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Monday blues setting in? Scroll through these visual treats by Vancouver-based designer and illustrator LAUDER aka James Lauder Marsden and you’ll be feeling Friday five o’clock fantastic in no time!

I haven’t yet seen A Single Man but this poster’s retro aesthetic and intriguing concept makes me want to run to the closest Rogers, grab a bag of Cloddhoppers and get down to business (of course after I finish this post). Lauder says of the piece, “With this illustration, I wanted to capture Tom’s use of desaturation (regular life) & over saturation (heightened emotion) in the film. The reflection in the glasses being the main character’s sort of romantic interest at different points in the film. Whatever I design I try to simplify it to its core idea or feeling.”

Poster for A Single Man Film — A Single Man (2010) - James Lauder Marsden

One of my favorite tidbits from Lauder’s portfolio is his Drawing A Day concept. We all get busy with our lives and often forget what makes us love what we do, but Lauder keeps his creative fire stoked with this daily exercise (when he can). “As a child I was a huge Jim Henson fan, I loved The Muppets, Sesame Street, Dark Crystal, anything and everything Jim Henson…he’s had a huge influence not just on my style but also on how I see the world. I wanted to visually express the memories from my childhood in these characters…” Honestly, who doesn’t love The Muppets.

Monsteresque (2010) - James Lauder Marsden

Another highlight of Lauder’s work is his nod to pop culture, both past and present, in his typographic series I’d rather look schleppy than preppy (2010). “Inspired by a quote from Sarah Silverman’s dad, this typographic based design was a play on the fashion industry’s push for us to consume the new look. Schleppy derives from the word schlep of Yiddish origin (meaning run-down, dowdy or frumpy)… I thought who better to contrast and play on this than Jewish actress Audrey Hepburn with her classic preppy look?”

Typographic Poster — I'd rather look schleppy than preppy (2010) - James Lauder Marsden

I'd rather look schleppy than preppy (2010) - James Lauder Marsden

LAUDER aka James Lauder Marsden was born 1978, in Yorkshire England and moved to Vancouver in 1981 where he exhibits his art and illustration between fits of popular culture espionage. He is currently working as an artist, freelance graphic designer & part time instructor in the Graphic Design Department at VCC. Check out more of Lauder’s work at astrolauder.com and astrolauder.com/blog.

If you’re a Vancouver-based graphic, web, or industrial designer, typographer, architect, student or lover of all things design, send me your work Leah.Vlemmiks@gmail.com

A celebration of queerness and two spirit culture, Two Spirit, Let’s Hear It! is the official launch of The Cultch’s hit show Agokwe by Waawaate Fobister about growing up two spirit on the reserve opening January 17.

Sad Mag contributor, Dave Deveau, sat down with creator Waawaate Fobister to talk about the production and his upcoming work.

Dave Deveau: There are a lot of openly queer theatre creators in Canada who don’t necessarily write “queer” work. How is queer content important for you as a creator?

Waawaate Fobister: I do identify as queer. I also identify as aboriginal. Agokwe is my first major work. It has both queer and aboriginal content. The second piece I’m writing has nothing to do with queer. But in the workshop development phases we’re doing I am working with Queer Native artist Billy Merasty. So ‘queer’ still managed to seep in somehow.

DD: In an industry full of young people trying to make it, you are living the dream – I remember seeing some of your work in the Buddies Young Creators Unit, fast forward a few years and here you are, with one of the greatest success stories Toronto has seem in recent years! How did all of this unfold?

WF: Agokwe was a little blob and started swallowing up everything grew into a living thing. First it was a ramble, then a monologue, then a 30-minute piece, a full-length, opening production for Buddies, winning Doras, and now a tour to some amazing Theatres. It’s been quite a ride this Agokwe.

DD: And now for the inevitable question: what’s next? You have quite the tour ahead of you, but what scribblings might one find in your notebooks nowadays?

WF: I am writing a new play called ‘Medicine Boy’ it’s being dramaturged and directed by [Dora award-winning Toronto artist] Tara Beagan. We’ve had and hope when it goes into production that Billy Merasty will [still] be involved. It’s a three-hander piece. I am also creating a Sexy Native Cabaret!

TWO SPIRIT, LET’S HEAR IT!
Presented by Queer Bash and The Cultch
The Cobalt 917 Main Street
Friday, January 14 9:00 pm
RSVP on Facebook

If you chuckled at that terrible pun you’re in the right place (okay fine, even if you didn’t chuckle). Allow me to introduce myself, my name’s Leah and I’m going to be blogging weekly for SAD about Vancouver’s unbelievably diverse, innovative and talented design scene. I am not a design expert nor am I a critic, I just have a passion for things that make me smile that just so happen to include grids, Paul Rand, Garamond and flush right ragged left among others.

So Let’s Talk About Text, Baby (okay I know that was awful)…and infographics, typography, branding, logos, print, packaging, furniture, architecture, web, UI, U name it! Send me your work (leah.vlemmiks@gmail.com), if you’re a local graphic, industrial, or web designer, architect, student, or undeclared lover of all things design!

Cheers,

Leah

One of the many delights awaiting you at the Sad Comedy Show on January 13th is local funny lady Morgan Brayton. Read on to learn the best thing about being a Canadian performer and where the professional funny people go to laugh. You can find more of Morgan here and here.

Michelle Reid: Tell us a little about yourself.

Morgan Brayton: I am very small. I live in a hollow tree and only come out at night to pee in the shoes of naughty children while they sleep. When not casting magic in the Enchanted Forest, I am a comedian, actor, writer and bookkeeper.

MR: How did you get into comedy?

MB: I kept trying to be a serious dramatic actress and people kept laughing. If you can’t beat ’em and all that.

I’d been acting professionally for a number of years but then, in 1995 or so, I joined a 14 member all-female sketch comedy collective called Girl Parts. After a while, some of us branched out and formed a troupe called 30 Helens.

Sketch comedy was the first time in my life I ever felt like, “Oh, HERE’S where I’m supposed to be!” Comedy is belonging for outsiders. Except for ventriloquism. Ventriloquism is belonging for people who justifiably don’t belong anywhere.

MR: What do you like best about performing?

MB: The money. I make so much money as a Canadian comedy performer it’s obscene.

MR: What do you like best about the Vancouver comedy scene?

MB: I like that there’s no pressure to succeed. You don’t have to worry about someone seeing you and giving you a TV series or anything. It really allows for freedom of creative expression.

MR: What do you like least?

MB: When people don’t understand sarcasm.

MR: What show or performance of yours has been your favourite?

MB: I played a dancing ladybug in an opera when I was 5. I know in my heart I will never be that good again.

Since then? Well, there is a thing that happens in comedy that I compare to surfing–which makes no sense because I’ve never been surfing and can’t even swim. It’s where you have waves of audience laughter coming at you and you really feel like you’re riding those crests as far as you can and it’s absolutely the best feeling in the world. Except you’re also leading the waves so maybe it’s more like dancing.

Okay, there’s a thing that happens in comedy that I compare to dancing–which makes no sense because my wife never wants to go dancing with me anymore. It’s where you feel like you’re Kanye West and you’re surrounded by a bunch of very pretty, very hungry ballerinas. Except you don’t hate women so maybe it’s more like – look, I like a show when people laugh and think and feel a little more connected to other human beings at the end of it.

That’s the purpose of comedy, as far as I’m concerned. That and making obscene amounts of money as previously mentioned.

MR: What are some acts or performers besides Morgan Brayton worth checking out around town?

MB: Any chance you get to see Jan Derbyshire perform is a chance you should grasp. Brilliant, funny, brave, smart, great writing, captivating performing, snazzy shirts.

Graham Clark is a national treasure and the fact that Vancouver still has him is luck that will not last. Emmett Hall always feels like he came out of nowhere, no matter how much I anticipate his hilarity. Rosa Parks Improv doles out some pretty smart, sassy comedy for a bunch of girls. Paul Anthony’s Talent Time, the Hero Show and the Sunday Service are always surefire laughs. Alicia Tobin delights me to no end.

Vancouver also has a fantastic burlesque scene that features broad comedy with the added benefit of occasional nudity. Screaming Chicken’s Taboo Revue Burlesque Variety Show and the Vancouver International Burlesque Festival are great places to discover burlesque and its brand of playful comedy. This is an incomplete list and I offer no money-back guarantees, even though I can totally afford to do so because of all the money I make doing comedy.

Check out Morgan’s act at The Sad Comedy show this Thursday, January 13th at the Cobalt.

Funny man, Devon Lougheed, and storyteller extraordinaire, Lizzy Karp, have joined forces to bring you Hush Hush City – an online literary soap opera composed by eight anonymous improvisers and writers.

Save for Lougheed and Karp, no one, not even the contributors themselves, knows the identities behind each character. The contributors are assigned roles and the context of a hotel, in which all the characters live, and they post as little or as often as they like, incorporating the occasional twist thrown at them from the creators and the readers.

The literary experiment starts January 1st and runs until January 31st, after which time, there will be a launch party and the identities of the contributors will be revealed. We can’t wait!

Sad Mag: Who are the two of you?

Lizzy Karp: When not fronting Vancouver’s favourite indie-band Beekeeper, Devon Lougheed is a funny-man, thinker, writer, runner and lover of rock music (especially from the ’90s). I’m Lizzy Karp and I love stories – my involvement in Rain City Chronicles, the Vancouver Book Club and the radio show Feels Like Home are several ways I help to share them.

SM: How did you meet?

Devon Lougheed: We have lots of mutual friends, but had our first good chat at the Vancouver Is Awesome book club. We talked about how we each used to do lots of writing, but lost a supportive group of fellow writers after moving.

SM: What is Hush Hush City?

LK: Our tagline is an online, collectively-generated, anonymous, improvised writing experiment. But in practice it’s another way to connect this city’s ever-growing creative community.

SM: Is it set in Vancouver?

DL: In a way, this is up to our contributors. The official line is that Hush Hush City is not Vancouver, although other seasons have, admittedly, borrowed heavily on its neighbourhoods and geography. It’s only natural, I suppose! You’ll have to read and see!

SM: Why anonymous?

LK: Anonymity not only prevents writers from being biased or giving in to standard forms they are known for already, but it adds another layer of mystery. We hope while following Hush Hush City readers and writers will be asking themselves what Vancouverites are behind their favourite characters.

SM: What are you hoping for readers and contributors to take away from this project?

DL: For the contributors: a unique experience that challenges writers to be improvisers and improvisers to be writers. For the readers: that feeling that you get about ten minutes after drinking a triple espresso, but before the jitters set in. Oh and a little bit of fame would be nice, for all involved.

SM: What’s the end result going to be?

LK: We have no idea… and that is part of the magic! At the end we will be celebrating with writers and followers of Hush Hush City, and we’ve already got Season 4 in the works.

SM: I hear you two are good collaborators! What else are you working on together?

DL: Lizzy and I are training together for the Vancouver Marathon! 3:45, baby!

SM: What do you like best about working with each other?

LK: We share a very similar combination of creativity, inventiveness and excitement – and our American entrepreneurial genes ensure that we see the project through. It’s also been really exciting to see so many different groups of people become involved in a project together – it’s like facilitating a creative orgy without any of the messy cleanup or awkward mornings after.

SM: What do you like least about working with each other?

DL: Little known fact: Lizzy can’t do ANY work unless “Unbreak My Heart” by Toni Braxton is playing quietly in the background. I suspect she doesn’t really like my tendency to show up to meetings in spandex, but she’s been relatively nice about it.

Check out Hush Hush City, starting January 1st!

Photograph manipulation by Tina Kulic.

As 2010 comes to an end and “best of” lists pepper all publications, we decided to compile our top five Sad Mag quotes from Sad Mag’s five print issues.

In no particular order:

Just gimme a mic and a spotlight, the new tranny is in town.

Poet Antonette Rea as the “Person” in Issue #5, written by Daniel Zomparelli.

At a very early age, I told my mom I wanted to be a stripper.

Danielle Swanson discussing her burlesque career with Rebecca Slaven in Issue #2’s “Sister Act.”

It dawned on me that I have done exactly what I wanted to do, without pedantically following that dream.

East Vancouver drag sensation Cameron Mackenzie/Isolde N. Barron reflects on his path in Issue #1’s cover story, written by Deanne Beattie.

When I’m onstage, I’m thinking, ‘Everyone in the audience is gonna be my bitch. You’re-gonna-be-my-bitch.’

The cover girl of Issue #3, strip-hop performer Crystal Precious’ talks stage mentality with Jeff Lawrence.

Now I know we said this was in no particular order, but this fine gem by Graham Templeton in his article “Swine Flu” from Issue #2 is clearly the best Sad Mag quote of all-time:

Swine Flu is the American Apparel of things that give you diarrhea.

Here’s to many more great lines in the 2011 year!

-Happy Holidays from Sad Mag!

Tina Kulic is a sassy mother hen – she tells you like it is and feeds you hearty meals & wine while doing so. A regular Sad Mag contributor, Tina is a stunning photographer whose work captures an effortless warmth & sophistication.

This weekend, her work is showing alongside photographers Jamie Mann & Shane Oosterhoff – also a Sad Mag contributor, at the Eastside Cultural Crawl.

Sad Mag: How do you all know each other?

Tina Kulic: Langara Photo Program/lovers (well just two of us)!

SM: What made you decide to work together?

TK: We think think that our collections compliment each other. Our personalities also work well together.

SM: What is it you love about photography?

TK: The different variety of mediums to experiment with. For example, our show has canvas, digital prints, film prints and a lightbox. There is really no end to what you can do with photography!

SM: What do you find inspiring?

TK: Colour, texture and shape.

SM: Favourite subjects/things to photograph?

TK: For Jamie – hot models, for me – hot nudes, for Shane – hot dogs ;).

SM: Who are some favourite photographers/artists?

TK: Shane – Brian Mckinley, Scott Mcfarlane, Jamie – Tony Duran, mine – Elena Kalis.

SM: What are you day jobs?

TK: Shane is the studio manager for Jeff Wall Studios, Jamie shoots for a modelling agency, I photoshop for an architectural photography company.

SM: Why do you live in Vancouver?

TK: The ocean!

SM: Tell me a bit about the Eastside Cultural Crawl and your show!

TK: The crawl welcomes all artists. If you are established or new to the art world, there is space for everyone. As for our studio, we are showing a ton of different stuff. We have displays on canvas, double exposures, underwater photography, travel, landscapes, fashion portfolios and even “pawsh” dog portraits.

Jamie Mann, Shane Oosterhoff, & Tina Kulic
Part of the Eastside Cultural Crawl
Studio 207 – Railtown Studios
321 Railway Street
Showing:
Friday November 26th, 6:00 pm- 11:00 pm
Saturday November 27th, 11:00 am- 6:00 pm
Sunday November 28th, 11:00 am- 6:00 pm

Photographs by Damir Kulic.

_MG_0075 — Josh Drebit, Daryl King, & Ryan Beil.

Main Street Theatre is gritty, provocative, and intense. Like a rock being turned over, you cringe while your eyes are glued to the action festering underneath. In the intimate setting of Little Mountain Gallery, these productions feel startlingly real and leave you dazed with their energetic impact.

Sad Mag sat down over pints & shots with the local theatre folk to talk about their upcoming production, A Lie of the Mind, which we’re aching to see.

Sad Mag: How did Main Street Theatre start?

Daryl King: Over a few too many beers.

Josh Drebit: Daryl and Ryan were working on a show in Chemainus. Then they came to me and Bill Dow, and the rest of the team came from friends, and people whose work we respect.

SM: Why Main Street as the title?

JD: We knew the productions would be at Little Mountain Gallery and at the time we all lived and worked in the neighborhood. We also felt there were a lot of artists in the neighborhood who had no connection to theatre, and it seemed like a good time to bring theatre to this neighborhood. We had a few names involving Main Street, but this seemed the most straight forward.

DK: One of our mission statements is to do theatre in our community & really focus on the Main Street demographic.

SM: What’s the objective of Main Street Theatre?

DK: To produce great plays with an intimate feel.

JD: Generally, it’s to revive contemporary classics, and bring a new audience in to see them. Also, all of our shows are pay what you can – that’s very important to us.

SM: How do you find the theatre scene in Vancouver?

JD: I can only speak personally, but I love the Vancouver theatre scene. Like anyone I have frustrations at times but I think the best response to that is doing your own work, and further contributing to the community. I think we have all been pretty lucky by being supported by the Van theatre scene.

SM: What are some of your inspirations?

JD: I sometimes find inspirations from other artists, but it’s usually from friends and people I meet. Bartending is good for that.

SM: What do you do outside of theatre?

DK: Work down at the docks at the Port of Vancouver. Travel.

JD: I spend a lot of time with friends and family. And any chance to check out live music, or a game and I’m pretty happy.

SM: Tell me about your upcoming show.

DK: It’s rough & it’s epic.

JD: It’s about how two families deal with with a horribly violent act. Jake beats his wife Beth, and thinks he’s killed her. They both return to their own ridiculous families. It’s a dark play, but I think it’s very funny. Sam Sheppard is easily one of the great American playwrights.

SM: Main Street Theatre boxing?! How did I miss this fundraising event back in October? Do tell more!

JD: We literally kicked the shit out of each other and our friends to raise money. It was one of the best nights I’ve ever had. I don’t think anyone from the theatre community thought we were actually going to box.

DK: I beat the shit out of Ryan Beil & I only fought at 50%.

A Lie of the Mind
Little Mountain Gallery
Remaining Performances:
November 19 – December 4, 7:00 pm
No performances on Mondays
Call 604 992-2313 to make reservations

Photograph by Tina Kulic.

Give them something good to read this holiday season! Give the gift of Sad Mag for just $12, and remind your friends and family of your good taste the whole year through.

Order before December 18, and a copy of issue #5 will be delivered to the gift recipient in time for Christmas. Meanwhile, generous Vancouverites that place an order before December 18 will also earn an entry into a draw for a $100 gift certificate to Burcu’s Angels vintage clothing store. Visions of vintage furs and sequins dance in our heads!

To sign up for yourself or a friend, visit our subscription page. If you’re ordering for a friend, submit the recipient’s address as the shipping address.

Invite your friends on Facebook and share the Sad Holiday Magic!

There is magic in the air in the tiny basement theatre that is Studio 58 at Langara College.

It’s a palpable energy in the hallways that leads you to your seat, and it does not stop for the next eighty minutes, so sit back and allow yourself to be transported by their latest venture The Secret in the Wings.

Though there is much that doesn’t add up in Mary Zimmerman’s quirky mashup of fairy tales, director Mike Stack and his design team lead us down ever-shifting eerie paths – from the old curmudgeon next door who wants nothing more than for the young girl he’s babysitting to marry him, to women who blind themselves to save their own lives. Death, sacrifice and the infinite shades between good and evil permeate the piece.

Sure, there are impressive tricks, flashes of light, characters of all shapes and sizes crawling out of every possible corner of Yvan Morissette’s impressive set. But there are also sizeable laughs, notably from Mara Gottler’s overt costume design, which employs codpieces and whimsical crowns, as well as gorgeous simplicity.

The students onstage all deliver impeccable work, and I, for one, am keen to see their names in programs across the city as they near their graduation.

There is danger in here, danger which I wish the playwright would have pushed even further, but this production mines every possible moment the text allows and does it with a professionalism you’d be hard-pressed to match.

The Secret in the Wings
Studio 58
November 18th – December 5th
Tuesdays – Saturdays, 8:00 pm
Saturdays & Sundays, 3:00 pm

Photographs by David Cooper.

A Most Muppety Monday (among other things): The Work of James Lauder Marsden

Two Spirit, Let’s Hear It!

Kern me on!

Morgan Brayton

Hush Hush City

Top Five Quotes

Eastside Cultural Crawl

Main Street Theatre

Something good to read!

The Secret in the Wings