McSweeney’s List (19, April 2023)
This week McSweeney’s (Play)List is just drums. Play it. Read the list. You’ll get it.
I don't travel much. I've often wondered if I'd be more inclined to explore had I been born somewhere else, or was born rich AF.
As laid back as Montrealers notoriously are, I'll be the first to admit the weird arrogance I carry having been born here. Visiting Florida, I was shocked by the fact that the oldest building in town had been built in the 1920's. Pardon me? Our cobblestone and architecture are comparatively ancient.
When my kiddo Shaina went to the Louvre, she stood in a crowd of people holding up their phones and she took the same pictures as they did. She assured me it was exactly as dystopian as it sounds. (She loves to travel, and can’t read this in real time as she’s currently somewhere between “at sea” and “in a jungle”. Let’s be serious, she won’t read this.) Having been spoiled by world class art exhibits coming to Montreal, visiting the Halifax museum, I was called "bougie" when I was shocked at how small it was, how little art it held. It was beautiful though, modern, clean, everything it housed -- from Maud Lewis’ home (yes, an entire home), to stunning Norval Morrisseau pieces, to a single giant Kent Monkman on tour -- was well chosen. Honestly, I mean no offence.
I've met people from all around the world while chillin’ in good ol’ Montreal. Whether they’re here to visit, to study, or to start a new chapter of their lives, I’m always curious to hear what they've seen, what brings them here, and what they think of what we have going on in Montreal. Had I been born in a tiny town with no such outside influence, I would never get the privilege of that perspective.
Out of town guests provide a fun opportunity for me to view my beloved hometown through fresh eyes. For instance, I only went inside the Queen Elizabeth Hotel when I personally knew people who were staying there. A pop culture hot spot, I knew it was right there, but why would a Montrealer go inside?
Everyone knows we have a world class food scene, and yet it’s so easy to grow complacent. In a city where restaurants open and close before we can learn their names, and food trends fly by fast, our old, faithful faves can become automatic choices. As such, having an out of town guest this past weekend became a veritable food tour, the highlight of which was a Ramen place where you grind your own black sesame. On a street filled with Ramen places, I probably wouldn't have taken the time to research and pick, but such things matter deeply when you've only got a few days to taste everything.
By the same token, left to my own devices, I likely would've skipped Tam-Tams this weekend. I'd been looking forward to it, and then lost steam. Again though, there's no time to procrastinate on a vacation, so we had to grab life by the ovaries and make a show of it for our guest. As always, I was grateful to be there.
I first heard about Tam-Tams when I was about 15. An older friend invited me to what he called "a smoke-in at the mountain, like a protest". Based on the description, I'm not sure he'd ever been. Considering how bad I am at lying, and how non-existent my boundaries are about who should know what, I proudly told my folks about it, and they shut it down. Always theoretically supportive of a protest, they were also fairly certain I was destined to get my ass arrested, so I couldn't go.
It would be another year or so before I actually went, and it was magical. To this day, I am genuinely moved by the whole scene each time as if it's my first time. My body attunes itself to the drums, my bones sing softly to me that I am not far from folklore and rituals. In a sea of comparisons about how there are only two seasons (in Montreal), I stand by “it’s Tam-Tams season or not”.
For the uninitiated, Tams is a Sunday drum circle, picnic, dance party, populated by hippies, hipsters, acrobats, LARPers, puppies and babies, even the odd addict. Anything or anyone I've omitted is strictly for the sake of brevity. <<Gigglesnort>> It is a kind-hearted free-for-all.
In my early 20’s, I would walk over the mountain from the West. The drums would pa-rum-pum-pum-pum in my bones before my ears could hear them. It felt primal: I imagined long journeys, and this, the sound of return. Like an animal closing in on home, my pace would quicken as I rushed headlong to the strangers who felt like family.
The Tams Wiki entry states "It is not an officially sanctioned nor sponsored event, simply a regular if technically spontaneous event". While there are a million stories as to how it started (there are a couple of leading urban myths, such as the Saguenay Witch), all we know is that it's been consistently, and repetitively, spontaneous for over 60 years. The vendor spaces have always been first come first serve, outlined in chalk, and we've never heard of any wild conflicts. People of all stripes come to hang in peace and music, in a city known for popping off whether our team wins or loses. It's fucking beautiful, y’all.
When I do deign to travel, I want to move to wherever I am within 36 hours. I love hard, and get caught up easily. My best friends know this and keep me loosely tethered to concrete things ensuring that I don't float away. Still, even in those daydreams, the first thing I know I would miss is Tam-Tams. Now, living a hop skip and a jump away from the mountain, I don't go every single sunny Sunday. It's funny, isn't it? The way we can take things for granted due to proximity, the way we put the things we love on the backburner. You know it's there, but you don't have to be there. But I wish you were.
I do. Knowing it's there and taking part two are different things. Watching and dancing are not the same, and your heart knows that. Go. Do the thing. Chase the joy. Run to your drums, and dance as hard as you can.
The Personal Is Always Universal
Roger White and Helen Simard are cool, talented humans. They're each in the middle of at least a few creative projects at any given time, plus the cool stuff they get to do together. And here's a great example of that.
Because You Never Asked "is an archive of complex family history. One that is innocently painful, naïvely complex, and beautifully tragic."
The multidisciplinary piece is based on discussions Roger had with his grandmother Marianna Clark (née Goldmann) about her experiences of fleeing Nazi Germany and becoming a refugee.
Content from letters and diaries she wrote in her teens and early 20s are included alongside recordings of her speaking into her 90s.
The story unfolds in two different timelines simultaneously, merging past and present, exploring the liminal space in which memories are constructed and reconstructed through time.
While deeply personal, it speaks to the generational impact of diaspora, the pieces of family history so easily lost as people fled, rebuilt, tried to forget.
A few weeks ago, our Creative Director Andrew Jamieson sat down with Roger to discuss the piece, and we recently covered choreographer Helen Simard’s first year student’s performance.
WHAT: Because You Never Asked
WHERE: MAI Centre, 3680 Jeanne-Mance St, Montreal, H2X 2K5
WHEN: Thursday, April 20 - Saturday, April 22, 730 PM
METRO: Sherbrooke (Orange) / Place des Arts (Green)
TICKETS: Tuxedo Billet
Bagels & Boobs
I was lured by bagels, and reeled in by "weird burlesque". The Bagel Burlesque Expo (started in 2016) is the first NeoBurlesque festival in Montreal. What the hell's that? Apparently "It’s an art form blending striptease and theatre which draws inspiration from genres as various as comedy, popular culture, horror or bizarre".
2 nights, 2 different shows, more than 25 artists from Montreal and beyond.
Hosted by Sugarpuss and Sucre à la Crème, with Mohawk burlesque sensation Loulou la Duchesse de Rière as the Saturday headliner. Special guests include Joy Rider, Zyra Lee Vanity, and Rosie Bourgeoisie .
WHAT: Bagel Burlesque Expo 2023
WHERE: Le Studio TD, 305 Saint-Catherine St. W., Montreal, H2X 2A3
WHEN: Friday, April 21 & Saturday, April 22
METRO: Place des Arts (Green)
TICKET: Le Studio TD
Laugh In Luxury
Have you ever watched stand-up in a lounge / bar decorated as an homage to 1920s luxe and glamour? Me neither, and I must admit that giggling till I snort in a swanky Tudor mansion sounds lovely.
5 profesh comics, full kitchen and bar, and excuse to dress up if you feel like it.
WHAT: Comedy Night at Club Atwater
WHERE: Club Atwater, 3505 Atwater Ave., Montreal, H3H 1Y2
WHEN: Friday, April 21, Doors @ 7 PM, Show @ 8 PM
METRO: Atwater (Green)
TICKETS: EventBrite
Like A Mall, But Not Really
The Loser Jamboree's Punk Rock Flea Market is back at Foufs for all your weirdo needs. Prints, pins, T-shirts, ceramic, taxidermy, they've got all the stuff non-normies love. Wanna have a good time without buying "stuff"? That's cool too! They've got you covered with "DRINKS! LAUGHS! DUMB JOKES! COFFEE! AWESOME MUSIC! OUR FAVOURITE PEOPLE!"
WHAT: Punk Rock Flea Market
WHERE: Les Foufounes Électriques, 87 St Catherine St. E., Montreal, H2X 1K5
WHEN: Sunday, April 23,11 AM - 6 PM
METRO: St. Laurent (Green)
INFORMATION: Facebook
Making Art Matters
Drawn & Quarterly is starting a Zine Club!
Wanna make zines but don't know how? Tired of art-ing all by your lonesome?
Zine Club!
Hard to stay motivated at home? Wanna share ideas with other creatives?
Zine Club!
Open to everyone 16+, no experience necessary, materials will be provided, and you're also welcome to bring your own.
WHAT: Zine Club
WHERE: Drawn and Quarterly, 211 Rue Bernard W., Montréal, H2T 2K5
WHEN: Monday, April 24, 7 PM - 9 PM
METRO: Rosemont (Orange)
INFORMATION: Facebook
Not As In Strange, Just Queer AF
Queer stand-up is back with a star-studded lineup of comics making their Queer Comedy All Stars Debut! Come laugh your face off!
Featuring: Sarah Warren, Rachel Kalmanovich, Sara Maleika, Ingride Rose-Garcia, David Zuniga, Tony Mcintyre, and Sandy.
WHAT: Queer Comedy All Stars
WHERE: The Diving Bell Social Club, 3956 St Laurent Blvd., 3rd Fl., Montreal, H2W 1Y3
WHEN: Tuesday, April 25, Doors @ 7:30 PM, Show @ 8 PM
METRO: Mont Royal (Orange)
INFORMATION: Facebook
McSweeney’s List drops every Wednesday with the best events to catch each week in Montreal. Don’t forget to SUBMIT YOUR EVENT to be listed!
