Featuring Crime Writers of Canada Stars

Louise Penny and Giles Blunt

CRIMEWRITING: TESTING THE LIMITS

Giles Blunt is one of Canada’s master crime writers, and his latest book, Breaking Lorca, tests the limits of the genre in its focus on a crime against humanity. A conversation with New York Times bestselling crime writer. Louise Penny focuses on the appeal – and the limits – of the genre. This event will be followed by the announcement of the shortlists for the

2009 Arthur Ellis Awards

Hosts

Anna Asimakopulos — CBC

N.A.T. Grant — Crime Writers of Canada

After the event a Meet & Greet with Louise, Giles & a host of additional

Crime Writers of Canada authors will be held in the Blue Met Hospitality Suite.

Refreshments served.

Thursday, April 23^rd — 6 pm

11^th Blue Metropolis Montreal International Literary Festival

Delta Centre-Ville Hotel at 777 University Street

English 10.00 $
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Bloody Words June 2008
A Bloody Good time was had by all

NAT was invited to be on a BW panel but spent most of her time talking with her friends and Canadian authors at Canada's national mystery writers conference held in Toronto this year.

As a Director of Crime Writers of Canada, NAT met up with some new and some old on the executive.

Canadian Mystery & Crime writers ~ Check out their websites and scroll down for more

NAT with (left to right) Kay Stewart (President of Crime Writers of Canada)
Anthony Bidulka ~ author and Prairie VP for Crime Writers of Canada
Vicki Delany  ~ author of Novels of Suspense and Mystery in the Canadian North


Sue Pike ~ author and publisher with authors Michael Blair and Lou Allin



Author Rick Blechta  with Crime Writers of Canada's WONDER WOMAN Cheryl Freedman  
Cheryl "she who must be obeyed" Freedman is the engine behind Crime Writers of Canada. 
Mystery writers who know her ~ love her.


Sex and Vilence Panel with authors John McFetridge   Michael Slade   skip MC to Rick then the wonderful and entertaining Mary Jane Maffini


NAT


Come meet  Crime Writers of Canada's authors
NAT Grant , Louise Penny, Michael Blair, Robert Landori

Winning at Crime:

“Spotlighting Canadian Mystery/Thriller Writers”

 Crime Writers of Canada Presents the
25^th Annual Arthur Ellis Mystery Awards Shortlist Announcement 

  Atwater Library Auditorium
Montreal 1200 Atwater Avenue  (corner of Tupper and Atwater) 
A Free Public Event   
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scroll down to read about NAT at the Imperial War Museum
or
her review of Guy Sprungs play

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December NAT Grant was in England.

Her travels took her to Central London, Arlesford & Winchester (Hampshire), Dorchester on Thames & Oxford (Oxfordshire), and Wickambrook near Newmarket (Suffolk)

While in London, NAT met up with best-selling British novelist
 and film producer Peter James  for Breakfast at the Wolesley Restaurant on Piccadilly just beside the magnificent Ritz.

(Peter kindly sent NAT this picture as she forgot to take one of him)

Check out below what NAT thought:



    I arrived at the Wolseley Retaurant a wee bit early, but Peter had made a reservation so I was immediately seated and given a menu to peruse. Duck eggs and Haggis struck me as an unusual dish for an uncommon breakfast. Then Peter arrived. He looked uber cowboy chic wearing a textured silky shirt, a tailored blazer sporting a miniature gold pin in the shape of handcuffs (more on that later) and jeans — mmm — a sharp dressed man. He immediately put me at ease by ordering coffee and a bottle of sparkling water while assuring me that everything on the menu was good, thus I couldn’t go wrong with the haggis. We chatted a bit about things Canadian like maple syrup. I have to admit being a trifle excited so I tried to look calm and non-menopausal. My plate arrived with two monstrous duck eggs perched on top staring up at me. I stared back until Peter quipped, “They look like goggles.” Quite right. We laughed and started talking about the film world at which point he did a marvellous impression of Alfred Hitchcock. I was impressed with this man of many talents and oozing charm at every turn of phrase.      

    As I had brought him the gift of an aboriginal Dream Catcher, we got onto the topic of dreams. He knew of one American native ritual where it was requisite for the males to narrate their dreams. Those with visions containing deleterious metaphors were punished. Knowing of bygone American Indian torture from my research, I responded. “In that case, if I had a dream with disadvantageous content, I would lie.” Peter tentatively agreed (probably wondering how moral I was).   

 Not being a regular of the theatre going crowd, yet intrigued by the topic of this unusual play, I decided to tow my theatre reviewing friend, Christina Manolescu, along with me to take in Guy Sprung’s new Infinitheatre play The Source. As I understand it, this play is Guy Sprung’s tribute to his father, Mervyn Sprung, and is based on his book: The Magic of Unknowing.

 I have always been stymied by philosophy yet intrigued by the ideas of great thinkers and of the improvable metaphysical realm. The description of what one could expect while sitting in the Bain St. Michel Theatre was that nine of the world's greatest philosophers, Aristotle, Descartes, Kant, Hume, Nietzsche, Wittgenstein, Pyrrho, Chuang Tzu and Nagarjuna, would sit under an ancient gnarled maple tree to discuss and argue about the nature of humankind's reality. I drove through a snowstorm to get there and arrived about ten minutes late.

  The stage and seating at Bain St. Michel are submerged in the rather sizeable defunct pool creating a wonderful retro ambiance fitting for an ‘off Place des Arts’ event. On stage sat ten actors, two female and eight males. One female was propped on cushions off to one side while eight others sat on rather uncomfortable looking chairs across the stage. The tenth stood behind an off-side podium. Number ten was speaking from a handheld script. He spoke in a monotone giving a description of the absent props: a gnarled tree, blue sky, a squirrel and so on. The depiction was well written and clear so I wasn’t disappointed about the lack of setting scenery (It finally dawned on me that this was a play reading and one should not expect costumes and props). The summary of the next hour and forty-five minutes is that each actor played the part of one of the philosophers listed above. Each one had more or less a ten-minute speech, which Guy Sprung described as an Aria. There was very little interaction amongst the actors. In fact, they all sat following the play on their handheld scripts. This is where real acting comes in. I will list the actors and give my impressions of how they presented their own Aria. I really couldn’t go into the content because I frankly didn’t understand most of what they said and I had trouble figuring out who fit which philosopher until they were halfway through their soliloquy.

 Noel Burton — Immanuel Kant — A deep, somewhat troubled and passionate portrayal. Engaging.

Eric Davis — Ludwig Wittgenstein — Absolutely brilliant, inventive, playful and interactive. Bravo #1.

Carolyn Guillet — The Brother from Elis — Substantial presence given the male entourage yet carried a certain softness given the profound topic.

Alex Ivanovici — Freidrich Nietzsche — I fell in love. A consummate performance given by a seasoned, Old World actor. Bravo #2.

Mathieu Lepage — René Descarts — Youthful, thoughtful presentation of a difficult script and topic.

Bonnie Mak — Chaung Tzu — Under used talent in this play. Good improvisation added energy to her part.

Omari Newton — David Hume — I think we will see more of this unique, versatile, captivating actor. Having a Scottish heritage, I go giddy over Scottish brogue and he too captured my heart. Bravo #3

Jaspreet Singh — Nagaraj — Carried his part with the grace of a maharaja.

Guy Sprung was the tenth actor reading from the podium. His rendition was a dry, tired portrayal. I think he was tired. After it was over, I found out that this group of actors had only met and read through their parts once.  That impressed me. Sprung wanted feedback from the audience. A few questions were asked and then brownies and wine were served at a casual post-play-reading soirée.

Having had a few days to reflect on this play, I can say that I loved the acting, but the content needed a chewing over to make it palatable for a general audience — ten minute convoluted philosophical renderings punctuated only with one actor switching for another is mind numbing. I wanted and expected the dialogue to be more interactive. I think that perhaps Guy Sprung needed to have taken a focus, such as the gnarled tree, and had that be the point of argument. He asked “Should this play be burned?”  Well, no, rewritten perhaps, using feedback from the wonderful array of actors he convinced to participate. Or perhaps not — this may  have been a play not for the philisophically challenged but for the highbrow.


The Source was a dramatically overpowering performance, but it didn’t help me to understand how to live in our world, at least, not from a philosophical point of view. However, if this reading was meant as a work in progress, then I, indeed, would say it has the potential to be a great play. I’m glad I went and I was also relieved that the snow squall had dissipated when I departed.
 
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