Ring in the New Year with movement, story and song with the Vancouver Maritime Museum. Nautical New Year is a virtual celebration for the whole family on January 2, 2021. This event is presented in two sessions, Semaphore & Story and Sea Shanties. You can sign up for one or both. Tickets are free, but you’ll need to register to secure your spot.
Semaphore & Story
10:30 am – 11:45 am
If your new year’s resolution is to learn something new, our first activity is just the thing for you. Matthew Richardson will be teaching semaphore. He’ll cover a little history, guide you through the process of making your own semaphore flag (all you need is paper), and teach you some semaphore signalling.
After a semaphore lesson, you can settle in for a story with author Nancy Mike. Nancy will read from her book, Elipasee and her Baby Seagull, a story based on her own childhood experience.
Nancy Mike is a throat singer and storyteller who also plays the accordion. She was raised in Pangnirtuuq (Pangnirtung), Nunavut and is passionate about sharing stories of life growing up in Nunavut. Currently, Nancy lives in Iqaluit, Nunavut, and works as a Research Associate for Family & Community Health with Qaujigiartiit Health Research Centre. Nancy is also an anaana (mother) to three beautiful girls and hopes to inspire them to love their culture and language.
Semaphore & Story starts at 10:30 and tickets are free.
Sea Shanties
1:00 pm
At 1:00 pm Lynn and Michael of Open Door Music School will present a program of shanties and songs about the life of a sailor in the days of wooden sailing ships. We will provide song sheets for participants, and Lynn and Michael will teach each chorus so you can sing along at home.
Lynn and Michael performing at the Wooden Boat Festival
Lynn and Michael have been singing songs of the sea for over 40 years. They were members of the Victoria shanty group, The Lime Bay Mutiny, and they founded the Vancouver shanty group The Armchair sailors and the Jericho Folk Club. Lynn and Michael have performed sea songs at their concert venue Open Door Music.
Sea Shanties starts at 1:00 pm and tickets are free.
Semaphore image source: CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=501830