Inside Vancouver

Look who’s coming to this year’s Vancouver Comic Arts Festival!

by Shawn Conner in Family Friendly on May 11, 2018

Lewis Trondheim, the French writer/illustrator of The Spiffy Adventures of McConey, is a guest at this year’s Vancouver Comic Arts Festival (May 19-20).

VanCAF, Vancouver’s annual celebration of small-press and independently-published comics and graphic novels, grows every year. With more people attending, there is also an ever-increasing number of creators taking part in panels, talks, and the exhibition halls. In fact, it can get kind of overwhelming.

Of the dozens of guests coming to this year’s two-day event (May 19-20 at the Roundhouse, 181 Roundhouse Mews, in Yaletown), we’ve selected a few to check out. But there are so many that we advise setting aside at least a couple of hours to see and chat with as many cartoonists, illustrators, and writers as possible. And don’t forget your wallet—there’ll be plenty of cool merchandise to pick up.

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Look who’s coming to this year’s Vancouver Comic Arts Festival!

Jazz Fest announces 150 free concerts!

by Shawn Conner in Events on May 2, 2018

UK singer/composer Gwyneth Herbert is among the performers at the 2018 Vancouver International Jazz Festival.

The 33rd Annual TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival just announced 150 free concerts at indoor and outdoor venues this summer, between June 22—July 1.

This year’s festival features hundreds of musicians participating in over 300 concerts at 35 indoor and outdoor venues. The 150 free concerts feature local, national and international artists. Venues include St. Andrew’s Wesley United Church (1022 Nelson St.), The Ironworks (235 Alexander St.), Granville Island in the afternoons (and all day on Canada Day), and at several venues on the North Shore.

Find out more below.

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Jazz Fest announces 150 free concerts!

Elephants, coral reefs, wolverines and more at Elements Film Festival

by Shawn Conner in Events on April 11, 2018

Elements is a new environmental film festival coming to TELUS World of Science (1455 Quebec St.) April 14 and 15. The festival includes 44 feature films and shorts, all focused on wildlife and nature, conservation and the environment, action sports and adventure. The festival also features panels and a student film competition.

Here are some highlights.

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Elephants, coral reefs, wolverines and more at Elements Film Festival

Buffy Sainte-Marie among the performers at this year’s Verses Festival of Words

by Shawn Conner in Events on March 27, 2018

Canadian music icon Buffy Sainte-Marie headlines this year’s Verses Festival of Words.

The singer/songwriter/activist is the most prominent figure at the spoken-word festival, which takes place April 19-29, with 30+ events across East Vancouver.

Along with Sainte-Marie, guests include radio host Janet Rogers, burlesque dancer Sparkle Plenty and cyber-punk poet Joshua Whitehead, amongst many others. In addition, a poetry competition will bring students from across B.C. to perform original works.

See below for a closer look at Verses, and some of the headliners.

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Buffy Sainte-Marie among the performers at this year’s Verses Festival of Words

New Vancouver theatre in bite-size chunks at the Pull Festival!

by Shawn Conner in Events on March 21, 2018

A scene from one of the plays at this year’s Pull Festival. Didier Brûlé-Champagne photo.

A young woman trying to solve a mystery, an actor examining his own career, and a woman confronting her rapist are among the characters featued in the 7th annual Pull Festival.

This year, the annual event showcases six short works (about ten minutes each) by local playwrights.. Three directors, two guest curators, and a Festival dramaturg selected the plays out of a record number 89 script submissions.

The festival takes place March 21-24 at Little Mountain Gallery (195 E. 26th Ave.). Here’s a closer look at the plays in this year’s festival.

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New Vancouver theatre in bite-size chunks at the Pull Festival!

Here comes the funny: some highlights of this year’s upcoming JFL NorthWest comedy festival

by Shawn Conner in Events on February 20, 2018

Nikki Glaser performs at this year’s JFL NorthWest.

The JFL NorthWest Comedy Festival is right around the corner. Some shows are sold-out, but there are still tickets left for some of the biggest names in comedy appearing in Vancouver March 1-10.

This is the comedy festival’s third year in Vancouver. Last year saw over 30,000 comedy fans coming out to see 100 professional laugh-getters at 25 venues in the Lower Mainland.

This year, some of the bigger shows include Bill Burr (tickets still left for the famously acerbic comic’s March 7 show at the Orpheum Theatre, 601 Smithe St.), Jo Koy (two shows March 7 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre, 630 Hamilton St.), Maria Bamford (March 3 at the Vogue Theatre, 918 Granville St.), Brian Regan (March 5 at the Vogue), Mike Birbiglia (two shows, March 9 at the Vogue), and former SNL cast member/impressionist Jay Pharoah (March 10 at the Vogue).

Along with the theatre shows, the festival is hosting several showcases and comedy sets at smaller clubs and venues. Here’s a brief run-down of some of the comics, podcast hosts and special events coming to JFL NorthWest 2018.

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Here comes the funny: some highlights of this year’s upcoming JFL NorthWest comedy festival

Cult classic sequel and lots more at the first ever JFL NorthWest Film Festival

by Shawn Conner in Events on February 8, 2018

Be among the first to see clips from Super Troopers 2, the long-awaited sequel to the 2001 cult film screening at the JFL NorthWest Film Festival (March 1-10).

A long-awaited sequel to a comedy cult classic, special live events, short films and panels are part of the Vancouver Just For Laughs Film Festival.

This year marks the debut of the film component of the festival. The inaugural edition of the JFL NorthWest Film Festival runs concurrently with the comedy festival itself, March 1-10. Below, we look at some of the highlights from among eight features (including B.C. premieres and a world premiere), 23 shorts, three panels and three special events. Many of the events take place at the Rio Theatre (1660 E. Broadway), the Vogue Theatre (918 Granville St.), Vancity Theatre (1181 Seyour St.) and the Sutton Place Hotel (845 Burrard St.).

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Cult classic sequel and lots more at the first ever JFL NorthWest Film Festival