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Ben Waldman

@benwaldman.bsky.social
361 followers 143 following 44 posts

Winnipeg Free Press arts reporter, theatre appreciator, music enjoyer, book considerer, film ponderer, bagel eater

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Reposted by Ben Waldman
Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 4h
The story of the gravesites of students who attended the Brandon Indian Residential School underneath the Turtle Crossing Campground is truly a Manitoba tragedy.
winnipegfreepress.com
Hero fought to remember children lost at residential school
The story of the gravesites of students who attended the Brandon Indian Residential School underneath the Turtle Crossing Campground is truly a Manitoba tragedy.
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Ben Waldman @benwaldman.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
good reminder that the Towne 8 sits dormant and for sale, prevented from becoming a movie theatre again under a development stipulation. As it stands, there's no first-run theatre in downtown Winnipeg, with only 1 screen (Dave Barber Cinematheque) remaining. www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-lif...
winnipegfreepress.com
Jan 2023: The town with no Towne
<p>Yellow triangles, lime green rhombuses, red rectangles and sharp black lines criss-cross the dark blue carpet on the floor of Towne Cinema 8, the first standalone multiplex to open in Winnipeg and ...
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Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 23/09/2026
More than five decades after their lives were derailed by a racist justice system, the provincial government has paid millions of dollars to three men who were wrongfully convicted in a 1973 Winnipeg homicide.
winnipegfreepress.com
Province paid three men wrongfully convicted in 1973 Winnipeg homicide $4 million apiece
More than five decades after their lives were derailed by a racist justice system, the provincial government has paid millions of dollars to three men who were wrongfully convicted in a 1973 Winnipeg homicide.
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Ben Waldman @benwaldman.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
tzom kal
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Reposted by Ben Waldman
The Brandon Sun @thebrandonsun.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
The NorthStar Project is outgrowing its temporary home at Vincent Massey High School. www.brandonsun.com/local/2026/0... #bdnmb
brandonsun.com
NorthStar Project nears capacity, seeks space
The NorthStar Project is outgrowing its temporary home at Vincent Massey High School.
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Ben Waldman @benwaldman.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Big sadness to lose the quickest laugher in the newsroom and of course one of the hardest workers I know <3
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Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 17/09/2026
WINNIPEG – The Winnipeg Jets have suspended goaltender Connor Hellebuyck for failure to report to training camp, the NHL club announced Wednesday night.
winnipegfreepress.com
Jets suspend goaltender Hellebuyck for failure to report to training camp
WINNIPEG – The Winnipeg Jets have suspended goaltender Connor Hellebuyck for failure to report to training camp, the NHL club announced Wednesday night.
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huck mason @tylerhuckabee.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
rip annie dillard
One of the things I know about writing is this: spend it all, shoot it, play it, lose it, all, right away, every time. Do not hoard what seems good for a later place in the book or for another book; give it, give it all, give it now. The impulse to save something good for a better place later is the signal to spend it now. Something more will arise for later, something better. These things fill from behind, from beneath, like well water. Similarly, the impulse to keep to yourself what you have learned is not only shameful, it is destructive. Anything you do not give freely and abundantly becomes lost to you. You open your safe and find ashes.
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Ben Waldman @benwaldman.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
shana tova to all -- may this year be more sweet than sour and may we all savour it in unison
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Reposted by Ben Waldman
Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 26/08/2026
Come fall, people will once again have the chance to dine more than two dozen storeys above Winnipeg’s downtown.
winnipegfreepress.com
New Skyline
Revolving restaurant to reopen atop Fort Garry Place
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Reposted by Ben Waldman
Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 17/08/2026
Seven-year-olds and 70-somethings will socialize daily when a 152-spot daycare opens inside of a senior’s residence in Winnipeg.
winnipegfreepress.com
Construction on daycare inside Simkin Centre to begin in fall
Seven-year-olds and 70-somethings will socialize daily when a 152-spot daycare opens inside of a senior’s residence in Winnipeg.
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Carl Wilson @carlzoilus.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Nothing's changed since effing Judy Garland. Pissed off on Hayden Panettiere's behalf, RIP. (The below is from Variety.)
Variety: "As Panettiere told People, when she was only 15, someone on her team began plying her with “happy pills” before she walked red carpets. “They were to make me peppy during interviews,” Panettiere said. “I had no idea that this was not an appropriate thing, or what door that would open for me when it came to my addiction… As I got older, the drugs and alcohol became something I almost couldn’t live without.”
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Corey Atad @coreyatad.com · 10/08/2026
trailer for James Gray's Paper Tiger happy to report, it appears movies continue to be back
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nicole buffie @nicbufflin.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
A year and some change after a wildfire levelled a residential area in Lac du Bonnet and killed two beloved people, I went back to see how residents are rebuilding and remembering. @winnipegfreepress.com www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews...
winnipegfreepress.com
Lac du Bonnet slowly healing from devastating fire
LAC DU BONNET — Fifteen months after devastating wildfires ripped through Lac du Bonnet, claiming two lives and destroying more than a dozen homes, residents are trying their best to build back better...
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Jordan Ross @jordanross.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
A moving story, told well by @benwaldman.bsky.social. Tough to read about the ordeal Jacob went through. I enjoy his music and I’m looking forward to his new album and his Folk Fest performances.
winnipegfreepress.com
Songwriter reckons with past, present on new album
Grab a kitchen scale and you’ll quickly see that Jacob Brodovsky’s newest LP is exactly the same weight as his last one, but Tell the Kids We Tried is still the heaviest music released by the singer-s...
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Reposted by Ben Waldman
The Globe and Mail @theglobeandmail.com · 26/05/2026
theglobeandmail.com
In Yiddish, Fiddler on the Roof embraces tradition – or traditsye
The Toronto production, directed by Broadway legend Joel Grey, features a mostly Canadian cast
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The Globe and Mail @theglobeandmail.com · 26/05/2026
theglobeandmail.com
Photos at the University of Saskatchewan could help corroborate residential school claims, Indigenous advocate says
Old snapshots may help survivors recall dates and events they have spent decades suppressing
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Ariel Gordon @ariel-gordon.bsky.social · 24/05/2026
This morning, I strat-planned with the MWG. But I spent the rest of the day reading a PDF of @davidjonfuller.bsky.social’s novel Venue 13, which will launch June 4 at @mcnallyrobinson.com.
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Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 26/05/2026
NEW YORK (AP) — Sonny Rollins, the tenor saxophonist and restless genius whose bold, distinctive tone and constant experimentation kept him on the cutting edge of jazz for more than 50 years, died Monday at age 95.
winnipegfreepress.com
Sonny Rollins, saxophonist and restless genius of jazz, dead at 95
NEW YORK (AP) — Sonny Rollins, the tenor saxophonist and restless genius whose bold, distinctive tone and constant experimentation kept him on the cutting edge of jazz for more than 50 years, died Monday at age 95.
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Sonny Rollins @thesonnyrollins.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
“I think when the creative person ends, he continues in the next existence. I’m a person who believes this life isn’t the be-all and end-all of everything. A spiritual person doesn’t feel like that.” –S.R. (2009) 2/2
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Keerthika Uthayakumar @keerthikau.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
Jared McCain outscored the Spurs bench 24-18 on his own before garbage time. Philly's bench combined for 24 or more points in 5 games this postseason.
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CJ Fogler @cjzero.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
Shai on Hartenstein was awkward, Zora jumped all over it
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Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 14/05/2026
Terry Garrow already received his flowers. Now he’s on a mission to make sure his late father gets his.
winnipegfreepress.com
‘He was before his time’
Garrow’s son on mission to get Indigenous hoopster inducted into Canadian Basketball Hall of Fame
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Jen Zoratti @jenzoratti.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
Did you know there’s a Heated Rivalry parody musical opening off Broadway next week? And did you know it’s being produced and directed by a Winnipegger? www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-lif...
winnipegfreepress.com
Heated Rivalry parody going full steam ahead in NYC
Alan Kliffer is bringing The Cottage to off-Broadway. The New York-based, Winnipeg-born and -raised impresario is directing and producing Heated Rivalry: The Unauthorized Musical Parody, which opens ...
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nicole buffie @nicbufflin.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
2/2 The training/lived experience they have is unmatched, and they handle every situation with the utmost compassion. Every city could benefit from having their own DCSP. Take a read and learn about them: Downtown’s heart and soul www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews...
winnipegfreepress.com
Community safety partnership’s green-clad foot soldiers hit Winnipeg streets to help
Half a dozen bleary-eyed employees sit around a dark wooden table at the Downtown Community Safety Partnership headquarters.
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Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 11/05/2026
Downtown Winnipeg’s landmark Fort Garry Hotel is back on the market.
winnipegfreepress.com
Historic Fort Garry Hotel up for sale
Downtown Winnipeg’s landmark Fort Garry Hotel is back on the market.
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Reposted by Ben Waldman
Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 11/05/2026
Housed within two innocuous rooms flanking the Welcome Gallery at Manitoba Museum is a sobering record of a government’s betrayal of its own citizens.
winnipegfreepress.com
Secrets & survival
Exhibition takes Canadian history of Chinese oppression from the archives into the light
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Reposted by Ben Waldman
Matt Seybold @mattseybold.bsky.social · 10/05/2026
Retractions never get proportional attention. This one should.
arstechnica.com
Influential study touting ChatGPT in education retracted over red flags
The retracted study on ChatGPT in education was already cited hundreds of times.
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Ben Waldman @benwaldman.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
Rest in model airplane pieces to Gerry Fingler, 87, who ran Cellar Dweller on Main Street in Winnipeg for 50 years until closing up in 2021. #wfp www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-lif...
winnipegfreepress.com
May 2021: After 49 years, Gerry Fingler is closing the doors of Cellar Dweller
Gerry Fingler walked around his hobby shop Friday morning, its shelves looking emptier than ever before, wondering as he had for the last several months where all the time had gone.
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Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 07/05/2026
Local arts leader Larry Desrochers takes home the prestigious 2026 Manitoba Arts Award of Distinction.
winnipegfreepress.com
Larry Desrochers wins Manitoba Arts Award of Distinction
Local arts leader Larry Desrochers takes home the prestigious 2026 Manitoba Arts Award of Distinction.
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Jen Zoratti @jenzoratti.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
I love Ningiukulu Teevee's poignant, playful work, so this was a fun one to write. www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-lif...
winnipegfreepress.com
Nunavut-born graphic artist gives traditional tales a cheeky twist at new solo show at Winnipeg Art Gallery-Qaumajuq
Ningiukulu Teevee is a graphic artist. But she is, first and foremost, a storyteller.
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Brian Fauteux @brianfauteux.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
We're doing a project on public infrastructure for music in Canada and doing a final call for musicians to participate in a survey on musicmaking at this particular moment. If you'd like to do this, please email me at: fauteux@ualberta.ca. Or pls share with others who may be!
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Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 06/05/2026
The province is appointing an administrator to temporarily oversee the Town of Winnipeg Beach after a series of resignations from a council beset by personal conflicts and allegations of inappropriate behaviour.
winnipegfreepress.com
Provincially appointed administrator to step in after Winnipeg Beach town council implodes amid conflicts, allegations
The province is appointing an administrator to temporarily oversee the Town of Winnipeg Beach after a series of resignations from a council beset by personal conflicts and allegations of inappropriate behaviour.
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Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 06/05/2026
Nearly four dozen cats have been taken out of a hoarding situation by a Winnipeg non-profit and its leadership said mass rescues are happening more often.
winnipegfreepress.com
City non-profit responds to call for help, rescues 43 cats from hoarder
Nearly four dozen cats have been taken out of a hoarding situation by a Winnipeg non-profit and its leadership said mass rescues are happening more often.
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Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 02/05/2026
The Green Party has complained to the Times' editor about this cartoon which they say pushes antisemitic tropes against Zack Polanski by portraying him with a hooked nose. "Zack faces daily anti-semitism, and in the past six weeks two people have been arrested for anti-semitic actions towards him."
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Ben Waldman @benwaldman.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
been really enjoying taking musical recommendations from books I'm reading -- what the characters play -- and the films I'm watching as a means of anti-algorithmic listening, and inevitably, the obit column. This has led me to Roberta Flack, Chaz Jankel, Teo Usuelli, 'Til Tuesday and David Wiffen.
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Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 25/04/2026
Niigaan Sinclair is the top columnist in the country.
winnipegfreepress.com
Sinclair honoured at National Newspaper Awards
Free Press columnist named Canada’s best
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Keerthika Uthayakumar @keerthikau.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
Brandon Ingram shot 3-for-15 from the field tonight & finished with a 23.3 TS%. It's the worst TS% by a Raptor with at least 15 attempts in a playoff game all-time.
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Stuart Berman @stuberman.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
With album No. 43 dropping next month, I put together a guide to Guided by Voices for @bandcamp.com Daily, featuring input from @sad13.horse, Good Flying Birds, @ratboysband.bsky.social, Kiwi Jr., @weirdnightmare.bsky.social and 2nd Grade: daily.bandcamp.com/lists/guided...
daily.bandcamp.com
This Bob’s For You: A Guide to Guided By Voices
The influence of Guided by Voices has seeped into all corners of pop—here's where to start.
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Eva Wasney @evawasney.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
Boring News is marketed as a solution to declining local news in Canada. In reality, the website is AI news slop filled with errors, made up quotes and fake photos. My story for the @winnipegfreepress.com: www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-lif...
winnipegfreepress.com
False information, misleading images rife in Manitoba-based AI-driven 'news' service
In a rapidly evolving media landscape, the rise of Boring News, an AI-generated news outlet, highlights the growing tension between technology and journalism. While it aims to fill local news gaps acr...
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Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 18/04/2026
Discarded cannabis packaging and related products are posing ongoing challenges to Winnipeg’s waste-and-recycling streams — including becoming a fire hazard at the Brady Road landfill.
winnipegfreepress.com
UP IN SMOKE: Cannabis vapes causing fires at Brady landfill
City launches trial on collection of vapes at 4R depots
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Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 19/04/2026
The Peguis First Nation declared a state of emergency as leadership said flooding is now a certainty.
winnipegfreepress.com
Peguis First Nation declares state of emergency
The Peguis First Nation declared a state of emergency as leadership said flooding is now a certainty.
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Oh No He Didn't @ohnohedidnt24.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
CP3 after the Clippers loss lmao
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Oly Backstrom @olybackstrom.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
Sometimes one place (and one person) can have a disproportionate effect on the livability of a city. Thank you John Scoles for Times Changed (and for Blue Note Park, one of my favourite summer places in Winnipeg). From @benwaldman.bsky.social www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-lif...
winnipegfreepress.com
Venerable Winnipeg music venue celebrates 25 years with changes that stay true to its roots
In the weeks since the trusty old bartop was dismantled and a longer one was built in the backroom at the Times Change(d) High & Lonesome Club, the venue’s self-appointed president and janitor Joh...
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Cadence Weapon @cadenceweapon.bsky.social · 10/04/2026
This is the final single from my upcoming album Forager, dropping in two weeks!
youtube.com
Cadence Weapon, Junia-T - Toronto Zoo (feat. James Baley) [Official Video]
YouTube video by Cadence Weapon
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Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 09/04/2026
WINNIPEG – A First Nation prone to flooding and the Manitoba government are calling for help from the Canadian military as spring conditions are putting the community at risk of flooding again.
winnipegfreepress.com
Manitoba First Nation, premier call for military aid as flooding threatens community
WINNIPEG – A First Nation prone to flooding and the Manitoba government are calling for help from the Canadian military as spring conditions are putting the community at risk of flooding again.
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Winnipeg Free Press @winnipegfreepress.com · 09/04/2026
Premier Wab Kinew pressed Tory Leader Obby Khan on Thursday to acknowledge and take responsibility for “dehumanizing” and “hateful” comments toward Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara, who is non-binary.
winnipegfreepress.com
‘You deserve to wallow in the shame that is your life’: Kinew blasts Khan for comment about non-binary MLA
Premier Wab Kinew pressed Tory Leader Obby Khan on Thursday to acknowledge and take responsibility for “dehumanizing” and “hateful” comments toward Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara, who is non-binary.
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Alex Plante 🐀👑 @aplante.com · 01/09/2025
i can’t draw cars but i had to share the best license plate i’ve ever seen #comic
two panel comic titled “lmao this license plate i saw the other day”

1. an old shitty toyota camry or something idk it was a bit of a beater car
2. close up on the license plate. it says “SOBBING”
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Katelyn Burns @katelynburns.com · 31/03/2026
It's Trans Day of Visibility today. If you're trans and are raising money for something (I don't care what it is), reply to this thread and I will boost you. If you are a cis person, take a look and find someone to support if you can. Everyone give this a share after.
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Marsha McLeod @marshamcleod.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
Proud this morning to see two of my stories from last year recognized with National Newspaper Award nominations. The first, about the second-generation cut-off, which has been referred to as a genocide “in paper form” for First Nations people. www.winnipegfreepress.com/featured/202...
winnipegfreepress.com
Indian Act's ‘second-generation cut-off’ poses an existential threat to treaty people in Canada
Thanks to the Indian Act’s ‘second-generation cut-off,’ First Nations people face a baffling and offensive equation when it comes to their status rights.
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