Chor Leoni returns to the stage at St. Andrew’s-Wesley for Boundless, the choir’s 32nd annual Remembrance Day concerts November 10th and 11th – and you can enter to win tickets.
Chor Leoni – Photo credit David Cooper
Chor Leoni Remembrance Day Concerts
Boundless, which opens Chor Leoni’s 2023-2024 season, continues the choir’s long-standing tradition of presenting varied musical perspectives in its Remembrance Day offerings, promising an emotional and thought-provoking experience for everyone in attendance.
Date: November 10 at 7:00pm; November 11, 2023 at 2:00pm and 5:00pm
Location: St. Andrew’s-Wesley United (1022 Nelson St, Vancouver)
Highlights of the carefully crafted program include the Canadian premiere of Patrick Vu’s “A Golden Day” and the North American premiere of Swiss-based composer Javier Hagen’s “Ad Mortem Festinamus.” Also featured are numerous Canadian works, including pieces by Erick Lichte and Rupert Lang and an arrangement of Alberta native Lizzy Hoyt’s song “Vimy Ridge” arranged by Chor Leoni’s own Keith Sinclair.
At the heart of this year’s program lies the world premiere of a brand new choral work by BC composer Don Macdonald, now in his final year as the choir’s Composer in Residence. The twenty-minute, six movement piece entitled “High Flight” sets the words of RCAF soldier-poet John Gillespie Magee Jr. Lushly scored for choir, piano and cello, “High Flight” traces the arc of a young soldier moving from life and innocence to war and wisdom, and from this world into the next.
Win Tickets
I have a pair of tickets to give away to the performance on November 11th at 5:00pm. Here’s how you can enter to win:
The 70-voiced choir will be accompanied by several special musical guests, including pianist Tina Chang, who performs with Vancouver Opera, Arts Club Theatre, and City Opera; cellist Jonathan Lo, who has appeared as soloist with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra; organist Angelique Po, the Director of Music at St. Andrew’s-Wesley United; and trumpeter Katherine Evans, who appears with Turning Point Ensemble, the Vancouver Brass Orchestra, and OneTwoTrio.
Through folk, pop, and modern choral works, Vancouverites are invited to listen, reflect on the cost of war, and heal through the search and hope for peace at Boundless.
This month we pause to Remember, and then roll into the holiday season. Enjoy a lineup of events around Vancouver that have become annual favourites, along with some new activities to add to the calendar.
Following two intertwining love stories — that of young dreamers Orpheus and Eurydice, and that of King Hades and his wife Persephone — Hadestown invites audiences on a hell-raising journey to the underworld and back. Mitchell’s beguiling melodies and Chavkin’s poetic imagination pit industry against nature, doubt against faith, and fear against love. Performed by a vibrant ensemble of actors, dancers, and singers, Hadestown delivers a deeply resonant and defiantly hopeful theatrical experience.
It was the most honoured show of the 2018-2019 Broadway season! In addition to the show’s eight Tony Awards®, and a Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album, it has been honoured with four Drama Desk Awards, six Outer Critics Circle Awards, including Outstanding New Broadway Musical, and the Drama League Award for Outstanding Production of a Musical.
The acclaimed new musical is by celebrated singer-songwriter and Tony Award® winner Anaïs Mitchell and developed with innovative director and Tony Award® winner Rachel Chavkin. Hadestown marks the first time in over a decade that a woman has been the solo author of a musical: writing the music, lyrics, and book, and is the fourth time in Broadway history a woman has accomplished this creative feat.
The creative team features Tony Award® winner Rachel Hauck (set design); four-time Tony Award® nominee Michael Krass (costume design); two-time Tony Award® winner Bradley King (lighting design); Tony Award® winners Nevin Steinberg and Jessica Paz (sound design); Chita Rivera Award® winner and three-time Bessie Award® winner David Neumann (choreography); Liam Robinson (music supervision and vocal arrangements); Tony Award® winners Michael Chorney and Todd Sickafoose (arrangements and orchestrations); Ken Cerniglia (dramaturgy); and Whitley Theatrical (casting).
The 13th annual Surrey Tree Lighting Festival & Holiday Market has been extended to two days this year with free live entertainment across four stages, an expanded market, amusement rides, and more.
Surrey Tree Lighting Festival – Photo Submitted
Surrey Tree Lighting Festival 2023
Date: November 25 and 26, 2023.
The illuminated tree will be on display until January 2024.
Time: 12:00pm to 8:00pm
Location: Surrey Civic Plaza (13450 – 104 Ave, Surrey)
Admission: Free!
Presented by Concord Pacific, this year’s event will feature a variety of performers on the Snowflake Stage including: Warren Dean Flandez, Come Fly with Me: Michael Bublé Tribute, Merry & Bright, Pat Chessell and Friends, Josh Bogert, Á’a:líya, and Phat Santa Swing.
Additionally, The North Pole Stage will showcase Fraser Valley Ballet’s “The Nutcracker”, holiday singalongs with Belle and Cinderella, and local choirs. The Candy Cane Dance Tent presented by ML Emporio will feature dance battles and DJs. Attendees can also visit the Grand Staircase in the City Centre library to experience local performers.
Shop for unqiue gifts from local artisans and crafters from Surrey, the Lower Mainland, and the Fraser Valley at the Holiday Market. View a full list of vendors online.
Follow Miss604Holidays this season for the latest arts and culture activities, attraction and event news »
With over 100 events scheduled, the 20th annual Downtown Eastside Heart of the City Festival is packed with cultural events and artistic activities to attend, participate in and enjoy.
Photo by David Cooper
Downtown Eastside Heart of the City Festival 2023
When: October 25 to November 5, 2023
Where: Various Downtown Eastside locations and online
For twenty years, the Heart of the City Festival has been focused on listening and learning from the cultural practices of the community. Working with, for, and about the Downtown Eastside community to carry stories, ancestral memory, cultural traditions, lived experiences, and artistic processes to illuminate pathways of resistance and resilience.
Here are a few event highlights coming up:
9th Symposium on Reconciliation & Redress in the Arts Thursday, November 2, 10:00am | Creekside Community Recreation Centre Bringing together Coast Salish cultural leaders and accomplices to share lessons, build settler and Indigenous solidarity practices, and create training opportunities for those seeking to practice place-based redress in the arts and culture context. Tickets available here.
We Live Here II November 1, 2 & 3, 8pm – 9:30pm | Keefer & Columbia, NE corner A breathtaking, large-scale outdoor installation of hyper-speed videos run twenty minutes on a continuous loop and projected onto a large wall of a local building. This year the installation features new artwork by local BIPOC youth along with other Downtown Eastside artists, all inspired by the phrase “we live here.” Produced by Radix Theatre, with curator Gunargie O’Sullivan. Free.
Once Upon a Time on a Chinatown Night Friday November 3, 7:30pm | STRETCH Studio, 180 E Pender 2nd floor This follows the personal journey of Shon Wong and his search for family, identity and purpose. The production features original Chynatruckerfunk music by the Son of James Band, historical projections by Elwin Xie, story by Shon Wong, with narrator Ramona Mar and special guests. A Son of James production in association with Vancouver Moving Theatre. Get tickets here.
Smokey Devil – Underworld Street Reporter Saturday November 4, 7:30pm | Carnegie Community Centre Theatre, 401 Main An insightful and engaging film by Nathaniel Canuel, focuses on the life of Smokey D, a locally-renowned Downtown Eastside icon and street artist known for his murals that depict memorials, the toxic drug crisis, MMIWG2S and other issues. Followed by a conversation with the artist and filmmaker. Free.
