Upcoming Shows

Pinch Cabaret #44
Sat Nov 29, 2025 - 8pm

Hosted and curated by curious specimen Ben Gorodetsky. Expect the unexpected!

Featuring:

• Kez & Grace are artists with a deep passion for all Jim Henson creations! You may have seen them at past Pinch performances or woven into local community events. They'll be performing selections from the classic 1977 made-for-Canadian TV Muppet holiday special, Emmet Otter's Jugband Christmas. Kez and Grace are joined by members of the Frogtown Hollow Jubilee Jug Band.

• Murád Alizada-Hamidlinski is an Azerbaijani-Canadian PhD candidate, military war crimes historian, former park ranger, hotel manager, butcher, baker, foreman, postman, librarian, archivist, archaeologist, surveyor, who was at some point officially born in XIX century, as a sickly Victorian child. For his act titled "Butcher, Baker, Candlestick Maker: the many masks of the Vicotrian remnant", you shall hear the gripping tales of the best job he ever had, as an 11-year old foreman, battling nature in the Soviet subway tunnels and discovering the human condition!

• Cypher (she/her) is a self-taught brown and queer Tamizh diaspora poet living in Canada. Cypher is currently working on her first full-length poetry collection - The Self is an Ocean -  which is slated for release in July 2026 with DarkWinter Press. Cypher will be sharing 7 poems - 4 from her upcoming collection, as well as 3 poems from her previous chapbook "Where the Clay Meets the Flame" which was self-published last year.

• Elfie Kalfakis is a multidisciplinary artist whose work explores trauma, mental health, and transformation through ritual, storytelling, and play. She is currently focused on creating indie publications and street art, embracing these forms as democratic, public-facing spaces for healing and dialogue. For Pinch Cabaret she will perform as “The Oracle of Elfie”, a cosmic messenger from the universe and an eccentric, playful being who channels insights through spontaneous rituals and intuitive play.  

• Nathaniel Voll (he/they) is a writer, actor, and visual artist who loves a good story and an even better audience. From the Willow River watershed, they create work that celebrates interconnection and community. In addition to displaying visual art around the cabaret space, Nathaniel will perform poems and tell stories which are sure to make you smile, reflect, or at least forget about your phone for a couple minutes.

• And for the Pinch Zine Series, this month we’ll release “puddle pedagogy” by sid drmay, which explores methods of mapping and discovery in your community by following puddles. sid drmay is an artist, maker and freelance journalist based in KW, ON with a deep passion for zines. They run KW Zinetopia, the Hamilton Zine Machine and the Open Source Hardware Association.

Advance tickets are $5 / $10 / $20 / $30 – you choose the option that’s right for you.

Indigenous community members are welcomed to attend for free.

Enormous thanks to Waterloo Region Community Foundation, Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Arts Council, Cities of Kitchener & Waterloo, and the Registry Theatre for their generous support, allowing for accessible ticket pricing!

VENUE:
We're at Hepcat Swing Studio (42 Erb St, Waterloo)

Pinch Cabaret thrives on new acts, and that means you!
Email Ben@PinchCabaret.com to submit.
All acts paid $$$!
All experience levels welcome.

Tremendous thanks to the funders of Pinch Cabaret:

• Waterloo Region Community Foundation

• Ontario Arts Council & Province of Ontario

• City of Kitchener

• City of Waterloo

Thanks to our funders we are able to offer accessible pricing for all shows: $5-$30, you choose!