Tickets are now available for the Canuck Place Spring 50/50, presented by RE/MAX Agents of the Lower Mainland, to support Canuck Place children and families.

Canuck Place Children’s Hospice is British Columbia and Yukon’s pediatric palliative care provider. Over 830 children living with life-threatening illnesses and families from five provincial health regions receive Canuck Place inpatient and community care (in home/in hospital).

Canuck Place Spring 50/50 Raffle 2023

• Tickets: Buy online for 3 for $5, 7 for $10, 50 for $20 or 150 for $50
• Anticipated Prize: $500,000 to be split with the winner
• Tickets close: 11:59pm Wednesday, May 31, 2023
• Draw Date:  Friday, June 2 at 11:00am PDT
  • Tickets may be sold and purchased only in British Columbia. Ticket purchasers must be 19 years of age or older. Know your limit, play within it.

Since launching in Fall 2020, the Canuck Place 50/50 has raised $2,668,895! Half has gone to the lucky winners, and half goes to support exceptional care in Canuck Place hospices in Vancouver and Abbotsford, and in communities across BC and the Yukon.

Canuck Place nurses and physicians offer specialized care through the Nancy Chan Enhanced Community Care program. This program ensures families across the entire province have access to Canuck Place care when and where they need it the most. This includes telephone and video conferencing, 24-hour clinical care line, in-home visits by nurse practitioners, and coordinated care planning with local hospital staff in a family’s home community.

For over 25 years, Canuck Place has been providing exceptional complex medical care, while helping children and families embrace living fully with the time they have left together. But not without donor support. That’s where your 50/50 ticket purchase can make a difference.

Canuck Place operates 13 patient beds and 8 family suites through two hospices in Vancouver and Abbotsford. Services include in-hospice medical respite and family support, pain and symptom management, provincial 24-hour clinical care line, music and recreation therapy, education and art, grief, loss, and bereavement counselling, as well as end-of-life care. With donors, research initiatives, our talented team, patient family partners, and over 370 volunteers, we care for children with short lives and the families who love them.

Follow Canuck Place on Facebook for more news and information.

Miss604 is a proud sponsor of this Canuck Place campaign.

A lineup sneak peek and early bird tickets have been announced as the 46th Annual Vancouver Folk Music Festival has regrouped, found a renewed energy and enthusiasm, and is looking forward to bringing the music back to Jericho Beach Park Summer 2023!

Vancouver Folk Music Festival 2023

The festival is excited to announce four of the names in the 2023 artist lineup – offering a sample of the brilliant artistry audiences can expect to discover on VFMF stages this summer:

From Ennis, County Clare, Ireland, singer/songwriter Susan O’Neill has been described as “audacity personified, a free spirit, a real performer” with a timeless voice that’s “equal parts balm and blowtorch.” Celeigh Cardinal is a soul-folk songstress from the northern prairies, and a 2020 JUNO Indigenous Album of the Year winner. It’s been said she’s “quickly becoming one of the great Canadian voices”. Cameroonian-born singer/songwriter Blick Bassy is a unique voice in African music. He sings in his native Bassa, but his musical travels include the blues, samba, bossa nova, folk, and far beyond. A Chicano band from East LA., the vibrant music of Las Cafeteras fuses spoken word, an urban attitude and folk music with traditional son jarocho. They sing of civil rights, the United Farm Workers, immigration – their music a tool for inspiring positive change.

The full 2023 Festival line-up will be announced in early May.

Early Bird Tickets are available online until June 5 and offer the lowest prices of the season as prices increases the next day. Weekend passes at adult, elder, student, and youth rates will all be on sale at their most affordable prices.

UPDATE: The full lineup is now available

To stay up to date on the full lineup and ticket sales, follow VFMF on Instagram or visit their website.

Related: Music

5X Festival returns this summer from June 11 to 18, 2023 with a line-up that brings together storytelling, pride, music, and art while celebrating South Asian youth culture! Join in the celebration with a multi-day, multi-venue festival covering music, arts, fashion, and culture.

5X Fest Lineup

5X Press Panel
Tuesday, June 13 from 6:00pm to 9:00pm at The Beaumont Studios, Vancouver
If you could build your own futuristic utopia, what would it look like? Multimedia artist Ruby Singh and 5X Press Editor-in-Chief Jeevan Sangha lead us through our imaginations as we dream up a new future in this interactive workshop. Tickets available for $20.

5X Storytelling
Wednesday, June 14 from 6:00pm to 8:00pm at The Beaumont Studios, Vancouver
Poetry, prose, and stories are woven together in this showcase of viral poet and singer Robyn Sandhu’s words. Tickets available for $25.

5X Pride
Thursday, June 15 7:00pm to late at Village Studios, Vancouver
A night of love, joy, and Queerness. 5X Pride is co-presented with your favourite desi drag queen Jolene “Queen” Sloan who is bringing some of her most special guests. Shut down the night with a DJ set by Bianca Maeli (No Nazar, LA) and guests. Tickets available for $27.

5X Blockparty
Saturday, June 17 from 2:00pm to 9:30pm at Surrey Civic Plaza
Festival tickets include concert access, an array of food vendors, art installations, and a vendor village of some of the coolest local brands. Tickets are free when you RSVP online, VIP tickets are also available for purchase. Once again, the 5X Blockparty is free to the public. Your RSVP will enter you into a chance to win an All Access Pass 5X Fest 2023 for you and a friend. That means you get to hit up all 5 festival events and party it up with VIP Blockparty tickets!

5X Art Party
Sunday, June 18 from 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm at Surrey Art Gallery & Surrey Civic Theatres
Signature art event celebrates creativity and artistic expression. Bringing together some of the most exciting artists Metro Vancouver’s South Asian art scene has to offer. Tickets available for $30.

5X is the essential festival and digital community elevating South Asian youth culture. Run year-round by a young team of activists and thought leaders from Surrey, 5X Fest is the organization’s flagship event. Championing the best of South Asian music, art and culture for millennial and Gen Z audiences, the festival brings the liberated spaces of social media into a real, physical experience.

For more information and updates about the 5X Festival, follow along on Facebook and Instagram.

The 2023 Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival returns to Sen̓áḵw/Vanier Park in Vancouver from June 8 to September 30. The festival’s 34^th season brings back the most successful production in Bard’s history, plus a famous tale of political intrigue, a sweeping historical drama, and a unique interpretation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth.

On the BMO Mainstage the season takes off with the return of Bard’s triumphant production of As You Like It. Enjoy Shakespeare blended with The Beatles hits in this romantic comedy conceived and directed by Daryl Cloran (As You Like It, Shakespeare in Love). It plays in repertory with a contemporary setting of Shakespeare’s gripping political drama, Julius Caesar, directed by Cherissa Richards (Harlem Duet). This tale of our drive to get—and hold on to—power resonates especially powerfully in today’s fractured political landscape.

The Howard Family Stage will host two contrasting productions. Adapted by Lois Anderson (Lysistrata), Henry V is a historical drama with a twist running from June 28 to August 13. At the edge of the world, at the end of the world, a troupe of actors explore themes of love and warfare via Shakespeare’s text. On August 19, the clever and hilariously imaginative Goblin:Macbeth, created by Rebecca Northan with Bruce Horak, takes over the Howard Family Stage until September 17. This production asks audiences to imagine, “what if a group of Goblins discovered Shakespeare, and staged Macbeth?”

Play run dates and special events for 2023:

• As You Like It, June 8 to September 30 – Opening Night June 18
• Julius Caesar, June 15 to September 23 – Opening Night June 23
• Henry V, June 28 to August 13 – Opening Night July 5
• Goblin: Macbeth, August 19 to September 17 – Opening Night August 23
• Bard Fireworks Nights: July 22, 26, & 29- As You Like It followed by catered picnic dinner, performance by Coastal Wolf Pack, and firework views
• Wine Wednesdays: July 12, August 16, & September 20 – Enjoy some wine before one of three performances throughout the season
• Family Days: July 16 & August 20 – Encouraging young theatre patrons to discover Shakespeare and the Sen̓áḵw/Vanier Park festival experience
• Bard Pride Night: June 24 – Its second year, which includes early site access for special activities to celebrate Pride with the Bard Family
• Relaxed Performance: July 1 – A less structured experience of As You Like It for patrons
• Bard Explored: July 15, August 5, & 19 – A deep dive into the world of Shakespeare with Simon Fraser University’s Paul Budra
• Talkback Tuesdays: Every Tuesday in July & August: Performers take part in free post-show discussions

Tickets are available online now. Prices for special events, group bookings and multi-play ticket packages can be found online or by calling the Bard Box Office at (604) 739-0559. Early booking is recommended for best seat selection (all seats are reserved) as many performances sell out in advance.

The Vancouver Street Soccer League (“VSSL”) is currently fundraising for an exciting opportunity to take part in a tournament in Alert Bay.

June Sports is an annual soccer tournament that is hosted and organized by the ‘Namgis First Nation. Around thirty players and volunteers from the VSSL will be heading to Alert Bay to participate this year. The village parade and traditional longhouse ceremonies that kick off the tournament resonate deeply with many of the players, particularly those from the Downtown Eastside neighbourhood.

Vancouver Street Soccer League Tournament Fundraiser

• You can contribute to the fundraising campaign here »
• Your donations will help pay for food, transportation, and camping.

Established in 2008, the Vancouver Street Soccer League is a volunteer-run, non-profit organization which reaches out to individuals who have been or currently experiencing the spectrum of houselessness, as well as individuals that are marginalized within their communities, and/or struggle with substance use or mental health conditions.

They address the issue of homelessness, marginalization, and addiction through inclusivity and soccer – believing they can enhance all of our lives through the principles of Fair Play, Community Building, Supportive Partnerships, and Health and Safety.

From VSSL: “The long trip up Vancouver Island the natural beauty of Alert Bay, and scenic boat-rides are particularly refreshing and rejuvenating for the players. The camaraderie forged on the soccer field or at the camping site, while dining over communal meals after a hard-fought match, makes this trip a highlight of the year. One of the most powerful things about the June Sports tournament is how it allows Indigenous players to reconnect with the community. This is the first year the VSSL will be participating at June Sports since COVID. It’s an important event for the players and it’s been deeply missed!”

For more information, follow the Vancouver Street Soccer League on Facebook.

Look for my in-depth VSSL feature in an upcoming issue of Megaphone Magazine!

Related: Soccer