Getting Our Feet Wet At Paddlefest 2015

St. Andrews is one of New Brunswick’s greatest treasures. The small seaside town is a beautiful spot to do anything, or absolutely nothing. It’s provided a retreat for artists, and it’s the first stop for tourists this side of the American border. So when it came time for this year’s annual Paddlefest, we sent down Cory Richardson with a camera. Continue reading Getting Our Feet Wet At Paddlefest 2015

In Review: SJTC’s The Great Gatsby

As a rule, nothing is ever as good as the book. Tackling F. Scott Fitzgerald’s magnum opus, possibly the great American novel, and filling the shoes of some of literature’s most eminent characters is no small task. One need only look back as recently as Baz Luhrmann’s over-produced, over-hyped, and ultimately disappointing 2013 screen adaptation to see how easy it is to miss the mark. What all the money of Hollywood failed to do, director Ron Jenkins and The Saint John Theatre Company manage to pull off beautifully. Continue reading In Review: SJTC’s The Great Gatsby

Bob Boudreau: Making It Big In The Small Time

When I was growing up my father built a model railroad. Its first incarnation was nothing more than a plywood sheet with a couple of tracks running around a station, but it dominated our small garage. It later came to reside in the basement of our new house where it expanded; stucco mountains and lichen forests appeared, a small town settled next to the lake in the valley, and the number of trains passing through increased with every model train show we attended.

We’d buy stacks of old issues of Model Railroader Magazine, and while I’d be envisioning the vast miniature empires I might someday rule over, my father would point out photos from the magazine and say, “That’s one of Bob Boudreau’s. He lives here.”
Continue reading Bob Boudreau: Making It Big In The Small Time

Dale Cook: The Tell-All Story

Mother’s Day is fast approaching, and for everyone who has felt the need to point out that writing an article is nothing compared to the labour of love involved in carrying around a tiny developing human for ten months, here you have it. Ten months in, and finally the first chance I’ve had to write about my favourite artist, and undoubtedly The East’s greatest supporter, my own dear mother, Dale Cook. Continue reading Dale Cook: The Tell-All Story

The Quiet Reserve of Mo Kenney

Mo Kenney is wearing what we have decided is possibly the best cardigan ever. We don’t toss declarations like that around lightly. Not about cardigans, and especially not in the context of the rich history they have being worn by rockstars.

“Yeah, it’s great. I just got it,” Mo humbly admits.

It’s one of the longest winters in New Brunswick history, and despite the superior quality of Mo’s most excellent cardigan, I’m not sure it’s ready to to compete with the wind that’s been steadily gnawing at us.

“It’s a little cold,” is all Mo says, as the photographer begins to worry that he’s now shivering too much to get the shot. Three hours later, she’s announcing to a sold-out house, “I have a bit of a cold. I don’t know if you can tell,” before launching into a song. Continue reading The Quiet Reserve of Mo Kenney