24 octobre avec un concert l'église du Précieux-Sang, Saint-Boniface. La guitariste classique Gohar Vardanyan, une virtuose arménienne actuellement basée New York, présentera une série de pièces espagnoles classiques.

Le guitariste Guy Michaud, membre du conseil d'administration de la société et membre actif de la société depuis plus de 25 ans, ne cache pas son enthousiasme par rapport au concert. Il fait partie d'un nouveau conseil exécutif qui a planifié une saison de concerts ouverte et diversifiée.

"Ä Winnipeg, on a la chance d'avoir une société pour la guitare, et il y a des artistes de grande renommée qui viennent jouer ici. Gohar Vardanyan est une guitariste arménienne qui est aussi américaine, qui a donné des concerts au Lincoln Center New York. Elle a aussi joué San Francisco et un peu partout. Je pense qu'on va avoir un excellent concert."

Mme Vardanyan s'est fait un nom dans le monde musical avec ses interprétations riches et émotionnelles de la musique des compositeurs de tradition espagnole, tels qu'Astor Piazzola et Manuel Ponce.

Ceci est mon drapeau

DEPUIS plus de deux ans, vous lisez chaque semaine le Fil des francophiles dans ce journal.

Vous commencez à connaître davantage la communauté francomanitobaine. Mais connaissez-vous son drapeau?

Examinez bien la photo qui accompagne cet article. Il est fort possible que vous ayez vu ce drapeau flotter au mat d’une école française. Peutêtre l’avez-vous vu au Festival du Voyageur, à l’entrée de l’Université de Saint-Boniface, sur un T-shirt ou encore sur le pare-choc d’une voiture. En 2010, il a même flotté au mat de la Tour de la Paix du Parlement canadien, à Ottawa!

En fait, si les Franco-Manitobains en ont fait leur drapeau, il n’empêche que le drapeau est relativement récent, ayant été créé, et adopté par la communauté francophone, en 1980.

Ad another thing: sounding the alarm about advertising’s ill effects on society

Jean Kilbourne was an adbuster long before there was anything close to resembling Adbusters.

When the acclaimed feminist scholar, author, filmmaker and media literacy pioneer, who speaks Thursday at 7:30 p.m., at the University of Winnipeg's Convocation Hall, began tearing advertisements out of magazines and posting them on her refrigerator back in 1968, she didn't know she would start a movement, let alone a respected field of study.

At the time, she just wanted to open people's eyes. She assembled the ads she collected into a slideshow presentation that she took to college campuses in the 1970s. She had one goal: tell anyone who would listen about the damaging effect ads were having on women.

"I was the first person to start talking about the image of women in advertising," Kilbourne, 70, recalls. "(The ads) were outrageous and no one was paying attention to them."