Things to Do in Vancouver This Weekend

This is the last weekend of Dine Out Vancouver and the PuSh Festival, so be sure to lock in your plans for dinner and a show! The museums of Vanier Park are also hosting Winter Wander, and the library invites you to check out a human from their main branch.

Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Ongoing

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Friday February 1

Copper Promises
Where: Scotiabank Dance Centre
What: Australian dance artist Victoria Hunt’s spellbinding solo Copper Promises embodies the cultural and physical journey of Hinemihi – a female ancestor, but also a ceremonial meetinghouse connected with her own Maori cultural heritage. It is a carved ancestral house which was “acquired” and transported to Britain after a devastating volcanic eruption in 1886.
Runs until: Saturday February 2, 2019

Kiinalik These Sharp Tools
Where: Performance Works
What: A concert, a conversation and a multimedia performance all in one and the meeting point for two people—Inuk artist Laakkuluk Williamson Bathory and queer theatre-maker Evalyn Parry—and two places: Canada’s North and South. After having met on an Arctic expedition from Iqaluit to Greenland, Williamson Bathory and Parry now share a stage; these two powerful singers and storytellers, aided by music and video projection, give voice and body to the histories, culture and climate we’ve inherited.
Runs until: Saturday February 2, 2019

This is the Point
Where: The Cultch
What: A joyous and unflinching portrait of four individuals whose lives have been shaped, in part, by cerebral palsy. Through a series of staged conversations and theatrical re-enactments by two couples, the audience can draw from their personal lives to explore and debate questions of representation, the nature of companionship, and whether people of different abilities can ever connect with each other on equal terms.
Runs until: Saturday February 2, 2019

Coastal Lunar Lanterns
Where: Jack Poole Plaza
What: Eight gigantic and iconic lanterns will be raised to ring in the Year of the Pig at Jack Poole Plaza; they are designed by Musqueam, Squamish, and Tslei-Waututh artists and a guest indigenous artist from the Zihing tribe in Taiwan.
Runs until: Monday February 18, 2019

Couloir (show 1 of 2)
Where: Orpheum Theatre
What: Maestro Bramwell Tovey makes his return as VSO Music Director Emeritus after eighteen extraordinary years as the longest-serving Music Director in the VSO’s century-long history. Maestro Tovey conducts a piece by the very first composer he commissioned as Music Director, featuring the VSO’s former Principal Cello Ariel Barnes. This concert also features the towering sonic architecture of Bruckner’s Symphony No. 6.

True Crime
Where: Arts Club Theatre
What: Christian Gerhartsreiter—aka Clark Rockefeller—is a con man of the highest order, now serving a near-life sentence in a California State prison. Iconic provocateur and musician Torquil Campbell wants to try him on for size. This dogged investigation and impersonation dares us to find the truth and confront our cultural addiction to a good story—at any cost.
Runs until: Sunday February 24, 2019

Annie: The Musical
Where: Michael J. Fox Theatre
What: The story of Annie, a plucky 11-year-old overflowing with infectious optimism and curly red hair. The Tony and Grammy Award-winning musical is set against the backdrop of the Great Depression, throwing into sharp relief the beauty of the spirited character’s hopefulness in dire times. Featuring a fresh cast of young local talent.
Runs until:  Saturday February 16, 2019

Alan Walker
Where: Celebrities
What: A DJ from Norway.

Royal Chersea
Where: The Fox
What: Electro-dream pop.

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Saturday February 2

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The Human Library (day 1 of 2)
Where: Vancouver Public Library (350 W. Georgia)
What: Everyone has a story. The Human Library invites you to borrow a human “book” from a curated collection of topics. This candid 20-minute one-on-one conversation will open your eyes to the diversity of lived experience. Human books are available on a first-come, first-served basis during event hours.

Triple Threat
Where: The Annex
What: Lucy McCormick presents a trash-punk morality play made for the modern world. Lucy plays all the main roles in this subversive spin on the life of Jesus, which covers everything from the Immaculate Conception to the Resurrection, and she’s assisted by her Girl Squad dancers. Together, they work through the story using power ballads, dance routines and performance art.

Winter Wander
Where: Vanier Park
What: A family fun event including admission to Museum of Vancouver, H.R. MacMillan Space Centre, Vancouver Maritime Museum, City of Vancouver Archives and Vancouver Academy of Music. Experience our unique waterfront attractions showcasing art, history, crafts, science and performances from Bard on the Beach. Enjoy local food vendors and enter to win prizes.

Arkells
Where: Pacific Coliseum
What: With the release of their highly-anticipated new album, Rally Cry, the Hamilton five-piece have announced a 2019 national tour kicking off in Vancouver.

WWE Live Road to WrestleMania
Where: Rogers Arena
What: WWE wrestling.

Doug and the Slugs
Where: The Commodore
What: A Canadian pop music group formed in 1977 with a number of  Canadian top 40 hits in the 80s, most notably “Too Bad”, “Who Knows How To Make Love Stay”, “Making It Work” and “Tomcat Prowl”.

Brush Painting for Lunar New Year
Where: Vancouver Public Library (350 W. Georgia)
What: Join artist Meng Xiaoping as he talks about six-thousand-year old Chinese brush painting and demonstrates the basic skills of using a Chinese calligraphy brush. Paint your first Chinese plum blossom for the upcoming Year of the Pig, a year of prosperity. Conducted in Mandarin and English.

Lunar New Year at Metropolis
Where: Metrotown Mall
What: Hundreds of lanterns will be the backdrop for beautiful photos visitors can take with their family or friends. Metropolis will also be hosting a series of activities including Chinese calligraphy and lantern making, traditional chinese dance performances, and an Asian travel-themed photo booth.
Runs until: Tuesday February 19, 2019

Fragile Forms
Where: The Anvil Centre
What: Inspired by world-renowned Finnish theorist and architect Juhani Pallasmaa’s writings on architecture and the sensing body, MACHiNENOiSY’s most ambitious work to date is a site-specific, 360-degree contemporary dance performance tailored specifically for New Westminster’s iconic Anvil Centre.
Runs until: Thursday February 7, 2019

Terra Lightfoot
Where: The Fox
What: A singer-songwriter from Hamilton, Ontario.

Couloir (show 2 of 2)
Where: Orpheum Theatre
What: Maestro Bramwell Tovey makes his return as VSO Music Director Emeritus after eighteen extraordinary years as the longest-serving Music Director in the VSO’s century-long history. Maestro Tovey conducts a piece by the very first composer he commissioned as Music Director, featuring the VSO’s former Principal Cello Ariel Barnes. This concert also features the towering sonic architecture of Bruckner’s Symphony No. 6.

Corrosion of Conformity
Where: The Rickshaw
What: A metal band, reuniting with guitarist/vocalist Pepper Keenan, the first time Keenan has toured with the band since 2006.

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Sunday February 3

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Narcissister Organ Player
Where: The Cinematheque
What: The masked and anonymous (and naked) performance artist Narcissister, based in Brooklyn, has become an art-world darling for daring, revealing, frequently visceral live shows exploring gender, race, eroticism, and the female body (and reproductive organs). Huffington Post dubbed her “a topless feminist superhero”; the New York Times described her work, which employs dance, pop music, wigs and costumes, elaborate props, humour, and shock value, as “avant-porn.”

Mademoiselle de Joncquières
Where: VanCity Theatre
What: “Happiness that doesn’t last is called pleasure,” someone remarks in this sly comedy of sexual manners, in which young widow Madame de la Pommeraye (Cécile de France) falls in and out of love with the notorious but very charming rake, the Marquis d”Arcis (Édouard Baer).Generous to a fault, the widow takes a mother and daughter under her wing, ladies who have fallen into destitution and indeed prostitution, and seeks to rehabilitate their reputation, but the Marquis has other ideas.
Runs until: Thursday February 7, 2019

The Human Library (day 2 of 2)
Where: Vancouver Public Library (350 W. Georgia)
What: Everyone has a story. The Human Library invites you to borrow a human “book” from a curated collection of topics. This candid 20-minute one-on-one conversation will open your eyes to the diversity of lived experience. Human books are available on a first-come, first-served basis during event hours.

The New Butterfly Lovers
Where: Queen Elizabeth Theatre
What: Vancouver’s own renowned choreographer Joshua Beamish brings alive a 1700-Year-Old Chinese love story in the New Butterfly Lovers.

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Ongoing

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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

Kiinalik These Sharp Tools
Where: Performance Works
What: A concert, a conversation and a multimedia performance all in one and the meeting point for two people—Inuk artist Laakkuluk Williamson Bathory and queer theatre-maker Evalyn Parry—and two places: Canada’s North and South. After having met on an Arctic expedition from Iqaluit to Greenland, Williamson Bathory and Parry now share a stage; these two powerful singers and storytellers, aided by music and video projection, give voice and body to the histories, culture and climate we’ve inherited.
Runs until: Saturday February 2, 2019

Copper Promises
Where: Scotiabank Dance Centre
What: Australian dance artist Victoria Hunt’s spellbinding solo Copper Promises embodies the cultural and physical journey of Hinemihi – a female ancestor, but also a ceremonial meetinghouse connected with her own Maori cultural heritage. It is a carved ancestral house which was “acquired” and transported to Britain after a devastating volcanic eruption in 1886.
Runs until: Saturday February 2, 2019

This is the Point
Where: The Cultch
What: A joyous and unflinching portrait of four individuals whose lives have been shaped, in part, by cerebral palsy. Through a series of staged conversations and theatrical re-enactments by two couples, the audience can draw from their personal lives to explore and debate questions of representation, the nature of companionship, and whether people of different abilities can ever connect with each other on equal terms.
Runs until: Saturday February 2, 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

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

Mademoiselle de Joncquières
Where: VanCity Theatre
What: “Happiness that doesn’t last is called pleasure,” someone remarks in this sly comedy of sexual manners, in which young widow Madame de la Pommeraye (Cécile de France) falls in and out of love with the notorious but very charming rake, the Marquis d”Arcis (Édouard Baer).Generous to a fault, the widow takes a mother and daughter under her wing, ladies who have fallen into destitution and indeed prostitution, and seeks to rehabilitate their reputation, but the Marquis has other ideas.
Runs until: Thursday February 7, 2019

Fragile Forms
Where: The Anvil Centre
What: Inspired by world-renowned Finnish theorist and architect Juhani Pallasmaa’s writings on architecture and the sensing body, MACHiNENOiSY’s most ambitious work to date is a site-specific, 360-degree contemporary dance performance tailored specifically for New Westminster’s iconic Anvil Centre.
Runs until: Thursday February 7, 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

Annie: The Musical
Where: Michael J. Fox Theatre
What: The story of Annie, a plucky 11-year-old overflowing with infectious optimism and curly red hair. The Tony and Grammy Award-winning musical is set against the backdrop of the Great Depression, throwing into sharp relief the beauty of the spirited character’s hopefulness in dire times. Featuring a fresh cast of young local talent.
Runs until:  Saturday February 16, 2019

Coastal Lunar Lanterns
Where: Jack Poole Plaza
What: Eight gigantic and iconic lanterns will be raised to ring in the Year of the Pig at Jack Poole Plaza; they are designed by Musqueam, Squamish, and Tslei-Waututh artists and a guest indigenous artist from the Zihing tribe in Taiwan.
Runs until: Monday February 18, 2019

Lunar New Year at Metropolis
Where: Metrotown Mall
What: Hundreds of lanterns will be the backdrop for beautiful photos visitors can take with their family or friends. Metropolis will also be hosting a series of activities including Chinese calligraphy and lantern making, traditional chinese dance performances, and an Asian travel-themed photo booth.
Runs until: Tuesday February 19, 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

True Crime
Where: Arts Club Theatre
What: Christian Gerhartsreiter—aka Clark Rockefeller—is a con man of the highest order, now serving a near-life sentence in a California State prison. Iconic provocateur and musician Torquil Campbell wants to try him on for size. This dogged investigation and impersonation dares us to find the truth and confront our cultural addiction to a good story—at any cost.
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.