Citie Ballet’s ‘Boundaries’ Preview for Vue Weekly

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Martine Martell Photography

I previewed Citie Ballet’s third and final production of its 2016/2017 season for Vue Weekly today.

This weekend, Edmonton’s Citie Ballet wraps its fifth season at the Timms Centre for the Arts with Boundaries—dance that challenges traditional balletic conventions.

The company’s artistic director, Jorden Morris says the two-part performance features something for everyone. Read more

The first featured ballet is choreographed by 22-year-old Kylee Hart, who’s also a dancer with Citie Ballet. It was incredible speaking with both Hart and Morris about the way they’re trying to push the conventions of their art.

Check out the company’s website to learn more about Boundaries and to grab tickets to the 7:30 p.m. evening performances on Friday and Saturday, as well as the 2:30 p.m. matinee on Sunday.

Edmonton Resilience Festival 2017 Preview for Vue Weekly

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Photo by Paula Gerein

In a preview for Vue Weekly, I had the chance to speak to Laura Ward, the director of the incredibly varied Edmonton Resiliency Festival.

Saturday’s third annual Edmonton Resilience Festival explores the many facets of sustainable living. Held at Waldorf Independent School, it is timed to coincide with the change of seasons in Edmonton and Earth Day. Read more

I’d never heard of this one-day, workshop-based festival before, but it’s brimming with opportunities to learn about living in a sustainably fulfilling way, and the workshops are ticketed individually. Check out the schedule and more info at the Edmonton Resiliency Festival website.

Sakura Quest Ep.3 Review: What Makes a Small-Town Community Special?

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Sakura Quest steadily eases into its narrative this week with a bit of introspection from Yoshino about the small town she commits to live in.

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‘Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid’ Series Review for Enthuse.ca

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I’ve got a full review of Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid (Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon) over on Enthuse.ca today.

Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid strikes a confident and consistent tone that meets and exceeds the animation and story pedigree set by previous episodic Kyoto Animation shows.

It tells the story of shapeshifting dragon Tohru, (Yūki Kuwahara) and her sudden ambition to freeload in the apartment of Kobayashi (Mutsumi Tamura), a female programmer by day and occasional, maid-otaku drunkard by night. Read more

If you want to read my full thoughts on one of the best Kyoto Animation anime ever, definitely check out my full series review on Enthuse. Of course, if you want to follow along as my heart fell for the characters in each episode, my weekly reviews are still live.

Still in Enthuse’s editing pipes: A fun podcast breaking down Makoto Shinkai’s Your Name.

List of 4 Great Winter 2017 Crunchyroll Streaming Anime For Enthuse.ca

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I’ve got a list of some of my must-watch shows from the winter 2017 anime season live on Enthuse.ca today.

Last season, anime streaming service Crunchyroll broadcasted subtitled simulcasts of 40 of the 46 new anime debuts from Japan, but here in Canada, those free, ad-supported streams only stay up for 13 weeks after they air. So before those episodes are locked away behind the $6.95 per month vault door of Crunchyroll Premium, here are four great shows you should watch from winter 2017. Read more

Still to come from me and Enthuse.ca, a podcast breaking down Makoto Shinkai’s Your Name, and a full series review of Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid.

Spring 2017 Anime Preview: Sakura Quest

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P.A. Works’ latest slice of life show, Sakura Quest, takes a recent university graduate’s job-search woes and spins it into another fun take on its real-world “Working” series of anime.

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Spring 2017 Anime Preview: The Royal Tutor

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While the first two episode of studio Bridge’s The Royal Tutor (Oushitsu Kyoushi Haine) fall squarely into the genre of comedy, they also do an excellent job of charting a path of character discovery to give its jokes some weight.

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Makoto Shinkai’s ‘Your Name’ Animated Film Review for Enthuse.ca

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Over on Enthuse.ca, I’ve got a review of Makoto Shinkai’s latest film, Your Name.

Your Name deserves the historic commercial success it’s enjoying — It takes the strongest points from director Makoto Shinkai’s earlier films and focuses them into a palatable, coherent experience that’s filled with human emotion.

High school students Taki (Ryunosuke Kamiki) and Mitsuha (Mone Kamishiraishi) mysteriously find themselves swapping bodies with each other, despite living in different parts of Japan and having never met. Read more

I’m having a lot of fun working with the Enthuse.ca team this week. You can anticipate a podcast talking more about the film, a series review of Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, and a recap of four of the best anime to watch from winter 2017.

Spring 2017 Anime Preview: TsukigaKirei

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Studio feel.’s latest foray into the teenage romantic drama genre with TsukigaKirei (As The Moon, So Beautiful.) strikes a pretty, but frustratingly boring premiere. The slower change of pace might have been its selling point if much of the debut didn’t feel like an ad for messaging service LINE.

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Spring 2017 Anime Preview: Alice & Zoroku

Alice to Zouroku Apr 10, 2017, 3.53.24 PM

In a double-length premiere that manages to be both action-packed and subversive, J.C. Staff’s Alice & Zoroku (Alice to Zouroku) teases a magical realism story with plenty of narrative hooks.

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