Page 61 - 08_Oct-2025

photos STEPHAN VANFLETEREN; BIG STUFF ARE BY DAHLIA KATZ
Spotlight
WHAT TO READ
The Edmonton Queer History Proj-
ect, a community initiative documenting
local queer life and culture since the 1970s,
uses public records, oral histories and per-
sonal interviews to paint a detailed picture
of how the queer community has shaped,
and been shaped by, the city. The project
now celebrates its tenth year with Cruising
the Downtown: Celebrating Edmonton’s
Queer History. Edited by Dr. Kristopher
Wells, the book expands on the project’s
mission “by moving through civic land-
marks, sites of queer resistance, nightlife,
celebration, and activist spaces.” Readers
will recognize figures like Michael Phair,
the first openly gay politician in Alberta,
and Wallbridge and Imrie, who ran the
first female-run architecture firm in
Canada. It’s both a celebration and excava-
tion of stories that have been kept hidden
for too long.
Published by NeWest Press.
Available from your local bookseller
WHAT TO HEAR
In 2020, Kristian Matsson, who tours as The Tallest Man on Earth, moved back
to his native Sweden from New York, where he’d lived for a number of years. Spurred
by a need to help his family during the pandemic, what was meant to be a temporary
move stretched to 18 months, during which Matsson retreated to his garden and
waited for inspiration to strike — and did it ever. His seventh album, Henry St., is an
introspective record that sees him wrestling with the notion of how to exist in the
world today. Matsson is now touring Henry St. around the world, with an Oct. 20
stop at the Winspear Centre, a perfect setting for his raw, grainy voice. As a live
performer, the ever kinetic Matsson is a dynamo that commands the stage, but it’s his
proficiency with stringed instruments, including banjo and guitar, that make his
concerts a true spectacle.
At the Winspear Centre on Oct. 20. winspearcentre.com
WHAT TO SEE
Curated by artist Alaynee Good-
will-Littlechild, nâpêhkâsowinowâk |
ᓇᓇᓇᓇᓇᓇᓇᓇᓇᓇ explores modern warrior-
hood from the perspective of young
Indigenous men, including artists Lonigan
Gilbert, Evan Robinson and Matthew
Provost. It also features the spoken word
poetry of Taran Kootenhayoo, who died in
2020 at the age of 27. Goodwill-Littlechild,
who is the AGA’s TD Curator of Indigenous
Creativity, says raising her two boys in-
spired her curiosity about how Indigenous
men shape their identities. She hopes the
exhibition will “reshape perceptions of
masculinity by highlighting Indigenous
values that transcend Western norms.”
At the Art Gallery of Alberta from
Oct. 25 to Jan. 25. youraga.ca
WHAT TO WATCH
Marie Kondo’s “KonMari Method” asked if
our possessions “spark joy.” Big Stuff, the latest
production from comedy duo and real-life couple
Matt Baram and Naomi Snieckus, asks something
deeper: what do our things reveal about love and
loss? Opening October 18 at the Citadel, the show
blends improv, sketch and audience participation
to explore how objects tether us to those we cher-
ish — and those we’ve lost. The idea was sparked
by the death of their last surviving parent, which
left them confronting both grief and inherited
“stuff.” Their approaches couldn’t be more differ-
ent — Baram is a purger, Snieckus a keeper — and
that tension shapes the performance as much as
their partnership.
At the Citadel Theatre from Oct. 18 to Nov. 9.
citadeltheatre.com
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