Things to Do in Vancouver This Weekend

South Africa brings the fireworks, the Caribbean brings a carnival, teens bring Shakespeare, and Pride brings interactive art to Vancouver this weekend, along with a cat conference, a bunch of kink, some soccer and a bit of guided forest therapy.

 

Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Ongoing



Friday July 27

A Midsummer Night’s Dream: A Teen Shakespeare Play
Where: Performance Works Outdoor Stage
What: The annual Teen Shakespeare Program stages outdoor, all-ages productions on Granville Island with a festival-style village, concession, and activities for the kids before the show and during intermission. Admission is free but seating is limited.
Runs until: Saturday August 11, 2018

Pride Premiere
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza
What: Kick-off Pride with life-size interactive art pieces, silent disco with multiple DJ’s, beer garden, a sober lounge, community groups and vendor village, food trucks, and a banging main stage.

Angels Wear White

Angels Wear White
Where: VanCity Theatre
What: In a small seaside town, two schoolgirls are assaulted by a middle-aged man in a motel. Mia, a teenager who was working on reception that night, is the only witness. For fear of losing her job, she says nothing. Meanwhile, 12-year-old Wen, one of the victims, finds that her troubles have only just begun. Trapped in a world that offers them no safety, Mia and Wen will have to find their own way out.
Runs until: Tuesday July 31, 2018

Shabbat Dinner with Pride Colours
Where: VanDusen Botanical Garden
What: Celebrate Pride at a community-wide, family-friendly dinner. Everyone is welcome to register whether you’re Jewish, Jew-ISH, Jew-QRIOUS or just a friend of the tribe.

Vancouver Fetish Weekend

Vancouver Fetish Weekend
Where: Harbour Event Centre
What: Meet, party, play, flirt and maybe more with hundreds of local and global fetish enthusiasts from all over the world with an international community of partiers, performers, models, designers, artists and photographers.
Runs until: Monday July 30, 2018


 

Saturday July 28

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Celebration of Light: South Africa

Celebration of Light: South Africa
Where: English Bay
What: It’s the annual fireworks competition! Tonight is South Africa. Fireworks for Africa was the winner of the 2016 International Pyrodesigner Championship, Italy. This dynamic team has now produced pyrotechnic shows in 34 different countries and prides itself on being South Africa’s leader in the Fireworks Display Industry.

Caribbean Days

Caribbean Days
Where:
Waterfront Park (Vancouver’s North Shore)
What:
A weekend of tropical rhythm, presented by the Trinidad & Tobago Cultural Society of BC cuisine. Join in on some carnival and culture as only the Caribbean can offer.
Runs until:Sunday July 29, 2018

FlyOver Canada’s Sounds of Summer Series

FlyOver Canada’s Sounds of Summer Series
Where: FlyOver Canada deck
What: Every Saturday in July and August, talented local artists will perform on the FlyOver Canada flight deck from 12:30 – 3 PM.
Runs until: Saturday August 25, 2018 (Saturdays)

Vancouver Whitecaps

Vancouver Whitecaps vs. Minnesota United
Where: BC Place Stadium
What: It’s a soccer game, it’s an enthusiastic crowd, and it’s a local favourite.

The Psychedelic Furs

The Psychedelic Furs
Where: Commodore Ballroom
What: Led by vocalist and songwriter Richard Butler, and his bass-wielding brother Tim, the Furs scored major hits with Love My Way, Pretty In Pink, Heaven, The Ghost In You, and Heartbreak Beat. Make sure to go early to see the local New Wave opening act, Girlfriends and Boyfriends.

CAG Family Day

CAG Family Day
Where: Contemporary Art Gallery
What: Join previous Ballet BC Artist in Residence Andrew Bartee for an afternoon of dance and performance inspired by the pattern and rhythm in the work of Channa Horwitz.

Bring Your Own Story: Story Visualization Workshop with Artist Shoshannah Greene

Bring Your Own Story: Story Visualization Workshop
Where: Museum of Anthropology
What: Express yourself, your history and your connection to the land through storyboarding in this hands-on workshop, led by Haida artist SGidGang.xaal, Shoshannah Greene.

Forest Therapy

Forest Therapy
Where: Stanley Park
What: Vancouver’s first certified forest therapy guide will lead an exploration of the basics of “forest bathing” – a restorative practice inspired by the Japanese tradition of shinrin-yoku. Your guide will lead your through a series of “invitations” designed to calm our minds, by physically slowing down and connecting with your senses.

Crabs, Clams, and Other Coastal Critters | Image by Devon Yu

Crabs, Clams, and Other Coastal Critters
Where: Stanley Park
What: Pack your beach booties for this walk and prepare to be blown away by the bizarre life in Stanley Park’s intertidal zone. From orange armoured sea cucumbers to red feather duster worms.

Vacationer

Vacationer
Where: The Biltmore
What: American electronic-pop band, on tour to support their latest release.


 

Sunday July 29

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Meowfest
Where: Yaletown Roundhouse
What: Meet your favorite celebrity cats, enjoy food truck fare, listen to speakers and entertainment, do some shopping, schmooze with adoptable cats and more at this cat-filled conference.

Brewery and the Beast

Brewery and the Beast
Where: Concord Pacific Place
What: A festival of meat and beer with a focus on local farmers and producers.

Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda

Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda
Where: VanCity Theatre
What: This documentary portrait of the legendary Japanese composer is perfectly in sync with the artist’s introspective demeanour, his environmental awareness, and musical compositions that are simultaneously elegantly spare but deceptively complex and ultimately overwhelming.
Runs until: Sunday August 5, 2018


 

Ongoing

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Playland Nights
Where: Playland
What: An adults-only night of exhilarating rides, carnival games, food, Playland-inspired cocktails, craft beer, virtual reality racing, burlesque shows, and axe-throwing while DJs spin and you wander the park – with no children.
Runs until: Friday July 27, 2018 (Fridays)

Once
Where: Arts Club Theatre
What: A Dublin street musician is struggling through heartbreak and frustrated with his songs when he chances upon a girl who challenges him to go for his dream. With a company of actors who all play instruments onstage, this theatrically breathtaking musical is a captivating love song, a foot-stomping melody, and a bittersweet duet.
Runs until: Sunday July 29, 2018

Bark: A Closer Look
Where: VanDusen Gardens
What: Three artists emphasize the amazing textures, shapes and abstractions of a tree’s bark.
Runs until: Sunday July 29, 2018

Caribbean Days

Caribbean Days
Where:
Waterfront Park (Vancouver’s North Shore)
What:
A weekend of tropical rhythm, presented by the Trinidad & Tobago Cultural Society of BC cuisine. Join in on some carnival and culture as only the Caribbean can offer.
Runs until:Sunday July 29, 2018

Philippe Garrel: Definitions of Love
Where: The Cinematheque
What: Regarded in his native France as one of the most indispensable filmmakers of the post-New Wave generation, Philippe Garrel has, over the past 50 years, created an extraordinary body of impassioned, immensely personal work that has gone virtually unseen in North America.
Runs until: Monday July 30, 2018

Vancouver Fetish Weekend

Vancouver Fetish Weekend
Where: Harbour Event Centre
What: Meet, party, play, flirt and maybe more with hundreds of local and global fetish enthusiasts from all over the world with an international community of partiers, performers, models, designers, artists and photographers.
Runs until: Monday July 30, 2018

Angels Wear White

Angels Wear White
Where: VanCity Theatre
What: In a small seaside town, two schoolgirls are assaulted by a middle-aged man in a motel. Mia, a teenager who was working on reception that night, is the only witness. For fear of losing her job, she says nothing. Meanwhile, 12-year-old Wen, one of the victims, finds that her troubles have only just begun. Trapped in a world that offers them no safety, Mia and Wen will have to find their own way out.
Runs until: Tuesday July 31, 2018

The Puppet Master: The Films of Jiří Trnka
Where: The Cinematheque
What: Revered as the pioneer of a remarkable new genre of animation that utilized puppets, Trnka conveyed the drama and psychology of his characters through his figures’ body language, expressive lighting, and camera movement. His approach to puppet film as a serious art form was born out of the lively Czech puppet-theatre tradition, which had played an important role in preserving the Czech language during centuries of Hapsburg rule.
Runs until: Thursday August 2, 2018

Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda

Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda
Where: VanCity Theatre
What: This documentary portrait of the legendary Japanese composer is perfectly in sync with the artist’s introspective demeanour, his environmental awareness, and musical compositions that are simultaneously elegantly spare but deceptively complex and ultimately overwhelming.
Runs until: Sunday August 5, 2018

A Midsummer Night’s Dream: A Teen Shakespeare Play
Where: Performance Works Outdoor Stage
What: The annual Teen Shakespeare Program stages outdoor, all-ages productions on Granville Island with a festival-style village, concession, and activities for the kids before the show and during intermission. Admission is free but seating is limited.
Runs until: Saturday August 11, 2018

Theatre Under the Stars

Theatre Under the Stars
Where: Stanley Park
What: Enjoy a delightful dose of family-friendly outdoor entertainment this summer with two Broadway musicals. Cinderella and 42nd Street will be performed live at the Malkin Bowl – a beloved Vancouver tradition since 1940.
Runs until: Saturday August 18th, 2018

Kitsilano Showboat

Kitsilano Showboat
Where: Kitsilano Outdoor Pool
What: It’s a local outdoor variety show that is entirely volunteer run and has been a summer tradition since 1935. See the schedule, or even better – just go!
Runs until: Saturday August 18, 2018

FlyOver Canada’s Sounds of Summer Series

FlyOver Canada’s Sounds of Summer Series
Where: FlyOver Canada deck
What: Every Saturday in July and August, talented local artists will perform on the FlyOver Canada flight deck from 12:30 – 3 PM.
Runs until: Saturday August 25, 2018 (Saturdays)

Mountain Music Series
Where: Grouse Mountain
What: Listen to music and meet other hikers, music-lovers and beer enthusiasts, or get a group of your buddies together to switch up your regular routine.
Runs until: Friday August 31, 2018 (Fridays)

Avocado Toast

Avocado Toast
Where: Vancouver Improv Centre
What: Vancouver is known internationally for its spectacular beauty, friendly citizens, and vibrant multicultural milieu. Beneath the glossy surface lies a complicated and eccentric city ripe for parody. In a series of vignettes, VTSL’s quick-witted improvisers lampoon such local stereotypes as our obsession with fitness (Grouse Grind and yoga, anyone?), quirky neighbourhoods (The Drive, Main St., Kits, Gastown), and foodie scene (coffee culture, craft breweries/distilleries, avocado toast).
Runs until: Saturday September 1, 2018

Emily Carr in Dialogue with Mattie Gunterman

Emily Carr in Dialogue with Mattie Gunterman
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: The work of two women artists practicing in British Columbia in the early twentieth century. This exhibition draws on the Vancouver Art Gallery’s deep holdings of Carr’s work to reflect her direct engagement with and great affection for British Columbia’s landscape. Like Carr, much of Gunterman’s oeuvre reflected her engagement with the wilderness around her which she documented with images of friends, campsites, trappers, prospectors, miners and the day to day of pioneer life.
Runs until: Monday September 3, 2018

Home Away from Home

Home Away from Home
Where: Bill Reid Gallery
What: In a new gallery space dedicated to highlighting community and emerging artists, this exhibit highlights stories of the Cultural Sharing Program at the Carnegie Community Centre as represented by the individuals who participate.
Runs until: Sunday September 9, 2018

David Milne: Modern Painting

David Milne: Modern Painting
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: David Milne (1882 – 1953) enjoyed a career that spanned half the twentieth century, taking him from the bustling cityscape of New York, to the battlefields of Northern France and Belgium, and back to the wilderness of the Canadian and US landscape. During his progression as a painter, he carved out a distinguished place among Canada’s most original artists.
Runs until: Sunday September 9, 2018

Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival

Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival
Where: Vanier Park
What: What do you say to watching a live production of Macbeth, Timon of Athens, As You Like It or Lysistrata in a custom-built tent on the beach while sipping wine, beer, and munching on a picnic lunch themed to the play? Yes! Right? And don’t even get us started on the amazing costumes.
Runs until: Saturday September 22, 2018

BC Sports Hall of Fame All-Access

BC Sports Hall of Fame All-Access
Where: BC Place Stadium
What: Get behind the scenes of BC Place Stadium. Walk out onto the field, check out the team locker rooms, and even stroll through the premium lounges.
Runs until: Thursday August 30, 2018

Cabin Fever | Image from the Series “Ice Huts” by Richard Johnson (cropped)

Cabin Fever
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: This exhibition traces the tradition of the cabin in Canada and the United States—from the settlement of the frontier to depictions showing how this humble architectural form has been appropriated for its symbolic value and helped shape a larger cultural identity.
Runs until: Sunday September 30, 2018

Sea Snaps
Where: Vancouver Maritime Museum
What: A display of work by Maria Steernberg. This exhibition highlights the beauty of Vancouver’s maritime setting and our beautiful coast line through a series of themes; the working waterfront, cruising, nature and disaster.
Runs until: Sunday October 7, 2018

Vancouver Farmers Market - Dude Chilling Park

Vancouver Farmers Market – Dude Chilling Park

Mount Pleasant Farmers Market
Where: Dude Chilling Park
What: Vancouver’s easy-going Sunday market located on the east side of Dude Chilling Park – the gathering place for a diverse crowd of young families, artists, dog owners, and quirky neighbourhood personalities.
Runs until: Sunday October 7, 2018

Arts of Resistance: Politics and The Past in Latin America

Arts of Resistance: Politics and The Past in Latin America
Where: UBC Museum of Anthropology
What: This premiere exhibition illustrates how Latin American communities use traditional or historic art forms to express contemporary political realities. Featuring art and multi-sensory installations from Mexico, Guatemala, Peru, Honduras, Ecuador and Chile, with special attention to marginalized communities.
Runs until: Monday October 8, 2018

Culture at the Centre

Culture at the Centre

Culture at the Centre
Where: UBC Museum of Anthropology
What: Five Indigenous-run cultural centres in BC will be showcased representing six communities: Musqueam Cultural Education and Resource Centre (Musqueam), Squamish-Lil’wat Cultural Centre (Squamish, Lil’wat), Heiltsuk Cultural Education Centre (Heiltsuk), Nisga’a Museum (Nisga’a), and Haida Gwaii Museum (Haida). Covering a wide geographic expanse from Vancouver to the Nass River Valley, this marks the first time the participating communities will come together to share their diverse cultures in one space.
Runs until: Monday October 8, 2018

Trout Lake Farmers Market
Where: Trout Lake
What: This is where you’ll find the vendors who have been doing it since the beginning; what started as 14 farmers ‘squatting’ at the Croatian Cultural Centre back in 1995 has grown into Vancouver’s most well-known and beloved market. Visitors come from near and far to sample artisan breads & preserves, stock up on free-range and organic eggs & meats, get the freshest, hard-to-find heirloom vegetables and taste the first Okanagan cherries and peaches of the season.
Runs until: Saturday October 20, 2018 (Saturdays)

Kitsilano Farmers Market
Where: Kitsilano Community Centre
What: At Kitsilano Farmers Market, shoppers will find a great selection of just-picked, seasonal fruits & vegetables, ethically raised and grass fed meat, eggs, & dairy, sustainable seafood, fresh baked bread & artisanal food, local beer, wine, & spirits, and handmade craft.
Runs until: Sunday October 21, 2018 (Sundays)

Riley Park Farmers’ Market
Where: Riley Park
What: 30+ vendors each week – a fresh selection of just-picked seasonal fruits & veggies, ethically-raised meats & sustainable seafood, artisanal bread & prepared foods, craft beer, wine, & spirits, handmade craft, and coffee & food trucks.
Runs until: Saturday October 27, 2018 (Saturdays)

The Really Gay History Tour
Where: Downtown Vancouver
What: Guests will visit the sites of police raids, bookstore bombings, the “kiss-ins” of Granville Street, Imperial Court coronations, and the gayest beer parlour in town. It’s a 2.5 hour long adventure into the stories of a community that fought back against oppression, police brutality and media hate campaigns to make Vancouver today one of the most queer friendly cities in North America.
Runs until: Sunday October 28, 2018

Ayumi Goto and Peter Morin: How do you carry the land?

Ayumi Goto and Peter Morin: How do you carry the land?
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: This exhibition seeks to bridge the experiences of artists with diverse ancestries in dialogue. Long-time collaborators and friends, Goto and Morin, have created a performance art practice informed by their perspectives as a Japanese diasporic woman and Tahltan First Nations man.
Runs until: Sunday October 28, 2018

Kevin Schmidt: We Are the Robots

Kevin Schmidt: We Are the Robots
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: An exhibition of innovative installations on view both within and outside of the Gallery spotlighting British Columbia-based artist Kevin Schmidt, who draws on aspects of conceptual and performance art while embodying the DIY sensibilities of an amateur inventor.
Runs until: Sunday October 28, 2018

Body Language: Reawakening Cultural Tattooing of the Northwest

Body Language: Reawakening Cultural Tattooing of the Northwest
Where: Bill Reid Gallery
What: Explore the rich history and artistry of Indigenous tattooing, piercing and personal adornment on the Northwest Coast. These five contemporary Indigenous artists are at the forefront of the revival of Indigenous tattooing in BC. They are reclaiming traditional techniques and traditional rights to be tattooed, and building awareness of the significance and protocols around the tattooing traditions.
Runs until: January 13, 2019

In a Different Light

In a Different Light
Where: Museum of Anthropology
What: More than 110 historical Indigenous artworks and marks the return of many important works to British Columbia. These objects are amazing artistic achievements. Yet they also transcend the idea of ‘art’ or ‘artifact’. Through the voices of contemporary First Nations artists and community members, this exhibition reflects on the roles historical artworks have today. Featuring immersive storytelling and innovative design, it explores what we can learn from these works and how they relate to Indigenous peoples’ relationships to their lands.
Runs until: Spring 2019

Wild Things: The Power of Nature in Our Lives

Wild Things: The Power of Nature in Our Lives
Where: Museum of Vancouver
What: This exhibition delves into the life stories of local animals and plants—how they relate to each other and how they connect people to nature in the city. Scenic design, videos, taxidermy, crowd-sourcing technologies, and the display of natural specimens breathe life into these tales of co-habitation. The immersive nature of the exhibition, including hands-on activities, encourages visitors to examine their relationship with nature, think about momentarily disconnecting from their devices, and find equilibrium with the natural world around them.
Runs until: July 2019

Making Waves: The Story and Legacy of Greenpeace
Where: Vancouver Maritime Museum
What: With humble beginnings in Vancouver, Greenpeace has grown into a large organization with offices in 40 countries. The NGO has protested numerous causes: whaling, deforestation, mining, genetic testing, and nuclear testing. Explore this exhibit that goes from their first voyage from Vancouver to Amchitka to protest Nuclear testing on an old fishing vessel to how cities, government, and industry today are developing new policies, technologies, and sustainable practices to ensure the preservation of our environment.
Runs until: September 9, 2019

What are you up to this weekend? Tell me and the rest of Vancouver in the comments below.

 


 


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