Kilts Night is a new Vancouver Tradition organized by Terry “Bear” Varga, of Bear Kilts – the official Kilt sponsor of Gung Haggis Fat Choy.

We meet around 7pm on the 1st Saturday of each month, at the Atlantic Trap & Gill, at the corners of Davie and Seymour Streets in Vancouver.  It's lots of fun – good food, good beer.  Live entertainment later in the evening.

January 1st, 2005, also marks the 2nd anniversary of Bear Kilts.  You can bet I will be wearing my new Maple Leaf tartan that I debuted December 7th, 2004, on CBC TV's the National.

2005 First Night Vancouver venue is changed for Gung Haggis Fat Choy

Gung Haggis Fat Choy will now appear at Library Square, Lower Level, in the combined Peter Kaye and Alma van Dusen rooms.  This room is located in the Library Square Promenade beside the Moat Gallery.  Just take the stairs to the Lower Level and turn left.

This means that we will be indoors instead of outdoors in a heated tent.  Much better for audience and performers.

Our shows will be about 30 to 40 minutes long each and will be at 6pm, 8pm and 10pm.  Get there early to ensure a good seat.

Performing with me will be Qiu Xia He and Andre Thibault from Silk Road Music, Karen Wong and Zhongxi Yu from Dragon River Shadow Puppet Theatre, David McIntosh from Battery Opera and contemporary singer LaLa, who was featured in the CBC “Gung Haggis Fat Choy” musical variety TV special earlier this year.

For tickets check the First Night Vancouver website or pick up advance tickets at Safeway for $10.  Otherwise $15 on site.

My friend Valerie Sing Turner is an actor.  Earlier this year she appeared in the Denise Chong theatrical premier for The Concubine's Daughter.  In 2003, she produced and starred in The Malaysian Hotel.  Valerie is an incredible woman, executive director for Visceral Visions, and board member for Touchstone Theatre, Canadian Actor's Equity and other organizations. 

  Valerie Sing Turner wrote:

…you'll hear yours truly on CBC Radio One! (690AM Vancouver/Victoria and 99.1FM Toronto)

I'm reading a 15-minute short story entitled “Versus”, which airs Thursday, December 30 at 2:30pm on The Round-Up, and again that evening at 10:40pm on Between the Covers. It's a lovely little story from the point of view of a 13-year-old Canadian Eurasian girl as she struggles to deal with her divided senses of loyalty and fairness when her father marries a woman from China.

Hope you had/are having a lovely Christmas holiday!

For people interested in find the story “Versus.” It is from the anthology Strike the Wok, stories by contemporary Chinese Canadian writers.  It is co-edited by my friend Jim Wong-Chu and Lien Chao.

December 28, 2004

Vancouver BC

Gung Haggis Fat ChoyÔ is pleased to present three shows for First Night Vancouver, December 31^st,
2004. This unique and wacky collision and collusion of Robbie Burns Day
and Chinese New Year, created by Todd Wong, will feature the global
opposite and yet culturally similar elements of Scottish Hogmanay and
Chinese New Year. Advanced buttons are $10 each. Family packs of 4
buttons for $35. $15 each at the door.

The shows take place
at 6pm, 8pm and 10pm at the Fun Too! Venue, located inside Library
Square on the Lower Level.  We will be in the combined Peter Kaye
and Alma Van Dusen rooms.  First Night Vancouver marks the first
time the culturally tongue-in-cheek elements of the ever popular Gung
Haggis Fat ChoyÔ dinner phenomenon have been especially re-created for a festival event.

Expect a Chinese bagpiper! Expect great cultural fusion music between East and West.

Sing along to “Scotland the Brave,”
and Burns’ perennial favorite, “Auld Lang Syne.” Enjoy Chinese
“something-or-other.”Expect East and West to collide for “My Bonnie Chow Mein Lies Over the Ocean,” and “When Irish Asian Eyes Are Smiling,” plus many more suprises!

Expect the Unexpected!

Joining host “Toddish McWong” are Silk Road Music’s Qiu Xia He and Andre Thibault, Dragon River Shadow Puppet Theatre’s Karen Wong and Zhongxi Yu, plus special guests Battery Opera’s David McIntosh, and East-West hip hop singer LaLa.

January 17^th, 2005.

Catch the Gung Haggis Fat ChoyÔ World Poetry Night
at the Vancouver Public Library Featuring Governor General’s Award for
Poetry winner Fred Wah, and hosted by Todd Wong, Ariadne Sawyer,
Alejandro Mujica Olea. This event is free and open to the public.

January 30^th, 2005

Catch the infamous Gung Haggis Fat Choy:
Toddish McWong’s Robbie Burns Chinese New Year Dinner. Special guest
hosts and performers include Shelagh Rogers, Tom Chin, Brave Waves,
Fred Wah and many others. This is the dinner that inspired the Leo
Award nominated CBC television special Gung Haggis Fat Choy.
Tickets now available at Firehall Arts Centre 604-689-0926. Fundraiser
for Asian Canadian Writers’ Workshop, Rice Paper Magazine and Gung
Haggis dragon boat team.

For more information contact

Todd Wong

Phone: 604-987-7124

Email gunghaggis@yahoo.ca

www.gunghaggisfatchoy.com

Christmas Eve morning with Shelagh Rogers and Chor Leoni for CBC Radio's “Sounds Like Canada”

It was a special invitation to attend an intimate concert by Chor Leoni with Shelagh Rogers for CBC Radio's “Sounds Like Canada.”
CBC producer Cathy Hunt telephoned me a few days ago to invite me
saying it was for “special friends.”  How could I refuse? 
Well… the 6am start time on Christmas Eve morning was a major
deterent, as many friends I invited to join me passed on this rare
opportunity to have their hand claps heard across the nation.

Diane Loomer with Chor Leoni wearing their special Choir Hockey Jerseys – photo by Todd Wong

Chor Leoni is conducted and was co-founded by Diane Loomer,
who also conducts the Electra Women's Chorus.  Many of the solos
were handled by Steve Maddock, whom I recognized from when he would
perform on with Julie Blue for Celebration of Life Centre
Sunday morning services.  His wife Serie also performed a
beautiful solo of Silent Night in the original German, with the
choir. 

Diane Loomer leading the audience in carol singing – photo by Todd Wong

The morning truly lived up to to the theme of “Grace” – chosen by
Shelagh Rogers, as she wove in the unique and sometimes inspiring
stories of some of the members of Chor Leoni.  For instance, a
story about a former Chor Leoni member, now a doctor helping to
heal a Haida elder by singing a song in Haida.  This led into
a rendition of Huron Carol.  During a break, Shelagh
commented  that time was just flying by, and that it always does
when things are going so well.

There was a short chat with a choir member who sailed around
the world spending Christmas in the middle of the Indian Ocean, which
led into Silent Night.  And there was a chat with the two choir
members who are Lutheran ministers, which led into Amazing Grace. 
And there was a particularly moving moment when Chor Leoni
performed their own version of the Leon Dubinsky song Rise Again, made popular by the Rankin Family, that was especially spiritual, afterwhich Shelagh reached for a kleenex and wiped tears from her eyes.

 Heather and Michelle singing along to O Holy Night – photo by Todd Wong

Joining me in attending the rare chance to attend a
live-to-broadcast session of “Sounds Like Canada” were Michelle Siu and
Heather from Rice Paper, published by Asian Canadian Writers' Workshop
(I'm a vice-president).  Michelle had just the night before been
working hard on the latest copy of Rice Paper Magazine trying her best
to ensure that an advertisment for Gung Haggis Fat Choy was included,
while at the same time, I was working hard with graphic designer Jamie Griffiths to finalize the 2005 GHFC poster.

 Me and Shelagh Rogers “Full of Grace”- photo by Heather

During one of the breaks, Shelagh Rogers introduced me to the
audience and choir.  “And we have Todd Wong with us this morning,
he is the creator of Gung Haggis Fat Choy, a unique combination of
Robbie Burns Day and Chinese New Year Dinner that has grown into
something quite special, but you know that don't you Todd?” as I nodded
back to her.

“And Shelagh Rogers will be co-hosting with me, and that is going to
be real special,” I said after I answered that the dinner would be on
January 30th.  “And here she is, already wearing a Chinese top,” a
lovely burgundy long sleeved Chinese style top knot-style buttons, with
graceful black skirt. 

“And YOU will be wearing a KILT!” laughed Shelagh!

Here is the 2005 Gung Haggis Fat Choy – final copy.  Designed by Jamie Griffiths.  Jamie is an incredible interactive multi-media artist.  She dances, she paints, she does computer graphic design, she conceptualizes far ahead of the curve.  For more of Jamie's work, check out www.jamiegriffiths.com

Gung Haggis Fat Choy prices are:

Early bird until January 3: $50 adults, $45 students, $35 children 12 and under.  After January 3: $60 adults, $55 students, $45 children 12 and under.