City Opera Vancouver presents the world premiere of the political satire BERLIN: The Last Cabaret during the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival.

BERLIN: The Last Cabaret

When: January 23 to 26, 2020 at 8:00pm
Where: Performance Works (1218 Cartwright St, Vancouver)
Tickets: Available online now through the PuSh Festival box office

Set in Nazi Germany on July 13, 1934, the darkly humorous production takes place the day of Adolf Hitler’s national broadcast claiming responsibility for the “Night of the Long Knives” — a horrific political purge and extrajudicial execution of more than 85 members of the Sturmabteilung (SA).

Directed and co-created by Alan Corbishley, in association with Sound the Alarm: Music/Theatre BERLIN follows an underground cabaret troupe as they decide whether their love of creative and social freedom is worth the ultimate price.

The production features original songs from early 20th-century cabarets in Germany, which were banned after the fall of the Republic. A popular form of entertainment, the German kabarett was distinct from the French iteration for its sharp political satire and dark humour. Although kabarett existed in the late 19th century, it wasn’t until after World War I that the genre came into its own, particularly in Berlin.

True to the type of artists found on cabaret stages at the time, BERLIN features a diverse cast of actors, rather than traditional opera singers: Julia Munčs, Meaghan Chenosky, Alen Dominguez, Brent Hirose, and Dan Deorksen.

Follow City Opera Vancouver on Facebook and Twitter for more info.

Win Tickets

I have a pair of tickets to give away to opening night on January 23rd, here’s how you can enter to win:

• Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
• Click below to post an entry on Twitter

I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Wednesday, January 8, 2020.

UPDATE The winner is TJ!

With the festivities behind us, this is a great time of year to reset, refuel and rejuvenate. From refreshing smoothies to non-alcoholic cocktails and healthy dishes, here are five reasons to move those legs to Coquitlam. 

1. Healthy Eats

Eating clean doesn’t have to be boring. Here are some ways to add some fresh, tasty goodness to your daily routine.

Café Delitzi: Nourish your body with raw, organic, vegan and gluten-free dishes. Popular items include the vegan taco wrap or organic zucchini pasta “Bolognese” with house-made vegan bread. They also serve coffee and fresh juices, located a short walk from Coquitlam Centre. 

Korean food: Coquitlam is home to one of the largest Korean communities in Canada, where you’ll find everything from cozy cafés to spacious restaurants serving homestyle recipes handed down through generations. Bone broths are boiled for hours, full of nutritional and anti-inflammatory power. Read our recent blog for recommendations.

Vietnamese food: Think steaming bowls of Pho with healthy broth or rice paper salad rolls made with fresh ingredients. Scope out your options on visitcoquitlam.ca. 

Japanese food: Sushi and sashimi are healthy choices, and Coquitlam has dozens of top-notch restaurants to try. Check them out at visitcoquitlam.ca. 

The elevator bell chimed and we walked out into the lobby of the Radisson RED in Downtown Portland toward one of John‘s favourite taprooms. It was mid-December and all of the theatre marquees on Broadway were glittering as show guests gathered by the curb to await their rides. Just past the family-owned haberdashery, the Great Figgy Pudding Carolling Competition had just wrapped up under the 80ft tall living Christmas Tree at Pioneer Courthouse Square. What a fun time it was to be in the city!

Staying in Downtown Portland at The RED Radisson

I was invited to check out the Radisson RED, “an upscale, select service hotel brand that presents a playful twist on the conventional” and throughout the weekend it made for a great home base for our PDX adventures.

Let’s just go ahead and start the year by looking forward to the weekend! January is full of food festivals, theatrical productions, and – when the weather cooperates – outdoor winter fun. Here are some things to do in Vancouver this weekend to kick off the month:

Things to do in Vancouver This Weekend

Friday, January 3, 2020
Miss604 Media Partner: Lights at Lafarge in Coquitlam
Sponsored by Miss604: Burnaby Village Museum’s Heritage Christmas
It’s a Wonderful Life at the Anvil Centre
Old Time Dance Party at the Wise Hall
The Arts Club Presents: The Sound of Music
Carousel Theatre Presents: Peter Pan
Snow White Panto
Festivale Tropicale at Bloedel
Glow Gardens
Canyon Lights at Capilano Suspension Bridge Park

The Twenties are back and as we head into a new decade, I thought I’d take a look back at Vancouver in 1920 with this collection of photos from the City of Vancouver Archives (many of which were taken by Stuart Thomson):

Vancouver in 1920, Photo Collection

April 1920: The Japanese-Canadian War Memorial, designed by Vancouver architect James Benzie, was installed at Stanley Park. It commemorates Japanese-Canadians who fought in World War I. A Japanese-Canadian entrepreneur, Koichiro Sanmiya, sold war bonds to raise the money for the memorial. You can visit it today, surrounded by cherry blossoms in the spring.

May 1920: The Reo Motor Car Agency Ltd. and Maple Leaf Cord Tires sponsor a road trip with this vehicle, starting out in Vancouver and heading to New Brunswick. Also in the photo, Lumberman’s Arch.

1920: It was a big year for baseball, on January 5th the Boston Red Sox sold Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees. In Vancouver, teams played at the Athletic Park on Hemlock & West 6th. Babe Ruth would play at Vancouver’s Athletic Park in 1934 with his team of “American League All-Stars”.

1920: Ever a busy intersection, above is a view of the 2400 Block of Main Street at Broadway.

July 1920: A tour bus filled with convention-goers (10th annual Convention N.W. Photo Engravers) outside a hotel in Downtown Vancouver.

1920: English Bay Beach, hopping with swimmers, paddlers and beachgoers. The English Bay Pier was still around in 1920 as were additional bathhouse structures. You might have even found Joe Fortes in the water there, Vancouver’s “Citizen of the Century”.

1920: A photo of Christchurch Cathedral on Burrard and Georgia. When it was dedicated in 1895, it was the tallest building in Vancouver.

1920: A snow day scene in Strathcona.

1920: There have been three Cambie Bridges, this is a scene from the second one called the Connaught Bridge, which was built in 1911.

The Seawall wasn’t completed until 1980 but work began in 1917. This part of the Seawall, where Coal Harbour meets Lost Lagoon, was sealed off in 1923 and the causeway was complete in 1926. The photo above shows the bridge to Stanley Park in 1920, from the perspective of the Rowing Club.

Vancouver’s Theatre Row on Hastings and Granville were popular stops for traveling Vaudeville acts and other talents. Here’s what was playing at the Columbia Theatre at 64 W Hastings in 1920.

Related: Vancouver in 1919, 18 Photos of Vancouver in 1918; Vancouver in 1917; Vancouver in 1916; 15 Photos of Vancouver in 1915; 14 Photos of Vancouver in 1914.

See also: January 1st in Vancouver History, February in Vancouver History, March in Vancouver History, April in Vancouver History, May in Vancouver History, June in Vancouver History, July in Vancouver History, August in Vancouver History, September, October in Vancouver History, November in Vancouver History, December in Vancouver History.