Curtain Call: 10 Vancouver arts shows to check out in January
Kick off 2023 with a great arts show happening in and around Vancouver!
Here are 10 fantastic ones to add to your calendar to start the new year, including Fiddler on the Roof, Dita Von Teese, and more.
And for more fun things happening around town be sure to visit our Listed section.
Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof/Broadway Across Canada
What: Fiddler on the Roof is a Tony Award-winning musical that has captured the hearts of people from around the globe.
The timeless theatrical classic from Tony-winner Joseph Stein and Pulitzer Prize winners Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick tells the story of fathers and daughters, husbands and wives, and timeless traditions of faith and family.
When: January 17 to 22, 2023
Time: 8 pm (Tuesday to Saturday), 2 pm (Saturday), 2 pm and 7:30 pm (Sunday)
Where: Queen Elizabeth Theatre — 630 Hamilton Street, Vancouver
Cost: Various, purchase online starting Monday, October 24 at 10 am
Keeping the Song Alive at Bill Reid Gallery
What: Bill Reid Gallery of Northwest Coast Art, in partnership with the Jewish Museum & Archives of BC, presents the Canadian premiere of Keeping the Song Alive.
The exhibition spotlights the mostly unknown story of the long-running collaboration of ethnomusicologist Dr. Ida Halpern and the late Kwakwaka’wakw Chiefs Billy Assu and Mungo Martin to document hundreds of sacred and traditional songs that would otherwise have been erased due to the Potlatch Ban and suppression of Northwest Coast Indigenous culture.
When: Now until March 19, 2023 (open Wednesday to Sunday)
Time: 10 am to 5 pm
Where: Bill Reid Gallery — 639 Hornby Street, Vancouver
Admission: $6-$13; free for Indigenous Peoples, members, and children 12 years and under. Purchase online
PuSh International Performing Arts Festival 2023
What: PuSh Festival returns for its 19th year of showcasing groundbreaking work in the performing arts. This year will feature 20 shows from 12 countries ranging from theatre to dance to circus and more. There will also be the highly anticipated return of Club PuSh at Performance Works from February 2 to 4.
When: January 19 to February 6, 2023
Time: Various times
Where: Various venues plus some streaming options
Tickets and Passes: Online
FADO – The Saddest Music in the World
FADO (Derek Ford/Submitted)
What: FADO – The Saddest Music in the World by acclaimed Portuguese-Canadian playwright Elaine Ávila returns to the Firehall. The musical tells the story of a young woman facing her country’s fascist past as well as her own identity. FADO also features the heartbreaking national music of Portugal known as Fado, which means “fate.”
When: Tuesdays to Sundays from January 14 to February 5, 2023
Time: Various times
Where: Firehall Arts Centre — 280 East Cordova Street, Vancouver
Tickets: Sliding scale of $25-$40. Purchase online
Forgiveness
What: Forgiveness is the powerful story of a family’s harrowing experiences during World War II adapted by Hiro Kanagawa from the acclaimed memoir by Mark Sakamoto.
Forgiveness explores how can one turn away from a life of anger and embrace forgiveness in the face of tremendous adversity and transgressions.
When: January 12 to February 12, 2023
Time: Various times
Where: Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage – 2750 Granville Street, Vancouver
Cost: Starting from $35, purchase online
Sacre
What: DanceHouse’s 15th anniversary season continues with Sacre, a mix of contemporary dance and acrobatics by Australia’s Circa. Artistic director Yaron Lifschitz takes the audience on an investigation of the very nature of human experience.
When: January 17 to 21, 2023
Time: 8 pm
Where: Vancouver Playhouse – 600 Hamilton Street, Vancouver
Tickets: Various prices, purchase online
Dita Von Teese – Glamonatrix Tour
Dita Von Teese (Albert Sanchez/Submitted)
What: Dita Von Teese, The Queen of Burlesque, is bringing the world’s biggest burlesque show to Vancouver in January.
Attendees of Glamonatrix will enjoy a full evening of comedy and sophisticated striptease that celebrates diverse beauty and individuality. The “body-positive, celebratory show” will feature some of the most acclaimed burlesque performers in the world
When: January 10, 2023
Time: 7 pm
Where: Queen Elizabeth Theatre — 630 Hamilton Street, Vancouver
Tickets: Various prices, purchase online
Codes of Silence
What: Codes of Silence is an exhibition by Shirley Bruno, Aleesa Cohene, Caroline Monnet, and Cauleen Smith at the Richmond Art Gallery. The assembled artworks explore how the voice can be muted, obscured, withheld or unexplained in ways that cultivate quietness, interiority, intimacy, and community.
When: January 28 to April 2, 2023 (closed on statutory holidays)
Time: 10 am to 6 pm (Monday to Friday), noon to 5 pm (Saturday and Sunday)
Where: Richmond Art Gallery at Richmond Cultural Centre – 7700 Minoru Gate, Richmond
Admission: By donation
Little Willy
What: Daisy Theatre presents a twisted take on Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet in Little Willy. Every leading lady in the Daisy ensemble battles for the sought-after role of Juliet. Audience-favourite characters will return and there may even be an appearance of The Bard himself.
When: January 10 to 29, 2023
Time: Various times
Where: The Cultch’s Historic Theatre – 1895 Venables Street, Vancouver
Tickets: Starting at $35, purchase online
Instantaneous Blue
What: The world premiere of Instantaneous Blue by Aaron Craven tells the story of Edward and Sara on their journey of welcoming their first child into life while shepherding Edward’s declining parents out of it. The play is also a celebration of Mitch and Murray Productions’s 10-year anniversary.
When: January 6 to 22, 2023
Time: Various times
Where: Waterfront Theatre – 1412 Cartwright Street, Vancouver
Tickets: Various prices, purchase online
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