This afternoon event begins with a screening of Rogers's classic Witch's Night Out followed by a conversation with artists Johnathan Rogers and Gary Wolfe.
Witch's Night Out is a Canadian animated television Halloween special that premiered on NBC October 27, 1978. Produced in a Toronto studio, it was the sequel to the 1974 special The Gift of Winter with the vocal talents from Dan Aykroyd and Vlari Bromfield. It featured the voices of Fiona Reid as Nicely and Catherine O'Hara as Malicious, with Gilda Radner as the titular witch. Like the earlier special, Witch's Night Out was produced by John Leach and Jean Rankin for CBC Television. It later aired on the Disney Channel every year from 1983 to the late 1990s. This cartoon film was released on videotape August 5, 1995 by Family Home Entertainment.
The plot involves a witch who accompanies two children named Small and Tender with their babysitter
(Bazooey) to a Halloween party and transforms them into a werewolf, Frankenstein's monster, and a
ghost (previously their Halloween costumes). The witch takes them to the Halloween party-in-progress
at her house. Other citizens of the town get offended. They try to catch these supernatural and parnormal beings as a mob. The children and Bazooey spend the night as real eerie creatures but decide they need to become human beings again. A disco song entitled "Witch Magic" was sung in this film.
The current exhibition, Jonathan Rogers, The Complexity of Life focuses on work by an artist that many may not be aware. To understand the motivation and methods of an artist, there is a great value in the way that another artist sees their work. Although museums frequently rely on curators to lead investigations into the work of artists, rarely does this address what it means to be an artist. The artist Gary Wolfe is a friend and fellow Niagara Arts & Cultural Center resident with Mr. Rogers. This, in addition to their shared concerns for spiritual life, gives Gary a unique insight to Jonathan’s art.
This event is free with gallery admission.