The Black Music Month Festival will be in Downtown Vancouver over three days this summer. This celebration focuses on honouring African Americans and African Canadians who have made significant contributions to music in many genres. The festival will not only feature music but also include workshops in African drumming and Kemetic yoga, and a BIPOC community business pop up market.
Black Music Month Festival in Vancouver
When: June 2 (4:00pm to 11:00pm); June 3 (12:00pm – 11:00pm); June 4 (11:00 am to 6:00pm), 2023
Where: Queen Elizabeth Theatre Plaza (šxʷƛ̓exən Xwtl’a7shn) at 650 Hamilton Street, Vancouver
Admission: By Donation
Friday June 2, 2023 Lineup; Soul n’ Roots Culture:
Flags representing the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations were raised May 16, 2023 at spapəy̓əq Pápiy̓eḵ, commonly known as Brockton Point in Stanley Park. This marks the first time local Nations’ flags have been permanently raised in a Vancouver city park.
Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Flags Raised in Stanley Park
The Stanley Park Intergovernmental Working Group, which comprises staff from the Nations and the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation, made the decision to raise these flags. The xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations’ flags will reside at Brockton Point permanently.
“I am a direct descendant of the last Indigenous residents of Stanley Park. The violent and destructive removal of my family from their home at spapəy̓əqm is part of our history. The city’s Park Board was instrumental in deeming us ‘squatters’ and burning our ancestral villages to the ground. Today’s raising of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh flags at Brockton Point is a significant milestone in establishing a new relationship between Indigenous peoples and the Park Board and ensuring the truth is remembered. Musqueam looks forward to continuing this collaborative work with Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh and the Park Board to recognize our ancestral connections to this land and shared commitment to reconciliation.”
– Chief Wayne Sparrow of Musqueam Indian Band
“The City of Vancouver recently adopted the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) as a road map for a meaningful relationship between the City and the three Host Nations, and the raising of səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nation’s flag, alongside the flags of our relatives Squamish and Musqueam, at spapəy̓əq Pápiy̓eḵ is a step towards reconciliation. Displaying our flag at Stanley Park, a place enjoyed by the local community and visitors throughout the year, is one way that Tsleil-Waututh Nation is putting the face of our Nation back on our traditional territory.”
– Chief Jen Thomas of Tsleil-Waututh Nation
“The raising of our flags today is another way to demonstrate to outside world that our people are deeply connected to these lands and waters. Raising these flags encourages the broader community to learn more about our history, culture and traditions. We have always been here, and we will always be here. These flags clearly represent that this is the shared territories of our three Nations.”
– Wilson Williams (Sxwíxwtn) of Squamish Nation
In 2017, Park Board staff removed three flag poles displaying Canadian, British Columbia, and Union Jack flags at Brockton Point. Following the removal, The Stanley Park Intergovernmental Working Group advised replacing the flag poles with those of the local Nations in a small step in acknowledging the Nations’ connection to the area.
It’s already May Long Weekend in Vancouver and there’s a fun lineup of events all across the region. The Burnaby Village Museum summer season is on now (free admission), many summer markets are now open, there are festivals of beer, music, and much more! Also this weekend in Vancouver, Second Beach and New Brighton public pools will open on Saturday. Find these activities and many more events listed below:
Upintheair Theatre’s rEvolver Festival opens May 24th, presenting inventive and progressive Canadian live theatre, created by emerging and established artists.
rEvolver Festival 2023
When: Wednesday May 24 to Sunday June 4, 2023
Where: The Cultch (1895 Venables Street, Vancouver)
Admission: Tickets available online; Tickets are “pay what you want” from $15 – $30
Passes: 3 Show Pass $51; 6 Show Pass $96; All-Access Pass $120
Programmed by UpintheAir Theatre’s Resident Curators Sarah Roa and Lili Robinson, Artistic Director David Mott, and Founding Artistic Producer Emeritus Daniel Martin.
With 10 mainstage productions, the 12-day festival showcases new works from artists who share a common aim to reinvent conventional theatre modes.
The line-up includes contemporary dance, drag, sketch comedy, and performance art. The festival’s special presentations offer more distinct multidisciplinary shows with an off-site micro-performance, a film screening and gathering, a satirical professional development webinar, an interactive website experience, a climate and housing workshop, and an online karaoke night.
Indigenous Emerging:
Resist Revive Replenish, Savage Society
A Buzz in Your Hub: Entrepreneurial Strategies for the Late Capitalist Death Spiral, Nakuset Gould, Chris Bose and Heather Mclean
Beat, Yeet and Eat!, Raven John AKA TwoSpiritTrickster
Digital Presentations:
The Investigator, Wren Brian
Birthing A Baby Revolutionary, Images of Whole
Big Queer Filipino Karaoke Night!, Davey Samuel Calderon
Mainstage Shows:
First Métis Man of Odesa, Punctuate! Theatre, Matthew MacKenzie and Mariya Khomutova
A Funny Thing Happened On My Way To Canada, Grace Chin
Birthing A Baby Revolutionary, Images of Whole
June Bug, Ragamuffin Productions Ashley Chodat
Lip Service: Breaking Down Barriers, Pulsive Party Natalie Tin Yin Gan and Ashley Whitehead
QEIII – Black Betty – a lost Shakespeare play, David Geary
Vancouver’s Little Italy is hosting the ultimate community celebration of Italian culture and heritage at this year’s Italian Day on the Drive. This year’s Renaissance-themed street party, that spans 14 blocks on Commercial Drive, marks new beginnings after a three-year hiatus.
Photo Submitted
Italian Day on the Drive
When: Sunday June 11, 2023 from 12:00pm to 9:00pm
Opening Ceremony at the Main Stage in Grandview Park noon – 12:45pm featuring guest speakers and performers
Where: Commercial Drive, Vancouver from Venables to East 7th Ave (view map here)
Admission: FREE!
The festival will have something for everyone, from music to design, food and drink, activities for all ages, and more. Summer patios will come alive along with Italian food and wine tasting piazzas, fashion runways, lots of music, an opportunity to dance in the streets, sit in the park, eat, shop, and play.
Join this year’s Renaissance and cultural celebration, surrounded by the warmth and vibrancy of the Italian lifestyle, and above all – the love of life and community.
Highlights
160 street participants: comprised of 20 patios, 60 Drive merchants, 23 food trucks/carts, and over 55 outside vendors, sponsors and non-profits
45 Italian food, beverage and product related merchants and vendors; and an additional 20 European and Latin amici (merchants and vendors)
3 music stages + 1 Music Tent: Main Stage in Grandview Park, Piazza Italia Stage @ 2nd Ave, Piazza Moda Stage @ 3rd Ave, and Piazza Bosa Music Tent @ Parker Street
4 DJs: DJ Storm (Jeff Gentile) @ Grant St Piazza; DJ MiXXX (Nick Guarna) @ Napier St Piazza; DJ Vic Mazzei at Pasta Eating Contest Stage @ 5th Ave; and MRZ DJ (Maurizio Margari) at Piazza Moda @ 3rd Ave
7 street personalities: special guest celebrity shoeshiner and artisan shoemaker direct from Verona, Italy – Gaio Il Calzolaio, as well as carnival stilt walkers, and living statues
5 activities for the whole family: Carnival Games & RE/MAX Children’s Arts & Crafts zone (Grandview Park); Pasta Eating Contests (5th Ave), BMO human foosball (Parker Street); Il Centro Exotic Car Display (4th Ave) and Vespa Metro Vancouver – Il Concorso d’Eleganza Vespa scooter display (2nd Ave)
5 seating areas: Grandview Park, 2nd Ave, 3rd Ave, Grant Street, Parker Street
2 fashion shows with Milan-style runways at Piazza Moda on 3rd Ave, featuring Canadian designers Atelier GRANDI and JAC by Jacqueline Conoir, with shoes and handbags from Kalena Shoes (Drive merchant since 1967).
Authentic Italian Table: Presented by the Italian Chamber of Commerce, indulge ‘Made in Italy’ food products, wine and beer samplings, as well as other products in Grandview Park
Bosa Foods’ Piazza: dedicated to product samplings from Bosa Foods Famiglia product line, as well as offering compliment live music and some seating throughout the day at Parker Street
American Idol Contestant: Emma Busse, a local 20 year old Italo-Canadian who made top 24 on this season’s American Idol, will be performing at the Opening Ceremony and at 2nd & 3rd Ave stages
Award-winning pizzaiolo: award-winning pizza chef Giuseppe Cortinovis collaborates with Fontana Forni @ 4th Ave to showcase Made in Italy wood-fire and gas pizza ovens, including direct from the oven pizza samplings.
Bike valet: Use our complimentary bike valet @ 6th Ave, walk or take transit
June is Italian Heritage Month, an opportunity to honour the history, culture, and contributions of Italian-Canadians to the City of Vancouver. It involves a month long series of events presented by various partners, including Il Centro Italian Cultural Centre, the Italian Day Festival Society, Consulate General of Italy in Vancouver and the Italian Chamber of Commerce in Canada – West, showcasing performances, exhibitions, language and cultural initiatives, community festivals, and other events. The Italian Day Festival Society launches the cultural festivities on a grand scale with Italian Day on The Drive, the signature and largest event of Italian Heritage Month.
