In The House delivers what it promises

Some event producers, your humble narrator included, go to a lot of effort to endow the venues they put on performances in with a down-to-earth "living room" feel to put audiences at ease and lower the barriers between the cultural producers and the cultural consumers -- walls that, if maintained, eventually impede the performers from producing work that's relevant to their audience.

This comes easy to the people at In the House -- their venues are living rooms. Bucking automatic misconceptions many people labour beneath, that any experience worth being exposed to is best determined by the free market, served up by an international corporation, and achieved in a grand place of commerce, In the House instead matches citizens willing to open their homes to the public for a night with performers happy to play to a small crowd in an intimate venue, all for an audience of people who'll think nothing of knocking at the front door to be let into a venue containing a kitchen refrigerator decorated with children's drawings held on by alphabet magnets.

No, this isn't an elaborate attempt to wheedle through loopholes in Vancouver's draconian and outdated entertainment bylaws -- it's deliberate! They prefer it this way! And after trying it out, you might, too. While their flagship event is the annual In the House Festival, which sees a whole neighbourhood throwing open its living rooms, back yards and garages along several blocks, they are resolutely providing individual one-off performances as a series on a regular basis through the down season.

Tonight is one of those performances: "Fireside Stories" will be an evening of listening to a half-dozen master storytellers weaving their words: Nadia Cheney will host Philomena Jordan, Melanie Ray, evenSteven, Mary Gavan, Erin Graham, and Kai Simpson with Amiel Flett-Brown wrapping a net of language around the unwary listener, concluding with a fire show performed by Candice and Allison of Nucleus. The door you'll be knocking on is located at 5430 Oak Street, just south of 38th Avenue, and you ought to be rapping on it starting around 6:15 pm to ensure you get a good spot on the sofa for the 7 pm showtime. Tickets are $10-15 (children/adults) and are available at Zulu, Scratch and Highlife as well as at the door.