Culture Days in Canada are coming up September 30th, October 1st, and October 2nd as every province and territory celebrates the arts. Events around the Metro Vancouver area include everything from theatre performances to fibre arts studio tours. Major hubs of activity are on Granville Island, at the Burnaby Library, and at the Surrey Arts […]

It’s Vancouver International Fringe Festival time again, now in it’s 27th year, which runs from September 8 – 18. This year’s Fringe Festival will feature over 600 performances by more than 80 groups over the course of the 11 days, and is expected to attract over 30,000 attendees. Photo credit: dooq on Flickr This year […]

Tomorrow night The Owl & The Pussycat opens at the PAL Studio Theatre in Coal Harbour. Set in San Francisco, it was written by Bill Manhoff and originally starred Alan Alda and Diana Sands when it opened on Broadway in 1964. It was also made into a film and starred George Segal with Barbra Streisand. […]

The Victoria Fringe Festival kicks off next week as 72 international and local theatre companies take to various venues and stages across the capital city. Victoria Fringe is one of the oldest in Canada and this year they celebrate 25 years of providing affordable, alternative entertainment from around the world. BFA The Musical. Photo: The […]

Today is the first day of the Neanderthal Arts Festival at the Vancouver Eastside Cultural Centre (July 21 to 30), a developmental festival featuring new and experimental work by local theatre companies, and one from Montreal. This year’s line-up includes a play about a pregnant man (My Pregnant Brother/Freestanding Productions), a musical about a bigamist […]

One of my all-time favourite plays, Shakespeare’s Richard III, will be opening at Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival this Saturday night at Vanier Park. Directed by Kathryn Shaw, Richard III completes a two-play lineup (the first being Henry VI: The War of the Roses–an amalgamation of Henry VI part 1,2, and 3) in the […]

July 5th, 1959 was the opening day of the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in downtown Vancouver and a few weeks later Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II personally gave it her name. The venue accommodates 2,781 patrons and over the years it has hosted some of the world’s greatest plays, musicals, operas, ballets and concerts. 1957, excavation […]

Director Rachel Ditor’s interpretation of The Merchant of Venice is probably one of the best productions I’ve ever seen at Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival, now in its 22nd season. Ditor clearly translates the text into fantastic direction for her actors, all of whom give outstanding performances. The story follows Bassanio (Charlie Gallant) who […]

The 29th annual Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards, celebrating the very best in Vancouver theatre, are taking place tonight at the Commodore Ballroom. As I did last year, I am sponsoring a live blog of the awards ceremony in order to show support and promote our city’s lively community. The ceremony will begin around 6:45pm and […]

Broadway Across Canada presents Mamma Mia! in Vancouver this August from the 16th to the 21st. The hit broadway musical that gets the audience dancing in the aisles is one of the best feel-good shows around. Mamma Mia! combines ABBA’s greatest hits with an enchanting love story filled with laughter, family, and friendship. There is […]