Things to Do in Vancouver This Weekend

This weekend, classic mixes with contemporary. A Hawaiian performer uses cultural influences to create new music, a fashion designer brings ancient culture into couture, a documentary filmmaker addresses cultural erasure and 80s music is the theme to deconstructing linguistic histories.

Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Ongoing

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Friday January 25

Power Ballad
Where: The Cultch Historic Theatre
What: An angry, feminist, live art investigation of language and its sometimes hidden ideologies. Part performance lecture, part karaoke party, Power Ballad deconstructs gendered linguistic histories and rips apart contemporary language to find a new articulation of pleasure, anger, and femaleness–with an ‘80s soundtrack.
Runs until: Saturday January 26, 2019

Dancer Liu Kuan-Hsiang: Kids
Where: Scotiabank Dance Centre
What: As a tribute to his late mother, this performance draws on recordings of conversations between her and Liu during her last days, which touch on family memories, illusion and reality, and her impending passing. From this emerges an unorthodox and dazzling meditation on the eternal cycle of birth, life and death. Three virtuosic dancers veer from calm ritualistic movement to twisted, frantic physical extremes, yet this deliriously wild and undulating work is suffused with serenity and even joy.
Runs until: Saturday January 26, 2019

Spirit of Place
Where: The Cinematheque
What: A nomadic film artist whose work evades easy classification, Italian-Canadian director Simone Rapisarda Casanova has received international plaudits for his poetic and principled brand of “meta-documentary.” His trio of features, each shot in a different country, are concerned with a culture on the edge of erasure, along with the ethics of documenting it.

The Matchmaker
Where: Arts Club Theatre
What: Horace Vandergelder seeks a wife and matchmaker Dolly Gallagher Levi doesn’t need to look very far to find her. With forbidden young love and mistaken identities afoot, more than one match is sure to be made. Experience the pandemonium of this classic—and the inspiration for Hello, Dolly!—that embraces the unexpected in a truly modern way.
Runs until: Sunday February 24, 2019

A Prayer for Owen Meanie
Where: Pacific Theatre
What: Owen Meany believes he is an instrument of the divine. As he and his best friend John navigate the turbulent America of the 1960’s, Owen pulls the strings of a plan invisible to everyone but him and – perhaps – God. An epic tale of faith, absurdity, and the power of a single voice.
Runs until: Saturday February 9, 2019

OceanWise Pop-Up
Where: Vancouver Aquarium
What: Enjoy the culinary creations by Chef Ned Bell & team, after hours, surrounded by stunning marine wildlife.

Yellow is Forbidden
Where: VanCity Theatre
What: When Rihanna walked the red carpet at the 2015 Met Gala sporting a 25-kilo dress spun from gold and fox fur, the fashion world gawked, and a new star was born. Raised in Beijing (and still based there), Guo has become much more than a top fashion personage. Director Pïetra Brettkelly’s deep-dive chronicle of Guo as person, fashion star and emblem benefits enormously from the fact that she had full cooperation from the energetic designer. But this isn’t hagiography: the behind-the-scenes access to the preparations for Guo’s make-or-break Paris runway show, while both fascinating and tense, show the conflicted side of the fashion world and Guo’s place in it.
Runs until: Thursday January 31, 2019

The Trews
Where: Commodore Ballroom
What: Canadian rock from Antigonish, Nova Scotia.

Travis Scott
Where: Rogers Arena
What: The Houston rapper’s live shows have become the stuff of a legend with Billboard writing, “Travis Scott’s penchant for raging, off-the-wall live shows have become an essential part of his career.”

What If Romeo and Juliette..?
Where: Presentation house Theatre
What: Take a new look at Shakespeare’s magnificent and tragic love story. Do we all have the potential to become a Romeo, Juliet, Tybalt or Mercutio? Could there be another ending to this beloved and famous tale? What if . . . ? Created in collaboration with DynamO Théâtre, one of Canada’s most renowned and revered Circus/Theatre companies.
Runs until: Sunday January 27, 2019

Street Food City
Where: šxʷƛ̓ənəq Xwtl’e7énk Square (Outside at the Vancouver Art Gallery)
What: Over 20 of Vancouver’s best street food vendors–all in one place!
Runs until: Sunday January 27, 2019

Jeremy Hotz
Where: The Commodore
What: This Canadian actor and stand-up comedian has appeared on Comedy Central Presents, the Just For Laughs comedy festival, the Late Show with David Letterman, and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

Erick Lichte
Where: Shaughnessy Heights United Church
What: His mostly contemporary and international repertoire will include John Tavener’s Village Wedding, David Lang’s manifesto, Eric Whitacre’s A Boy and a Girl and more music by Einojuhani Rautavaara, Zachary Wadsworth, Roberto Caamaño, Ēriks Ešenvalds, Eleanor Daley, Jennifer Higdon, Steven Sametz, Felix Mendelssohn and George Gershwin.

Dash Duo (show 1 of 2)
Where: Silk Purse Arts Centre
What: A duo of trumpeters.

Spirits & Suds
Where: TELUS Garden Laneway
What: Libations, appies and entertainment all in support of our TELUS Friendly Future Foundation.

Éveline
Where: Studio 16
What: A harpist and singer withan original background spanning a myriad of musical genres.

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Saturday January 26

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100th Anniversary Day of Music
Where: Orpheum Theatre
What: To help celebrate the VSO’s 100th Anniversary, the VSO and Maestro Otto Tausk present a very special Day of Music, involving the VSO, the Vancouver Youth Symphony, and musical organizations and groups from throughout Vancouver, in a day of FREE musical activities.

Divers Weekend at the Aquarium
Where: Vancouver Aquarium
What: Divers and non-divers alike enjoy riveting dive demonstrations, intriguing exhibits, and informative workshops, inspiring them to explore our vast oceans.
Runs until: Sunday January 27, 2019

Infected Mushroom
Where: Commodore Ballroom
What: A LA-based, Israeli-bred duo who since 1999 has been well-known in the electronic music scene.

Make Valentine’s Gifts
Where: VanDusen Botanical Garden
What: Join a medical herbalist for a fun hands-on morning creating a herbal body bar, a rose and chocolate body scrub, and massage oil for your loved ones or for yourself. Learn about what botanicals are best used for skin products, and how you can prepare infused oils at home.

Vancouver Warriors vs. Colorado Mammoth
Where: Rogers Arena
What: It’s some lacrosse!

Dash Duo (show 1 of 2)
Where: Silk Purse Arts Centre
What: A duo of trumpeters.

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Sunday January 27

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Kaumakaiwa Kanaka’ole
Where: The York Theatre
What: A voice of Hawaii’s new generation, with an impressive vocal range that mixes baritone chant and Hawaiian falsetto singing. Her family roots in hula and Hawaiian cultural practices have been passed down for seven generations and she honours these traditions by creating music that draws directly from ancestral memory, and is “not simply Western song with Hawaiian lyrics.” 

Emily King
Where: Fortune Sound Club
What: A singer with pop, rock, and r&b influences.

Zoltán Fejérvári
Where: Vancouver Playhouse
What: Hungarian pianist Zoltán Fejérvári has appeared in recitals throughout Europe and the US. Zoltán made a big impression when he performed on this series two seasons ago with cellist István Várdai.

Snail Mail
Where: The Imperial
What: American indie rock singer-songwriter and guitarist, on tour to support her debut full-length release, Lush.

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Ongoing

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Corazón del espantapájaros (Heart of the Scarecrow)
Where: Audain Gallery
What: The project is inspired by Guatemalan Hugo Carrillo’s 1962 play El corazón del espantapájaros (The Scarecrow’s Heart), a work that has a prominent place in recent Guatemalan history thanks to a 1975 staging by university students which led to a severe act of censorship during the country’s civil war. Working with a contemporary interpretation of the play by Guatemalan poet Wingston González, Ramírez-Figueroa explores the “scarecrow” and the “heart” in terms of their beauty and their power.
Runs until: Friday January 25, 2019

Power Ballad
Where: The CultchHistoric Theatre
What: An angry, feminist, live art investigation of language and its sometimes hidden ideologies. Part performance lecture, part karaoke party, Power Ballad deconstructs gendered linguistic histories and rips apart contemporary language to find a new articulation of pleasure, anger, and femaleness–with an ‘80s soundtrack.
Runs until: Saturday January 26, 2019

Dancer Liu Kuan-Hsiang: Kids
Where: Scotiabank Dance Centre
What: As a tribute to his late mother, this performance draws on recordings of conversations between her and Liu during her last days, which touch on family memories, illusion and reality, and her impending passing. From this emerges an unorthodox and dazzling meditation on the eternal cycle of birth, life and death. Three virtuosic dancers veer from calm ritualistic movement to twisted, frantic physical extremes, yet this deliriously wild and undulating work is suffused with serenity and even joy.
Runs until: Saturday January 26, 2019

Canyon Lights
Where: Capilano Suspension Bridge Park
What: The suspension bridge, Treetops Adventure, Cliffwalk, the rainforest and canyon are transformed into a world of festive lights and visual enchantment, high up above the canyon. You can also go on a “Snowy Owl Prowl”, decorate gingerbread cookies (by donation) and sing-along carols with a holiday band.
Runs until: Sunday January 27, 2019

Street Food City
Where: šxʷƛ̓ənəq Xwtl’e7énk Square (Outside at the Vancouver Art Gallery)
What: Over 20 of Vancouver’s best street food vendors–all in one place!
Runs until: Sunday January 27, 2019

Divers Weekend at the Aquarium
Where: Vancouver Aquarium
What: Divers and non-divers alike enjoy riveting dive demonstrations, intriguing exhibits, and informative workshops, inspiring them to explore our vast oceans.
Runs until: Sunday January 27, 2019

Throwdown – International TheatreSports Festival
Where: Vancouver Improv Centre
What: January is often the time of year when the winter blahs set in – the holidays are over, it’s been raining non-stop, and you’ve received your credit card bill from December. The best antidote? – a good dose of hearty laughter.
Runs until: Sunday January 27, 2019

What If Romeo and Juliette..?
Where: Presentation house Theatre
What: Take a new look at Shakespeare’s magnificent and tragic love story. Do we all have the potential to become a Romeo, Juliet, Tybalt or Mercutio? Could there be another ending to this beloved and famous tale? What if . . . ? Created in collaboration with DynamO Théâtre, one of Canada’s most renowned and revered Circus/Theatre companies.
Runs until: Sunday January 27, 2019

PuSh International Performing Arts Festival
Where: Various locations
What: PuSh expands the horizons of Vancouver artists and audiences with work that is visionary, genre-bending, multi-disciplined, startling and original. The Festival showcases acclaimed international, Canadian and local artists and mixes them together with an alchemy that inspires audiences, rejuvenates artists, stimulates the industry and forges productive relationships around the globe.
Runs until: Sunday February 3, 2019

The Dine Out Vancouver Festival
Where: Various locations
What: Over 300 restaurants each offering multi-course dinners at select prices from fine dining to family friendly and everything in-between, plus a full calendar of tastings, secret suppers, and collaboration dinners with chefs from around the world.
Runs until: Sunday February 3, 2019

Dana Claxton: Fringing the Cube
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: The first-ever survey of the work of provocative Vancouver-based Hunkpapa Lakota (Sioux) artist Dana Claxton, featuring photography, film, video and performance documentation that traces nearly thirty years of Claxton’s career and her investigations into Indigenous identity, beauty, gender and the body.
Runs until: Sunday February 3, 2019

Mrs. Krishnan’s Party
Where: Culture Lab
What: Indians throw big parties. Heard of Diwali? A million lamps floating on a river and fireworks to wake the dead. Heard of Holi? An explosion of colour and joy and massive dry cleaning bills. How about Onam? Mrs. Krishnan’s boarder, an overzealous wannabe DJ named James, has invited a few friends into the back room of the corner shop as a special surprise to celebrate Onam and the return home of her son. But when strangers turn up (the audience) and settle in, Mrs. K has no choice but to throw the party of her life.
Runs until: Sunday February 3, 2019

Circle Game – Re-imagining the Work of Joni Mitchell
Where: Firehall Arts Centre
What: One of the most influential recording artists of the late 20th century, Joni Mitchell has often reflected on social and environmental ideals through her music. Circle Gamereinterprets Mitchell’s iconic songs such as Big Yellow Taxi, River, California and A Case of You through the ears and eyes of a new generation, connecting them to the politics and world we know today.
Runs until: Saturday February 9, 2019

A Prayer for Owen Meanie
Where: Pacific Theatre
What: Owen Meany believes he is an instrument of the divine. As he and his best friend John navigate the turbulent America of the 1960’s, Owen pulls the strings of a plan invisible to everyone but him and – perhaps – God. An epic tale of faith, absurdity, and the power of a single voice.
Runs until: Saturday February 9, 2019

Vancouver Hot Chocolate Festival
Where: Various locations
What: Over 20 of Vancouver’s best cafés and restaurants offer mugs of limited edition hot chocolates—past flavours have included ginger hot chocolate, Mexican hot chocolate infused with hibiscus, and hazelnut hot chocolate served with Crown Royal whiskey marshmallows.
Runs until: Thursday February 14, 2019

The Matchmaker
Where: Arts Club Theatre
What: Horace Vandergelder seeks a wife and matchmaker Dolly Gallagher Levi doesn’t need to look very far to find her. With forbidden young love and mistaken identities afoot, more than one match is sure to be made. Experience the pandemonium of this classic—and the inspiration for Hello, Dolly!—that embraces the unexpected in a truly modern way.
Runs until: Sunday February 24, 2019

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: Sunday March 17, 2019

The Metamorphosis
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: This exhibition ties together provocative themes and ideas of change undertaken in more than forty remarkable contemporary works selected from the Gallery’s collection. With its title inspired by Franz Kafka’s 1915 novella, The Metamorphosis invokes a compelling human and creative desire to explore oneself and the world. Kafka’s literary classic follows the experience of a man who, upon waking up, finds himself transformed into a giant insect. This exhibition looks at Kafka’s themes by way of visual art that addresses physical, spiritual and cultural transformation.
Runs until: Sunday March 17, 2019

A Curator’s View: Ian Thom Selects
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: A showcase of the span of the gallery’s rich permanent collection through an exhibition of nearly ninety works including paintings, drawings, photographs, and sculptures. Since the Gallery’s establishment in 1931, its permanent collection has become the most comprehensive resource for visual culture in British Columbia. Building on the collection’s historical and contemporary strengths, the Gallery continues to steward acquisitions through donation and purchase.
Runs until: Sunday March 17, 2019

Anne Low: Chair for a Woman
Where: Contemporary Art Gallery
What: Low’s artistic research is typically rooted in a close looking at historical objects, materials and surfaces, especially those created immediately prior to the Industrial Revolution. She is concerned with the specific conditions under which such objects are produced and consumed—particularly by women—and the domestic spaces they defined.
Runs until: Sunday March 24, 2019

Aslan Gaisumov
Where: Contemporary Art Gallery
What: This exhibition brings together two works never previously shown together and, in so doing, offers a new means through which to consider many of the concerns that have shaped the artist’s practice over the past eight years.
Runs until: Sunday March 24, 2019

Marking the Infinite: Contemporary Women Artists from Aboriginal Australia
Where: Museum of Anthropology
What: Showcasing for the first time in MOA’s history a presentation of all-women artists, this exhibition features the artworks of nine Aboriginal women, who are all celebrated artists from tiny remote communities across Australia’s deserts and tropical north. Encompassing a wide range of subjects from the natural to sublime and from minute organisms to vast celestial bodies, the exhibition invites visitors to explore the immutable tension between the universal and the specific, and discover the power of traditional Indigenous knowledge in an increasingly digital world.
Runs until: Sunday March 31, 2019

Fitness For All
Where: 1100 West Georgia Street
What: Chinese contemporary art collective Polit-Sheer-Form Office (PSFO) has produced a five-piece set of exercise equipment specially designed for the Vancouver public. The artists’ decree suggests that establishing a more collective self-awareness fosters inclusivity and collaboration within a community.
Runs until: Sunday March 31, 2019

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

Hastings Park Farmers Market
Where: Hastings Park
What: Find a weekly selection of locally grown fruit and veggies, farm fresh meat, eggs and dairy products, fresh baked sourdough bread and treats, craft beer, wine and spirits, artisanal prepared food, local crafts, hot coffee and food trucks.
Runs until: Sunday April 28, 2019 (Sundays)

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: Monday September 9, 2019

Shake Up: Preserving What We Value
Where: Museum of Anthropology
What: The exhibition will bring to light the convergence of earthquake science and technology with the rich Indigenous knowledge and oral history of the living cultures represented in MOA’s Northwest Coast collection. Beyond scientific discoveries, knowledge of earthquakes and natural disasters has been passed down through generations throughout many cultures, including those of the Northwest Coast First Nations. Also as part of the exhibition, visitors will have the opportunity to see the majestic poles of the Great Hall undergo conservation, many for the first time in 40 years.
Runs until: Fall 2019

How Far Do You Travel
Where: Select B-Line TransLink busses
What: Five Canadian artists — Diyan Achjadi, Patrick Cruz, Rolande Souliere, Erdem Tasdelen and Anna Torma — are being commissioned to graphically wrap the exterior of a series of articulated buses traveling on major routes in Metro Vancouver.
Runs until: Tuesday December 31, 2019

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