MEDIA RELEASE

Harbourfront Centre fires up the coolest food-fest Toronto has to offer...Stella Artois Hot & Spicy  2005

TORONTO July 13, 2005— Harbourfront Centre Summer Festivals uncorks the eighth installment of Stella Artois Hot & Spicy Food Festival: Island Soul Edition with the food theme  Fire and Ice, Friday July 29 through Monday August 1st. This festival fave returns with another stellar combination of music, food, dance and and excellent lineup of dub poets. This is a chance for the public to experience foods not found at most festivals.

Festival-goers can take the opportunity to observe and learn from celebrity chefs as they fire up the grill and spice up the dessert tray! The highly popular food demos take place Saturday, Sunday and Monday in Lakeside Terrace (ICE) and the Brigantine Tent (FIRE) and include an array of spicy cold drinks (wines and cesars) spiced desserts, grilled Bajan, Mexican, Pakistani and Greek foods.. And a definite hit last year – the Iron Chef Competition returns! This year, the Iron Chef Competition moves outdoors to the Toronto Star stage. The Visual Arts are represented in the Marilyn Brewer Community Space by Empty Bowls Fulfilled exhibition in partnership with the Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art. Empty Bowls Fulfilled is an extension of the Empty Bowls annual fundraiser by the Gardiner Museum. Admission to the festival all weekend is free!

Music throughout the festival cooks up an eclectic brew of sounds when musical legends The Last Poets (NYC), Dwele, internationally acclaimed singer Lizz Fields (Philadelphia), along with Michael Ramos’ Charanga Cakewalk (Austin) ignite the CIBC Stage throughout this holiday weekend! Steel Pan, Caribbean dance groups along with Hummingbird Tassa Drummers light up the Toronto Star stage. NOW Late Night Lounge presents hot rhythms and dance music all weekend long with DJ mixes and reggae grooves. Check out Abacus and Lupo and Late Night: Hedonism: The Launch of it Erotic Anthology featuring four artists.

Spoken Word and Dub Poetry takes a front seat at this year’s Hot & Spicy with Dub Poets’ Collective and Women of Dub featuring artists including Chet Singh, d’bi.young, Klyde Broox, a.k.a.Durm-I and Clifton Joseph, and Word/sound
digitizer diva Alexis Ohara, poet mystic Lillian Allen, dub chanter ritualist, Afua Cooper, spirit healer Andrea Thompson, word magic weaver Pam Mordecai, and ‘Blow it all to smithereens’, d’bi.Young. Canadian Urban Music Award-winning spoken word impresario Dwayne Morgan launches his latest book Erotic, an Up
From The Roots anthology in the Brigantine Room Sunday, July 31st.

FOOD FEATURES: Prepare to heat up and cool down on this fantastic food voyage! 
FIRE (in the Brigantine Tent all weekend) grills through global BBQ traditions including 
Pakistani kebobs, El Jacolito Mexican sausage and Greek souvlaki,  Southern USA 
(Joe Mamas) and Barbados (featuring internationally acclaimed Chef Peter Edey). 
Cooking demos won’t be 

the only opportunity to burn your tongue; the Red Hot Market will be returning as a 
place for the public to sample and purchase an eclectic variety of spices, sauces, 
marinades and dips - all with that hot and spicy flair. Lakeside Terrace offers three 
demonstrations of cool, spicy drinks featuring wine, beer and spicy Ceasars on 
Saturday.

The public can take in ICE in the Lakeside Terrace - which showcases savory spices including food demos by Chef Megan Malowany, The Restaurant at Sasi-Gourmet Thai, and Carole's Cheesecake Company Ltd. Last but not least, the Hot and Spicy Iron Chef Competition – Round Two will pit two proven chefs head to head as our panel of food experts provide play by play commentary and judge who will be crowned as Hot and Spicy Iron Chef 2005.

FILMS: A feature highlight of Hot & Spicy is Saturday night’s Toronto International Film Festival’s free, 9 p.m., outdoor screening of Bend It Like Beckham at the CIBC Stage. This free outdoor movie screening serves as thank you to the City of Toronto’s hospitality during the Toronto International Film Festival -- A Hot and Spicy Festival tradition! This year's film is the sleeper hit Bend it Like Beckham. A comedy about bending the rules to reach your goal, Bend It Like Beckham explores the world of women's football, from kick-abouts in the park to free-kicks in the final. Set in Hounslow, West London and Hamburg, the film follows two 18 year olds with their hearts set on a future in professional soccer. Heart-stopping talent doesn't seem to be enough when your parents want you to hang up your football boots, find a nice boyfriend and learn to cook the perfect chapatti.

In the Studio Theatre: Additional festival films beginning at 3 & 6 p.m. in The Studio Theatre include: Saturday: Fargo and Steppin. Razor Red X: The Peter Tosh Story; Sunday: Ice Age, Holy Smoke; Monday: Do The Right Thing.

DANCE: The Carnival Dance Jam (commissioned for the festival in partnership with the Extravaganza! festival) will explore the history of carnivals of the world through movement, costume and narrative. Choreographed and created by DanzArte Artistic Director Pedro Salazar. Drunkin Monks Break Dance Workshop, Latin Dance Theatre and Caribbean Folk Performers take the stage outside throughout the weekend.

KIDS CRAFTS: Marionettes

Kidzone Tent

July 30 - August 1, 1-6 pm

Celebrate the carnival weekend with make and take marionettes with artist Karen Bell. Karen Bell, an arts administrator, professional visual artist and muralist will be on hand to work with the kids. Through her company, 'kebcap studio' she designs, implements and teaches cutting-edge, multi-disciplinary art programs for children and youth across Toronto.

VISUAL ARTS: The Empty Bowls Fulfilled exhibition (in partnership with 
the Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art an extension of the Empty Bowls annual 
fundraiser by the Gardiner Museum) unites some of Toronto's best and most generous 
chefs with the region's best and most generous ceramic artists thorugh a photographic 
exhibit and display of ceramic works. Photography by Jennifer Givogue. 

 

World Café: Harbourfront Centre is proud to bring serves diverse and delicious 
cuisine from across the globe! We've tasted and tested hundreds of dishes so that 
you can get the best international treats. Every weekend, visitors have a chance to 
try food from different regions - examples include Africa, East Asia, Eastern Europe, 
Latin America, the Mediterranean, the Middle East, South Asia, the West Indies, 
as well fusion cusine. Hot & Spicy festival World Café vendors 
include: Curry Curry; Jamaican Jerk; Mr. Chicken; Mutya ng Pilipinas; 

Thai Bangkok; Viv's Catering; Sabor Dominicano; Canadian Caribbean Catering; 
Amadou's African Cuisine.

Media can access summer festival information through the Harbourfront Centre website

http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/summerfestivals/media.php

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Media Contacts:

Bill Bobek; 416-973-4428; wbobek@harbourfrontcentre.com

Rebecca Webster; 416-973- 4518; rwebster@harbourfrontcentre.com