Happy Pride Month! Did you know that June is also Dysphagia Awareness Month? Do you know what dysphagia is? Sure, you could hop on Wikipedia to find out, but why not come hang out with us and hear about it in person.
When: Thursday June 29th, 2023, at 7:30 pm
(Doors & bar open at 7:00 pm and the Fringe Grounds Cafe is open until 8:00!)
Where: Studio Theatre at Fringe Theatre Adventures
Fringe Theatre Arts Barn, 10330 84 Ave NW, Edmonton
How much: $25
Rob Browatzke: History of Edmonton Pride
For over forty years, Edmonton’s LGBT2Q communities have come together to celebrate Pride, but they have been celebrations marked by their struggles. From the 1982 festival in response to the Pisces Spa raid through the struggle to get a proclamation from the City to the recent years of community division on how Pride should look, the story of the festival his reflective of the changing nature not only of how our community fits into broader society but also what Pride even means
Rob Browatzke has been professionally active within Edmonton’s queer community since the late 90s, with a resume filled with gay bars of days gone by. For the last decade, he has been one of the owners of Edmonton’s only gay bar, Evolution Wonderlounge. He is also a researcher for the Edmonton Queer History Project, a writer for Rainbow Story Hub, published author, volunteer, advocate, and really, professional homosexual.
@robbrowatzke – Bird App
@robbrowatzke – Instagram
Gabriela Constantinescu: Taking the “dys” out of dysphagia: How to drink beer and not choke on it
June is Dysphagia Awareness month. In this talk, we’ll cover what it means to not be able to swallow, who is affected, and what we can all do to help a little bit.
Gabi is an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Communication Sciences and Disorders Department at the University of Alberta and Chief Experience Officer for True Angle, a local startup. Gabi started off as a speech language pathologist working in the clinic where she amassed over a decade of experience assessing and treating speech, voice, resonance, and swallowing difficulties in patients with head and neck cancer. Gabi then went on to obtain her PhD, where her research directly influenced the design and development of a mobile system for swallowing exercise. Gabi continues to engage in educational activities such as this one to raise awareness for those living with swallowing difficulties.
@Gabi_SLP – Bird App
@gabi_Constantinescu – Instagram
Harry MacDonald: Producing Drum and Bass Music: What goes into making a song?
Have you ever wondered what goes into producing a song? In this chat I’ll be going over my approach to writing songs and where I get inspiration to start music. As well, I’ll show what kind of work goes into the fine details of processing the song to get it to the final result.
Harry MacDonald is a drum and bass producer from Edmonton, one of the co-owners of Umbral Sound System which has hosted underground dance music events all over the city featuring their custom built sound system. He has releases on record labels spanning from Alberta to the UK.
@heymacmusic – Bird App
@heymacmusic – Instagram
Do you like or dislike the outdoors? Nerd Nite #73 is for you. Do you vote or not vote (holy crap please go vote)? Nerd Nite #73 is for you!
When: Wednesday May 24th, 2023, at 7:30 pm (not Thursday!)
(Doors & bar open at 7:00 pm and the Fringe Grounds Cafe is open until 8:00!)
Where: Studio Theatre at Fringe Theatre Adventures
Fringe Theatre Arts Barn, 10330 84 Ave NW, Edmonton
How much: $25
Featuring
Our DJ for NN#73 is Kena Léon, co-founder of Sapphic Speakeasy, which promotes safe dance spaces for female-identifying people on the spectrum.
Trent Wilkie: The Wilderness Lie
To some, the outdoors is a challenge; something to be conquered. The writing trope of ‘man vs. nature’ comes to mind. It is inherently a toxic relationship. The reality though is that any personification of outdoor pursuits can be dangerous. To paraphrase Madmen’s Don Draper, “The natural world is indifferent”.
Trent Wilkie is a writer/performer in Edmonton. Trent has written for CBC Radio, Fangoria Magazine, Exclaim Magazine, his blog/podcast The UnDad, and was the editor of several publications that are now defunct (a coincidence, he thinks). As well, he has written close to 100 sketches for collectives such as Mostly Water Theatre and The Regretzky Entertainment Group. Trent has also been a professional canoe guide for over 15 years and has paddled all over Canada.
@thetrentwilkie – Bird App
@thetrentwilkie – Instagram
Michael Ross: Whose Vote is it Anyway? Where the election system’s made up and your votes may not matter
Voting is fun and (usually) safe. But the way ballots are analyzed can directly change the results, allow for dishonest strategic voting, or even punish you for voting honestly in the first place. For one night and one night only, let’s take a deep dive into ways to vote, ways to count votes, and discover the single best voting system ever developed.
Michael Ross is allegedly a professional engineer, gets too excited by overanalyzing things with excel, and likes board games more than most people.
@mikerobe007 – Bird App
@mikerobe007 – Instagram
Scott Hebert: How Video Games Will Save Education
What is gamification? Why will it save education? How is life an RPG? All of these questions, and more, will be answered in this talk!
Scott Hebert is an educator of 12 years who has made it his goal to eliminate the stereotype that school is boring. In an effort to do this he has been recognized both provincially (Alberta Excellent in Teaching Award in 2013) and Internationally (Best Gamification in Education Project Globally in 2015 and Global Teacher Prize Top 50 Teachers in the World 2020) for his efforts towards promoting Gamification in the classroom. He lives by the message, “Would you want to be in your classroom?” and strives to achieve this goal daily. He is a single dad to two kids, lives in Fort Saskatchewan and teaches in Sherwood Park out of Elk Island Catholic School.
@MrHebertPE – Instagram
… and so do we! We promise. Well, at least once a month. And it’s on the day of Nerd Nite. Speaking of Nerd Nite, this month’s show is, as always, on the last Thursday of the month.
When: April 27, 2023, at 7:30 pm
(Doors & bar open at 7:00 pm and the Fringe Grounds Cafe is open until 8:00!)
Where: Studio Theatre at Fringe Theatre Adventures
Fringe Theatre Arts Barn, 10330 84 Ave NW, Edmonton
How much: $25
Featuring
Our DJ for NN#72 is Kelly Spriggs, aka. Triggs. He co-founded Umbral Sound System and is big in Edmonton’s Bass community.
Eliza Odyjewski: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD): Superstitions on Steroids Alongside a Faulty Alarm System
Eliza’s talk will address common misconceptions as portrayed in mainstream media about Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). As someone with OCD, she will use analogies, visual aids such as comics, and humour, to re-educate the audience about OCD, and in doing so, she hopes to remove some of the stigma toward OCD and other mental health disorders. She will also provide a list of resources at the end of her talk.
Eliza is a Jane of all trades in the realm of creativity. She is a visual artist, designer, photographer, interior decorator, amateur comedian, aspiring musician, and professional nap-taker. The topic of mental health is important to her because she feels that mental health knowledge and treatment should be accessible to everyone, and no one should have to struggle alone.
Stephen Raitz: Why walking and rolling matters in an auto-centric city
Sometimes it feels futile to advocate for better active transportation infrastructure in Edmonton when our transportation system is so focused on moving by automobile. But, every journey in Edmonton includes a walk and roll includes at some point. It’s the most fun, active, and sustainable part of our commute. Making it the safest and best option available has major positive repercussions for our communities.
Stephen Raitz is a Registered Professional Planner and is currently a Law Student at the U of A. He has been a part of the Paths For People Board since 2018, always equipped with a lot of enthusiasm for ensuring that everyone can walk, roll, or cycle around our city safely. Stephen is also an improviser with Rapid Fire Theatre.
@pathsforppl, @stephenraitz – Bird App
@pathsforpeople, @raitz.runs – Instagram
Rebecca Calder: From The Arena to Tanagra: The Feminisation of Starfleet
Okay so in 2267, Captain Kirk is marooned on a planet where he has to fight a giant lizard man. In 2368, Captain Picard is marooned on a planet where he has to team up with a lizard man. In 2014, I used this as an excuse to write an academic paper on how Star Fleet as an organization moved from relatively less feminist to relatively more feminist organizational structures (I got an A, obviously). In 2023, I’m going to be shoving this down your throat.
Rebecca Calder is a currently unemployed raging feminist who thinks she is extremely funny and that you should be grateful for the opportunity to hear her speak. The provided photo is one of her hosting Nerd Nite 69 (Nice) with two other Nerd Bosses cropped out. You’re welcome.
@beccstrats on Instagram and, Riker help us, TikTok.
