Vancouver Asian Heritage Month Society (“VAHMS”) has released the program for the 26th annual explorASIAN Festival, featuring free and ticketed events taking place throughout the month of May and beyond. The festival celebrates the start of Asian Heritage Month with over sixty in-person and virtual events and exhibitions presented by various community partners.
explorASIAN Festival 2022 VAHMS Events
Opening Ceremony April 30, 2022 at SFU Harbour Centre, RSVP for free This free ceremony will include a catered reception, speeches by esteemed guests, and performances to showcase the growing communities of Pan-Asian heritage and their rich, vibrant history in Canada.
Community Awards Celebration Saturday, May 21, 2022 at the PAL Studio Theatre, get tickets Recognizing and celebrating the arts and cultural diversity that Pan-Asian Canadian communities bring to Canadian society. During the event, VAHMS will be honouring individuals and organizations that have made a difference in these Pan-Asian Canadian communities. Featuring Co.ERASGA‘s Passages of Rhythms.
Filipino Fridays Music Lounge Series Mondays in May, virtual, free and ticketed In partnership with Vancouver Asian Heritage Month Society, explorASIAN Festival and CiTR101.9FM, every week in May, Filipino Fridays Podcast will feature emerging Filipino artists to perform live music sessions at the CiTR lounge. To close Asian Heritage Month, artists from the series will play at a grand finale show. Discover over a dozen emerging Filipino/a/x artists across multiple genres. Featuring DACEY, Francis Arevalo, Reign Cruz and more. Tune in to CiTR 101.9 on Mondays from 11:00am to 1:00pm and follow Filipino Fridays Podcast on all podcast streaming platforms.
Virtual Chinatown Walkabout May 11, 2022, virtual, by donation The Chinese Canadian Historical Society of BC hosts a virtual Chinatown Walkabout for this year’s explorASIAN Festival. This Zoom tour will be led by John Atkin, Bob Sung and Hayne Wai. John is a civic historian and heritage consultant; Bob hosts cultural and culinary tours of Chinatown; and, Hayne is a longtime Chinatown researcher and advocate. The event will be framed on the Vancouver Heritage Foundation Chinatown Guide.
Stronger Together: Exploring the U.S. and Canada’s Shared AsianHeritage May 13, 2022, virtual, free In celebration of May’s Asian Canadian and Asian American and Pacific Islander Month, explorASIAN and the U.S. Consulate General in Vancouver are proud to bring together trailblazing Asian Americans and Asian Canadians to discuss their journeys in the fields of space, diplomacy and acting.
… and many, many more events!
View the full program online for all of the events taking place throughout the month of May, as well as the Japan Summer Market Festival June 11-12, 2022 at šxʷƛ̓ənəq Xwtl’e7énḵ Square (formerly Vancouver Art Gallery north plaza). Follow explorASIAN on Facebook for the latest news.
Upintheair Theatre presents the rEvolver Festival, continuing their ten-year evolution of staging innovative and contemporary new works by emerging and mid-career artists from across Canada. The festival will have nine live productions and two digital presentations as well as special events.
Passes: Touring show $40; three show $51; six show flex $96; all access $120
Programmed by co-artistic producers Daniel Martin and David Mott and Resident Curators Kayleigh Sandomirsky and Lili Robinson, the festival is a return to live performances after a two-year hiatus.
rEvolver Festival will feature productions with a focus on interdependence as a pivot theme. The shows express a collective need for community and a feeling of togetherness — to reconnect and share stories again. Productions include a queer non-binary sketch comedy, a love concert, an at-home friendship ritual, a theatrical-jazzercise session, an audience-dictated choose-your-own-adventure experience, and an ancestrally-rooted cooking show.
Touring Shows:
Built Different, Couch Dwellers Productions, Nanaimo
Gender? I Hardly Know Them, Tiny Bear Jaws, Edmonton
LUCKY, barlizo productions, Montreal
Vancouver Artist Shows:
Controller, Nebula Company
Holy Moly, Jarin Schexnider
Light Rapid Transit, Coffeehouse Theatre Society
Losing It at the End of the World, written by Emily Schoen, directed by Bailey Bates and Shea Heatherington
Passenger Seat, The Library Performance Collective
SEETHERED, Zoe Wessler
Digital Presentations:
FR (Friendship Ritual), Remote Viewing, Toronto
Harvesting Ancestral “Tea-chings”, Siobhan Barker, Vancouver
Updrafts Reading Series:
Roughhousing, Chloe Payne
A Hyena’s Trail, Kijo Eunice Gatama
An Empty House, Francis Dowlatababi – digital presentation
Modeling, seeley quest – digital presentation
Real Talks presented with Gateway Theatre is a conversation with Pedro Chamale, Derek Chan and Makambe K. Simamba on social and political art making as well as the best practices around ethical storytelling — a live event that is also digitally-streamed.
As a welcome back to their artist and audience communities, Upintheair Theatre will host rEvolver rE-Connects, a gathering on the outdoor patio of The Cultch on Saturday, May 28 from 4:00pm to 6:00pm with BBQ, drinks, and free ice-cream.
The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (“VSO”) presents three full-length summer blockbuster movies at The Orpheum with the VSO performing the movie scores live. Iconic Hollywood titles Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, The Princess Bride, and Harry Potter and the Deathly HallowsTM – Part 2 make up the summer Movie Nights with the VSO presented by TELUS concerts lineup.
VSO Vancouver Symphony Orchestra Facebook Photo
Summer Blockbuster Movies with the Vancouver Symphony
Star Wars: Return of the Jedi in Concert July 6-7, 2022 at 7:30pm
Following a popular engagement in June (some tickets are still available) the VSO has added more dates for the popular Star Wars film July. Experience the spectacular Return of the Jedi on the big screen, with the full John Williams score played live by the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra.
The Princess Bride in Concert July 8-9, 2022 at 7:30pm
Experience one of the most beloved films of all time as never before: with the power of a full symphony orchestra performing the entire musical score live-to-picture. Directed by Rob Reiner, The Princess Bride features an all-star cast including Robin Wright, Cary Elwes, Wallace Shawn, Mandy Patinkin, Chris Sarandon, Billy Crystal, Carol Kane, Christopher Guest, Fred Savage and André the Giant.
Now for the first time, composer Mark Knopfler’s unforgettable score has been specially arranged for symphony orchestra. Missing this cinematic concert experience would be inconceivable!
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows™— Part 2 in Concert July 13-15, 2022 at 7:30pm
The VSO will perform Alexandre Desplat’s entire Grammy® nominated score live, while the entire film plays in high-definition on a 40-foot screen. In the epic finale, the battle between the good and evil forces of The Wizarding World escalates into an all-out war.
I know I keep saying this but I think this is the longest event list I’ve made in two years! This weekend the city will be hopping with Easter activities for the whole family, Canada Sevens rugby, theatre performances, live music, and so much more from the Sea to Sky to the Fraser Valley. Find these Easter Long Weekend events and more listed below:
Long Weekend Events in Vancouver April 15-18, 2022
The 15th annual GrapeJuice boutique wine tasting and auction event in support of Big Sisters BC Lower Mainland is back again with an online format this May. Along with great wine and an immersive virtual experience, GrapeJuice is about coming together to support life-changing mentoring relationships to ignite the power and potential of young people in our community.
This year, Big Sisters BCLM is partnering with The Consulat Général de France à Vancouver, Chef David Hawksworth, Legends Haul, and Select Wines to bring you the exquisite tastes and wines of France!
Choose from event access ($75) or one of the delicious dinner & wine packages for two ($350) that include:
Dinner inspired by Chef David Hawksworth and delivered by Legends Haul: Includes a cheese trio from Les Amis du Fromage, Beef Bourguignon and Sticky Toffee Pudding
Three hand-selected bottles of French wine
Access to 1 hour program featuring the talented musician Mark Woodyard, wine tastings led by celebrated sommeliers, and inspiring stories about why mentorship matters
Access to online silent auction with over 100 unique wines
Portion of purchase eligible for tax receipt
The decadent three course meal includes Legends Haul charcuterie, cheese trio & accoutrements; Nightingale Beef Bourguignon & Livia Baguette or Vegetarian Kula Kitchen Tofu & Sweet Potato Bowl; and Nightingale Sticky Toffee Pudding or Bel Café Gluten Free Lava Cake.
Sip and savor these French favorites throughout the program with Sommelier led tastings:
Laroche ‘Les Beauroys’ Premier Cru Chablis, Burgundy
Chateau de Sancerre, Sancerre rouge, Loire (Pinot Noir)
Domaines Baron de Rothschild (Lafite) ‘Les Legendes’, Pauillac, Bordeaux
Together, from your support in joining GrapeJuice each year, Big Sisters BLCM has funded nearly 500 matches. By investing in the power of mentorship, you ignite the potential of a young person in our community. Your donation supports Big Sisters in providing more inclusive programming through translation projects, ongoing training and program advancements which better support diverse youth.
Get your GrapeJuice tickets today and follow Big Sisters BLCM on Facebook for their latest news.
