By Lindsey Rivait
Arts Editor
November 25, 2009

Charlottetown’s Two Hours Traffic delivers a darker album with their new Joel Plaskett-produced release, Territory.
With their previous release, 2007’s Little Jabs, having been up for the Polaris prize last year, Two Hours Traffic’s guitarist and vocalist Liam Corcoran says the pressure was on for the band to top themselves with Territory.
“It was a good type of pressure. We felt pushed to make a better record, and it is exciting, but it was a little bit more stressful,” Corcoran said.
“Anything that raised our profile like that, that means more people are aware of you and you feel you have to deliver on the next one because you never know how long you’re going to be able to do it,” he continued.
Territory surpasses Little Jabs as Two Hours Traffic demonstrates a more mature sound. They’re more confident this time around as well, despite the pressure, and that confidence definitely transfers to the album.
In the past, Two Hours Traffic stuck mainly to writing and recording songs dealing with young love. For Territory, the song selection process was much different as they wrote about whatever they wanted to.>>

By Alanna Magri
Lance Writer

November 25, 2009

Imagine a life without music, paintings, photographs, films, books, dancing, and drama. Imagine a day of silence, empty walls, and empty bookshelves. This is a Day Without Art (DWA).
Since 1989, every Dec. 1 serves as a global remembrance day of thousands of artists the world has lost due to AIDS.
This day draws our attention to the growing epidemic of AIDS and specifically AIDS within the arts community.
Beginning in the spring of 1985, a small group of artists located in Manhattan gathered to brainstorm ideas that would bring awareness to the issue of AIDS.
After years of meetings, Visual AIDS was formed in 1989. This group was dedicated to bring awareness to the issue and founded Day Without Art, and went on to create the symbolic red ribbon of AIDS.
The first DWA on Dec. 1, 1989, resulted in over 800 museums, galleries, and institutions from across the U.S. participating in the largest event to have brought about AIDS awareness.
Some of these participants decided to close for the day to symbolize a life without art at all, while other participants found other ways to bring about awareness.
This event attracted media attention from Peter Jennings and Dan Rather and thus started a tradition now approaching its 20th year.
DWA has grown during the past 20 years. >>

By Josh Kolm
Lance Writer
November 25, 2009

In 1919, George Bernard Shaw finished “Heartbreak House,” an attack on the (mostly English) society of indulgence and apathy that he believed allowed the first World War to happen. The University Players’ rendition of Shaw’s satirical masterpiece adeptly engages its audience to consider whether the same attacks could be levelled against certain people today.
Ellie Dunn (Daiva Zalnieriunas) is invited into the home of cranky yet sagely former sailor Captain Shotover (Davydd Cook) by her friend/his daughter, Hesione Hushabye (Alex Leafloor). Hesione, lustful and alluring, has invited Ellie and her father (Mateusz Lawrynowicz) to the home in an attempt to convince them both that Ellie’s intended marriage—to a man she doesn’t love—is a bad idea.
It is revealed that Hesione’s husband Hector (Eric Finlayson) has been wooing Ellie for months with extravagant stories under a fake name. Hesione doesn’t seem to mind, possibly encouraging Hector’s behaviour and she herself goes about tempting and playing with the affections of the males around her.
Ellie quickly proves herself to be far less innocent and romantic than she seems. >>