Back
to main episode
Meet Christine Hooper. She kicks things up in the Annex where she teaches the new kids English, works at Toronto’s preeminent sparts bar, and is working on opening her own yoga studio. In between all that, she performs as Hooperstar under the bigfix label and will be performing at the big bigfix launch this September.
Where did you grow up? Why?
I spent my formative years in a small town called Orono. I haven't grown up yet.
How long have you been in Toronto?
I've been in and out of Toronto for more than 20 years.
Toronto is…
Toronto is the best place in the world to live six months a year.
What do you do for a living?
Currently I am tending bar and teaching English to pay the rent and entertain myself. I hope to have a yoga studio up and running in a month or so.
What keeps you busy?
Opening a yoga studio and making a living keep me busier than I want to be. It's even hard to find time to be Hooperstar.
What was your favourite summer job?
My favourite summer job just came to an end a couple of days ago. I was tutoring a lovely Japanese man. Tutoring turned into tour guide and I had a great time seeing Toronto from a tourist's point of view.
Dream job? Why?
I want to host a travel show. I love to travel, I love to have a camera pointed at me and who wouldn't want to eat bugs?
What’s your passion?
My passion is traveling. If I make it to Antarctica next year I will have stepped foot on all seven continents and can then die with a smile on my face.
If I say jump?
...oh, might as well jump ...you got to roll with the punches ... Sorry, can't remember any more ...
What do you give back to the No Fly Zone?
I've been getting people drunk in the no fly zone for almost 20 years.
What can we do to make Toronto a "world class" city?
We'll be a world class city when we stop caring if we are one or not. It's all about attitude.
Are you an artist?
Of course I'm an artist darling. Isn't everyone?
How does art influence your life?
My boyfriend and I just moved into a new place and we still don't have anything up on the walls. So right now, art is affecting my life with its absence.
Hands or feet?
I'd have to say hands. Off hand, I can think of more possibilities.
Worst public moment?
Hard to choose the worst possible public moment. Probably the first day on a new waitressing job when my feet went out from underneath of me and I dropped a sunny side egg breakfast down a ladies back.
Why do you live here?
Right now I live here because it's the best city in the world for six months of the year. Ask me again in six months and I might have a different answer with more swear words in it.
Two Beatles left: Ringo and Paul. Who wins in a smackdown?
Ringo, hands down.
Favourite public space?
My favourite public space is the patio at Kilgour's in the summertime when I'm not working.
Who are your favorite artists?
Timothy Findley and bigfix.
Mon Chi Chi, My Little Pony, Barbie? Discuss.
I did play with one of those anatomically impossible things when I was a child. I think it scarred me for life.